Head coach Melody Davidson announced on Thursday that Lauriane Rougeau (Beaconsfield, QC) has been named captain of Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team for this week’s three-game series against the USA’s National Women’s Under-18 Team in Ottawa.
Rougeau, who spent the 2006-07 season the National Women’s Hockey League’s Montreal Axion as a 16-year-old, is the only member of the National Women’s Under-18 Team who played last year in Canada’s top women’s hockey league.
She has also represented her province twice – winning bronze at the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse, YT, and silver at the November 2005 National Women’s Under-18 Championship in Salmon Arm, BC.
In addition, Davidson named two alternate captains for the three-game series, which includes games Thursday night, Friday night and Sunday morning.
Chelsea Karpenko (Winnipeg, MB) captained the Notre Dame Hounds to the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League championship, as well as the Western Shield (Western Canadian Championship) and Mac’s Midget Tournament championship in 2006-07, to go along with the silver medal she won with Team Manitoba at the 2007 Canada Winter Games. She also won the provincial championship, Western Shield and Mac’s Midget Tournament in 2005-06, her first with the Hounds.
Natalie Spooner (Scarborough, ON) was the second leading scorer – and leading goal scorer – in the Provincial (ON) Women’s Hockey League in 2006-07, finishing with 32 goals and 15 assists for 47 points. She helped the Durham Lightning to a runner-up finish in the PWHL playoffs, and a fourth-place finish at the OWHA provincial championship. Spooner is a two-time gold medalist with her province, taking top spot at the 2007 Canada Winter Games, and the November 2005 National Women’s Under-18 Championship (with Team Ontario Red).