The defending champion cruised to a comfortable victory over newly promoted Japan in the opening game at the 2025 IIHF Women’s U18 World Championship. Team USA dominated throughout on its way to a 6-0 verdict. 

Haley Box and Mary Derrenbacher led the American scoring, each with 1+2. There were also two-point games for Christina Scalese and Emilia Biotti. But for head coach Liz Norton, this was very much a team performance. "I was proud of our effort throughout the game," she said. "Thirteen players got a point and I think that's a good reflection of the depth of our team."

For Japan, this was a tough start on its return to the top division. Despite some brave defending, the underdog rarely threatened to bite in this game. After giving up the opening goal in the fifth minute, the Japanese lacked the firepower to get back into contention and finished with just four shots at Morgan Stickney in the U.S. net.
 

That opener arrived when Evelyn Doyle took the play down the left-hand channel and shot from the face-off dot. Goalie Haruku Kuromaru could only pad the puck to Box, who had a simple finish into an open net to add to the four goals she scored at last year’s tournament.

Although the USA continued to dominate, Japan dug deep to keep the score down. On occasion, there were even signs of some Japanese offence: late in the frame a breakaway chance emerged from Nanaho Yamaguchi, but before she could feed her partner on the rush she was engulfed by two opposing players.

Shortly after that, Scalese’s shot took a looping deflection off a Japanese stick, wrong-footing Kuromaru and doubling the U.S. lead on 17:09.

After that, it was a case of ‘how many?’. Team USA outshot Japan 24-2 in the first period – Momona Fukuzawa’s early rising effort was the most troublesome moment for the Americans – and 22-2 in the second, underlining the favourite’s control of the game. Kuromaru, who had a GAA of 0.8 in last year's promotion campaign, faced a far greater workload here than in Division IA.

But USA captain Anabella Fanale, back for her third U18 World Championship, was as happy with the shut-out as with the scoring at the other end. "We wanted to stick to our plan," she said. "Even though they didn't have a lot of time in our zone, we wanted to make sure we were ready and relentless when they got there."

Inevitably, the pressure brought more goals. After 26 minutes, Maggie Averill stepped up from the blue line and fired a low shot into the net. Then, despite a big save to stop her initial shot, Fanale followed up to stuff the puck behind Kuromaru despite the efforts of a Japanese defender to get it off the goal line. 

That fourth goal was awarded after a video review, and the officials were back at their screens in the 39th minute to rule on Biotti’s well-taken fifth. There was no doubt about her finish, wiring a wrister from between the hash marks as Doyle screened the goalie. But the Japanese coaching staff thought it spotted Box straying offside early in the play and made an unsuccessful challenge.

Japan replaced Kuromaru with Rio Suzuki for the third period, giving the 15-year-old her first taste of WW18 action. The incoming netminder made some notable stops to deny Mary Derrenbacher from point blank range and halt Box’s attempt on the wraparound. Derrenbacher, another returnee from 2024, eventually got her goal on 52:04, putting a tip on Kenleigh Fischer’s shot to send the puck skittering in off the post.

That was the end of the scoring as Suzuki managed 20 saves during her period in the Japanese net. While the Americans moved through the gears at the start of a title defence, Japan can take some comfort from a battling defensive display - and reflect that this was never going to be the game that defines its survival bid. Head coach Yujiro Kasahara said: "It was good to meet the Americans in the first game. They're a top level team. We're happy for our goaltenders, who kept us in the game."