With a packed PWHL schedule, is there still room for a Canada-U.S. Rivalry Series?
Players, staff say they still see a role for series against Canada's biggest rival in women's hockey
An eight-day international break gave some PWHL players a chance to rest and recover from lingering injuries.
But for two of the league's biggest stars, time away playing for their countries at the Canada-U.S. Rivalry Series led to stints on long-term injured reserve.
Both Toronto Sceptres forward Sarah Nurse and Boston Fleet rookie Hannah Bilka were hurt in game 4 of the annual series, which Canada won in a decisive fifth game in Summerside, P.E.I. last week.
The series was created in the 2018-19 season, before the PWHL existed and when the top female players had fewer opportunities to play meaningful games.
Introduced after the 2018 Olympics, it was aimed at capitalizing on one of the best rivalries in all of sport and doing so in cities across North America that don't always get to see their national team play. Shortened to five games from last season's seven, this iteration included stops in Halifax, San Jose, West Valley City, Utah and Boise, Idaho, in addition to Summerside.
But is it worth it for players to add extra games and travel to their schedule on top of a 30-game season in a very physical league? Is it worth the possibility of a player getting injured and missing key games for their PWHL team?
Several players and staff who spoke to CBC Sports before Nurse and Bilka were injured all said they still see a purpose for something similar. It comes as the players gear up for the Olympics in Italy in 2026, which will happen in the middle of the PWHL season.
"It's an opportunity for us to represent our country and every national team minute is a great minute," said American Kendall Coyne Schofield, who captains the Minnesota Frost.
'We fought so hard for it'
International breaks are written into the collective bargaining agreement between the players and the PWHL. The league must allow any player who qualifies to compete in the Olympics, world championship, which typically takes place in April, or "other international tournaments/competitions."
The break earlier this month wasn't just for the Canada-U.S. Rivalry Series. It also allowed some players to help their countries qualify for a spot at the Olympics next year in qualification tournaments, and for the finale of the Euro Women's Hockey Tour.
While there's no question Olympic qualification is a worthwhile reason to leave a league mid-season, is the Rivalry Series worth it? The winner gets a trophy and bragging rights — which can't be understated in one of the fiercest rivalries out there — but it isn't a world championship or the Olympics.
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Players interviewed by CBC Sports said they still see a purpose for the series, even with the PWHL in its second season.
"One-hundred per cent, I still see a role for it," Montreal Victoire defender Erin Ambrose said during training camp in November. "I will never not feel honoured to be a part of Hockey Canada, to be able to represent this country."
American Hilary Knight also said she sees a role for the Rivalry Series.
"I would never want to subtract programming because we fought so hard for it," the Boston Fleet captain said. "But intentional programming, I think, is important. I think we're starting to see that evolve as time goes on. But it wasn't too long ago that we didn't have a league and that's why [the Rivalry Series] was so important."
Team Canada to have 'training blocks' next season
Neither USA Hockey nor Hockey Canada has announced plans for a 2025-26 Rivalry Series leading up to the Olympics next February.
Hockey Canada GM Gina Kingsbury said the team will have training blocks as they prepare for the Olympics. There are plans to bring prospective Team Canada players together as much as possible before the season.
There will be a few games against the U.S. as the team readies for Italy. But it will be fewer than we saw in the past, when hopefuls would move to Calgary for months for "centralization" ahead of the Olympics.
"We won't be as focused on games as we were in other centralizations," Kingsbury said in an interview with CBC Sports.
"Those were the only games we would have to prepare for the Games. With the PWHL in place, our players are going to be playing probably 16, 17, 18 games prior to going to the Olympic Games. We feel that's probably substantial enough for them to be game ready for the Olympic Games."
"I think our chemistry and our culture only gets enhanced with us being together," said Kingsbury, who is also GM of the Toronto Sceptres.
Rivalry hasn't thawed
That's where Kingsbury and several players see value in continuing to have the Rivalry Series or something like it.
The first three Rivalry Series games this season were scheduled in November before PWHL training camps opened. Speaking to Team Canada players when they got together again in February, Kingsbury said they felt even that span of time was too long to have the team apart.
"Sometimes when it's just one time a year that you get to come together as a group, that gets to be kind of stressful," American Taylor Heise said. "So I love the little touch points we get and I know leading up to the Olympics, we'll get a few more. But I do think that this is a very special thing."
For those who think the rivalry has died down over the years, with Americans and Canadians sharing locker rooms in the PWHL, lots of players will tell you that's not the case. Far from it.
"We have friendships off the ice," Canadian forward Blayre Turnbull said. "But when you represent your country and you're competing against your enemy in the United States, you'll lay it all on the line and you'll do whatever it takes, regardless of who you're up against."
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