A team-by-team glance at the Olympic women’s hockey tournament field
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A capsule look at the countries competing in the women’s hockey tournament at the 2026 Olympic Games (listed according to world ranking):
UNITED STATES
Carrying veterans Hilary Knight and Kendall Coyne Schofield, but the Americans are a young, fast side featuring seven NCAA players and 13 players under the age of 25. Reigning world champions seek to avenge the 3-2 loss to Canada in the 2022 Olympic final in Beijing.
CANADA
Older team with an average age of just over 29, leaning into its experience in high-stakes games. Captain Marie-Philip Poulin needs two goals to break Hayley Wickenheiser’s record of 18 in Olympic women’s hockey. The Professional Women’s Hockey League, in its third season, upended Canada’s traditional prep of training and playing games together for six months.
FINLAND
Bronze medallists at the 2022 Beijing Games have four PWHL players on their 2026 roster, including Ottawa Charge defender Ronja Savolainen, goaltender Sanni Ahola and Vancouver Goldeneyes forward Michelle Karvinen. Karvinen is set to compete in her fifth Olympic Games.
CZECHIA
Gave the U.S. a rough semifinal ride in last year’s world championship before falling 2-1. Coached by Canadian two-time Olympic gold medallist Carla MacLeod, the Czechs carry the most PWHL players of any European country with eight. Kristýna Kaltounková, of the New York Sirens, is among PWHL’s leading goal scorers with nine in 15 games.
SWITZERLAND
Swiss fell to Finland in the 2022 bronze-medal game. Boston Fleet forward Alina Müller shares the Olympic record for most goals in a single game with four, and most goals in a period with three (2018). Captain Lara Stalder is a four-time Olympian. Forward Vanessa Schaefer is a University of British Columbia Thunderbird.
SWEDEN
The only country other than Canada and the U.S. to reach an Olympic final (2006), the Swedes have four PWHL players on their roster, including Toronto Sceptres defender Anna Kjellbin and forward Sara Hjalmarsson, and Montreal Victoire forward Lina Ljungblom.
JAPAN
Japan has hovered between sixth and eighth in the world in recent years. Forward Akane Shiga spent a season with the Ottawa Charge when the PWHL launched. She and her sister Aoi, a defender, both play in the Swedish women’s league, but the majority of Japan’s roster plays in the domestic league.
GERMANY
Coached by Jeff McLeod of Halifax since 2023, Germany returns to the Olympic women’s hockey tournament for the first time since 2014. The PWHL contingent includes goalie Sandra Abstreiter (Montreal), defender Nina Jobst-Smith (Vancouver) and forward Laura Kluge (Boston).
FRANCE
The French make their Olympic women’s hockey debut with a dose of Canadian content: Léa Berger (University of Montreal); Emma Nonnenmacher (Concordia) Anaïs Peyne-Dingival (John Abbott College); Gabrielle De Serres (Sudbury Lady Wolves).
ITALY
Back in the Olympic tournament for the first time since 2006, when Canada beat the host country 16-0 in Turin, Italy, in the opener for both countries. Martina Fedel is a University of Guelph goaltender. Former Harvard captain Kristen Della Rovere of Caledon, Ont., plays for Italy’s EV Bozen Eagles.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 4, 2026.