‘Overdue’ for gold in women’s hockey

HALIFAX — National team goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer believes next year’s IIHF Women’s World Championship, to be hosted in Nova Scotia, represents a “long overdue” opportunity to reclaim a hockey title Canada once took for granted.

The team’s archrival the United States has won five consecutive gold medals — its last coming in a controversial 2-1 shootout win against host Finland last spring — and Maschmeyer believes Canada’s thirdplace finish at that tournament is indicative of the increased level of play in the women’s game.

“It’s a great thing for the sport,” she said Wednesday following a news conference to release details of the 2020 tournament in Halifax and Truro.

“It doesn’t feel like it when you are on the receiving end, but it shows that globally the game’s getting a lot better.”

Canada will open next year’s tournament against defending silver-medallist Finland in Halifax on March 31.

Maschmeyer, 24, said there will be no substitute for playing at home before passionate fans.

“It’s our time to bring home gold,” she said. “It’s been far too long. In my years in the senior team we’ve yet to do that, so we are ready.”

Canada will play in a topheavy Group A in Halifax with Finland, Russia, Switzerland, and the United States, while Group B in Truro will feature the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hungary and Japan. The groups are based on the previous year’s rankings of the teams. All five teams from Group A and the best three teams from Group B advance to the playoff round.