Ward, Bettez off to world U22 championships
CANADA’S NATIONAL WOMEN’S UNDER-22
TEAM ANNOUNCED FOR 2009 MLP CUP
CALGARY, AB – All-Canadian rearguard Catherine Ward, from Town of
Mount Royal, Que., and CIS rookie of the year ±«ÓăÖ±˛Ą Ann-Sophie
Bettez of Sept-Iles, Que., both members of the ±«ÓăÖ±˛Ą
Martlets, are heading to Germany with the Canadian women’s under-22
hockey team.
Hockey Canada announced on Monday the 22 players who will comprise
Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 Team at the 2009 MLP Cup
(formerly the Air Canada Cup), January 2-6, 2009 in Ravensburg,
Germany. The team will depart for Germany on December 27 as it
looks for a seventh-consecutive title at the event.
This will be the third tour of duty with the U-22 squad for Ward,
while Bettez is one of five players who will be representing Canada
for the first time.
The U-22 roster is composed of 18 players from NCAA institutions,
three from Canadian Interuniversity Sport and one from Quebec CEGEP
AA (Lauriane Rougeau from Beaconsfield, Que.and a product of
Collège St. Jerôme).
The only other CIS player named was goaltender Liz Knox of the
Laurier Golden Hawks.
Canada will play a pair of games against Switzerland’s national
women’s team, on December 29 and December 31, prior to traveling to
Ravensburg for the 2009 MLP Cup.
Canada’s roster includes 21 of the 22 players who dressed for
Canada in a three-game series against the United States’ Women’s
Under-22 Select Team in Pierrefonds, QC in August. Canada won the
final two games of the series after losing the opener in a
shootout.
Mallory Deluce (London, ON/University of Wisconsin, WCHA) has been
added to the roster for the 2009 MLP Cup. Deluce played for
Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 Team at the 2008 Air Canada Cup,
recording one goal and two assists in four games as Canada won the
tournament for the sixth year in a row.
“We are very excited about the roster that we have assembled for
this event,” said Sarah Howald, head coach of Canada’s National
Women’s Under-22 Team. “We had great success in Pierrefonds, and
look ±«ÓăÖ±˛Ą to continuing the development of these players in
Germany.”
Canada’s roster includes 11 players who won gold at the 2008 Air
Canada Cup (Agosta, Birchard, Blais, Fridfinnson, Irwin, Johnston,
Larocque, Smith, Thibault, Wakefield, Ward) and four players who
won silver with Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team at the 2008
IIHF World Women’s Under-18 Championship (Bram, Haverstock,
Rougeau, Spooner). In addition, six players (Agosta, Johnston,
Larocque, Spooner, Wakefield, Ward) won a silver medal with
Canada’s National Women’s Team at the 2008 4 Nations Cup in Lake
Placid, NY in early November.
Canada is the six-time defending champion at the MLP Cup, having
won every year since the tournament’s inception in 2003, losing
only once in 20 games. Canada will play in Group A with Finland and
Russia, while Germany, Sweden and Switzerland will make up Pool
B.
COMPLETE DETAILS ABOUT THE TOURNAMENT AVAILABLE ONLINE AT:
canadianhockey.ca/index.php/ci_id/58760/la_id/1.htm