January 13, 2025
Photo Credit: Hockey Canada
Four current and one former Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL) student-athletes helped Team Canada capture gold at the 2025 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championships.
Former RHA Kelowna defenseman and current University of Minnesota student-athlete Chloe Primerano captained Team Canada and was joined on the roster by current RHA Kelowna student-athletes Ava Drabyk, Alida Korte, Danica Maynard, and Hayley McDonald.
The tournament took place January 4-12 in Vantaa, Finland. Team Canada opened the round robin with a 6-2 win against Slovakia before beating Switzerland 5-1and Czechia 5-0. They would beat Japan 17-0 in the quarter finals and Czechia 4-2 in the semis, before beating the USA 3-0 in the gold medal game.
Primerano, who represented Team Canada at the 2024 U18 Women’s World Championships, earning MVP, Best Defender, Tournament Allstar and Leading Scorer honours, led all defensemen with 4 goals, 6 assists and 10 points, third among all skaters. She would once again be named Best Defender, and a Tournament Allstar, while her 10 points gave her 36 career points with the U18 Women’s team, setting a new Canadian record.
McDonald would record 4 goals and 3 assists in 6 games, putting her seventh in team scoring. Maynard would chip in with 1 goal and 3 assists in 6 games, while Korte would play 2 games, finishing the tournament with 1 assist.
