photo: © International Ice Hockey Federation / Andrea Cardin
At the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship, Group B brings a rematch of last year’s sensational semi-final between Czechia and Canada. But that’s just one narrative in a section that also sees Slovakia looking to continue its rapid progress in the women’s game, while Switzerland looks to escape the relegation battles and make the knockout rounds.
Canada
Bronze in 2024
By Canadian standards, last year’s bronze was a disappointment. But there are signs that the class of 2025 is heading to Finland with a point to prove. A New Year’s Day warmip brought a comprehensive 7-0 victory over the tournament hosts, with three-point games for returning forward Stryker Zablocki and newcomer Sofia Ismael. That win builds on a successful three-game series against the USA in the summer, with the Canadians taking two wins and suffering an OT loss against their biggest rival.
Ismael, 17, could be the breakout star in Vantaa. The Canadian scoring this season has been dominated by the likes of Maxime Cimoroni, Chloe Primerano and Zablocki, all of whom featured last year. But Ismael has also proven herself an effective contributor for the national team, and has 15 goals and 27 points in 23 games in the OWHL U22 with the Etobicoke Dolphins. She’s committed to Penn State for next season. Another new name to look out for is defender Kate Manness, who joins twin sister Sara on the team in 2025.
Team Canada is coached by Vicky Sunohara. As a player, she was instrumental in establishing the dominant Canadian rosters of the 2010's, winning seven Women's Worlds gold medals and two more at the Olympics.
Czechia
Silver in 2024
Last year in Zug, the Czechs had their best-ever result. Despite losing in the final against the U.S., Czechia became only the fourth nation to play for gold at any WW18, and only the second European finalist after Sweden in 2018 and 2023. Building on last year won’t be easy. The scoring stars behind that success – Adela Sapovalivova, Tereza Plosova and Anezka Cabelova, who scored twice in the semi-final win over Canda – are too old for this year’s tournament.
However, there are still reasons for optimism. Head coach Dusan Andrasovsky can call on 12 returnees from last year’s roster, plus defender Barbora Proskova, who played in 2023 but was absent last season. Captain Linda Vocetkova could be the player to take on additional scoring responsibilities: the Djurgardens forward has six points (4+2=6) from her two previous championships.
Vocetkova was also instrumental in a recent success on Finnish ice in a four-team tournament in December. She was picked out as the top player in a 5-1 win over the Finns, while the competition also saw notable contributions from goalie Daniela Novakova in a shutout win against Switzerland, and Proskova, who potted an OT winner against Sweden.
Slovakia
6th in 2024
After solid showings at the last three tournaments, can the Slovaks go further this time? There’s ample experience on the roster, with Ema Tothova returning for her fourth WW18 and Nela Lopusanova leading a group of six players coming to their third championship. Tothova and Lopusanova also featured for their country’s senior team in Olympic qualification last month, piling up the goals as Slovakia thrashed the opposition in Piestany. Lopusanova, long reckoned the star of the program, had an incredible 11 goals and 18 points in three games, while Tothova added seven points.
Those two lead the way among 13 skaters and two goalies who are back this time. Trusting in younger players and nurturing them through the system has helped the Slovak women’s program to blossom, and the fruits of that process are becoming visible in the senior team as players begin to step up.
Similarly, there’s continuity behind the bench. Michal Kobezda assisted Gabriela Sabolova last year and takes over as head coach this time. He’s assisted by, among others, the vastly experienced forward Nicol Cupcova, twice an Olympian in her playing days. She spent the previous two seasons working with Slovakia’s U16 women’s program and will be familiar to the newcomers on this year’s team.
Switzerland
7th in 2024
Last year’s host had to endure another nerve-jangling relegation round before beating Germany to survive. That’s a familiar story for the Swiss: since promotion in 2014, all but one tournament has seen survival secured by the narrowest of margins. The exception was a sixth-place finish in 2016.
Could 2025 break the mold and see the Swiss finish more comfortably? There were promising signs last year, when an overtime loss against Slovakia was the difference between survival stress and playoff breakthrough. The margins are getting finer, and the Swiss have experience on Melanie Hafliger’s roster. Jael Manetsch and Naemi Herzig are back for their fourth U18 tournaments, with Herzig also stepping up to play in last year’s Women’s World Championship. That duo potted two goals apiece in last month’s victory over Finland in a four-nation tournament, adding to a sense of belief in the current Swiss camp.
Canada
Bronze in 2024
By Canadian standards, last year’s bronze was a disappointment. But there are signs that the class of 2025 is heading to Finland with a point to prove. A New Year’s Day warmip brought a comprehensive 7-0 victory over the tournament hosts, with three-point games for returning forward Stryker Zablocki and newcomer Sofia Ismael. That win builds on a successful three-game series against the USA in the summer, with the Canadians taking two wins and suffering an OT loss against their biggest rival.
Ismael, 17, could be the breakout star in Vantaa. The Canadian scoring this season has been dominated by the likes of Maxime Cimoroni, Chloe Primerano and Zablocki, all of whom featured last year. But Ismael has also proven herself an effective contributor for the national team, and has 15 goals and 27 points in 23 games in the OWHL U22 with the Etobicoke Dolphins. She’s committed to Penn State for next season. Another new name to look out for is defender Kate Manness, who joins twin sister Sara on the team in 2025.
Team Canada is coached by Vicky Sunohara. As a player, she was instrumental in establishing the dominant Canadian rosters of the 2010's, winning seven Women's Worlds gold medals and two more at the Olympics.
Czechia
Silver in 2024
Last year in Zug, the Czechs had their best-ever result. Despite losing in the final against the U.S., Czechia became only the fourth nation to play for gold at any WW18, and only the second European finalist after Sweden in 2018 and 2023. Building on last year won’t be easy. The scoring stars behind that success – Adela Sapovalivova, Tereza Plosova and Anezka Cabelova, who scored twice in the semi-final win over Canda – are too old for this year’s tournament.
However, there are still reasons for optimism. Head coach Dusan Andrasovsky can call on 12 returnees from last year’s roster, plus defender Barbora Proskova, who played in 2023 but was absent last season. Captain Linda Vocetkova could be the player to take on additional scoring responsibilities: the Djurgardens forward has six points (4+2=6) from her two previous championships.
Vocetkova was also instrumental in a recent success on Finnish ice in a four-team tournament in December. She was picked out as the top player in a 5-1 win over the Finns, while the competition also saw notable contributions from goalie Daniela Novakova in a shutout win against Switzerland, and Proskova, who potted an OT winner against Sweden.
Slovakia
6th in 2024
After solid showings at the last three tournaments, can the Slovaks go further this time? There’s ample experience on the roster, with Ema Tothova returning for her fourth WW18 and Nela Lopusanova leading a group of six players coming to their third championship. Tothova and Lopusanova also featured for their country’s senior team in Olympic qualification last month, piling up the goals as Slovakia thrashed the opposition in Piestany. Lopusanova, long reckoned the star of the program, had an incredible 11 goals and 18 points in three games, while Tothova added seven points.
Those two lead the way among 13 skaters and two goalies who are back this time. Trusting in younger players and nurturing them through the system has helped the Slovak women’s program to blossom, and the fruits of that process are becoming visible in the senior team as players begin to step up.
Similarly, there’s continuity behind the bench. Michal Kobezda assisted Gabriela Sabolova last year and takes over as head coach this time. He’s assisted by, among others, the vastly experienced forward Nicol Cupcova, twice an Olympian in her playing days. She spent the previous two seasons working with Slovakia’s U16 women’s program and will be familiar to the newcomers on this year’s team.
Switzerland
7th in 2024
Last year’s host had to endure another nerve-jangling relegation round before beating Germany to survive. That’s a familiar story for the Swiss: since promotion in 2014, all but one tournament has seen survival secured by the narrowest of margins. The exception was a sixth-place finish in 2016.
Could 2025 break the mold and see the Swiss finish more comfortably? There were promising signs last year, when an overtime loss against Slovakia was the difference between survival stress and playoff breakthrough. The margins are getting finer, and the Swiss have experience on Melanie Hafliger’s roster. Jael Manetsch and Naemi Herzig are back for their fourth U18 tournaments, with Herzig also stepping up to play in last year’s Women’s World Championship. That duo potted two goals apiece in last month’s victory over Finland in a four-nation tournament, adding to a sense of belief in the current Swiss camp.