People have often suggested that there must be something in the water in Manitoba. Wrong, it’s something in the ice.
Whatever the reason, the province continues to produce some of the finest female hockey players in the country, and three more Manitobans will be wearing the Maple Leaf when Canada goes hunting for gold at the 2026 IIHF Women's World Championship in Denmark.
Winnipeg's Kati Tabin, La Salle's Sara Manness and East St. Paul's Hayley McDonald have all been named to Canada's 25-player national women's team for the international tournament, scheduled for Nov. 6-16 in Herning and Esbjerg.
And while Tabin brings Olympic experience and professional credentials to the Canadian lineup, Manness and McDonald represent an exciting new generation of Manitoba hockey talent.
For the two young forwards, Denmark will mark their first appearance at the senior Women's World Championship.
For Tabin, it will be another opportunity to add to a growing international résumé that already includes an Olympic silver medal.
It's a pretty impressive Manitoba contingent.
And all three have taken remarkably different paths to reach the same destination.
Tabin, 29, is the veteran of the group. The Winnipeg-born defender, who plays professionally for the Montreal Victoire of the Professional Women's Hockey League, helped Canada capture silver at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina.
A former Quinnipiac University standout who captained the Bobcats during her senior season, Tabin has steadily established herself as a reliable professional defender.
She previously played in the Premier Hockey Federation with the Connecticut Whale and Toronto Six before joining the PWHL.
Her journey to the national team wasn't an overnight success story. After earlier appearances in Canada's development program, Tabin made her senior national team debut during the 2025 Rivalry Series against the United States.
Her selection for the 2026 Olympics followed, and now she has another opportunity to represent her country on the international stage.
A left-handed defender with a steady presence on the blue line, Tabin provides the kind of professional experience that will be important as Canada prepares for another showdown with the world's best.
Meanwhile, the story of 19-year-old Sara Manness is one of the most exciting developments in Manitoba women's hockey.
The talented forward from La Salle has been making headlines for years, but her first season at Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, was nothing short of sensational.
Manness scored 21 goals and added 31 assists for 52 points in just 35 games during the 2025-26 NCAA season.
Those are extraordinary numbers for any college hockey player.
For a freshman, they were remarkable.
Manness became the first freshman in ECAC Hockey history to win the conference's Player of the Year award. She also produced a 15-game point-scoring streak and became the first Clarkson player to score a goal in 10 consecutive games during a single season.
And her success didn't begin in college.
Before moving on to the Burlington Jr. Barracudas in Ontario, Manness developed her game with the Balmoral Hall Blazers in Winnipeg, where she earned Junior Women's Hockey League Forward of the Year honours in 2023.
She subsequently recorded 127 points, including 51 goals, in 46 games with Burlington during the 2023-24 season.
Internationally, Manness has already represented Canada at two Under-18 Women's World Championships, winning bronze in 2024 and gold in 2025. She was also named MVP of the 2023 National Women's Under-18 Championship and helped Manitoba at the Canada Winter Games.
Her twin sister, Kate, is also part of Clarkson's women's hockey program.
For Manness, the move to Canada's senior national team represents another major step in what has become a remarkable young career.
Then there's Hayley McDonald.
At just 18, the East St. Paul forward is one of the youngest players selected to represent Canada at this year's world championship. And like Manness, McDonald has already built an impressive international résumé.
The Ohio State University freshman previously played for the Balmoral Hall Blazers before moving west to RINK Hockey Academy in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Her Manitoba minor hockey roots run deep.
McDonald played with East St. Paul, the River East Royals, River East Marauders and Winnipeg Thrashers before joining Balmoral Hall.
She was named to the JWHL Second All-Star Team in 2023-24, establishing herself as one of the province's outstanding young forwards.
McDonald subsequently became a fixture in Canada's Under-18 program, helping the country win gold at the 2025 IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship.
In 2026, she captained Canada's Under-18 team and produced nine points in six games as the Canadians claimed silver.
Now a freshman with the powerhouse Ohio State Buckeyes, McDonald is taking another enormous step in her development.
A talented, physical forward with international experience, she has already demonstrated that she can compete against elite players in her age group.
Denmark will provide her with the opportunity to show she belongs at the senior level.
For Manitob hockey fans, the selections are particularly noteworthy because both Manness and McDonald have come through the province's development system and represented Canada together at the Under-18 level.
In fact, both were members of Canada's gold-medal-winning Under-18 team in 2025.
Now, less than two years later, they'll be wearing the same Canadian sweater on one of the biggest stages in women's hockey.
Canada's roster, announced by general manager Danièle Sauvageau and head coach Kori Cheverie, includes three goaltenders, eight defenders and 14 forwards.
Thirteen players return from the Canadian team that captured silver at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, while 12 members of the roster helped Canada win its most recent Women's World Championship gold medal in 2024.
Seven players, including Manness and McDonald, will make their Women's Worlds debuts.
"We are excited about the players who have been named to Team Canada as we compete for a gold medal in Denmark, while looking at the long-term success of our program," Sauvageau said.
The roster also reflects a changing of the guard within the Canadian program.
Veteran Manitoba defender Jocelyne Larocque, one of the country's most accomplished international players, was not selected.
Larocque has been a familiar presence on Canada's blue line for more than a decade, making her absence particularly notable as the national program begins a new Olympic cycle.
Canada's coaching staff, however, is enthusiastic about the combination of experience and emerging talent.
"Following a strong training camp in Quebec City, our coaching staff is excited to continue building toward the world championship with the athletes selected to represent Canada," Cheverie said.
"There is a great sense of energy, hunger and determination within this group. We're looking forward to building on that momentum as we prepare to compete in Denmark."
Cheverie will be joined behind the bench by assistant coaches Caroline Ouellette, Kris Sparre and Alison Domenico, along with goaltending coach Bruno-Pierre Guillemette.
Domenico brings considerable international experience, having previously won gold as an assistant coach at both the 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the 2022 Women's World Championship.
Canada will prepare for the tournament with a pair of exhibition games against the United States, Oct. 28 in Windsor, Ontario, and Oct. 30 in Plymouth, Michigan.
At the world championship, Canada will compete in Group B alongside host Denmark, Finland, Japan and Sweden.
Group A features Austria, Czechia, Germany, Switzerland and the United States.
All of Canada's games will be televised by TSN and RDS.
Canada enters the tournament with a remarkable history of international success, having captured 13 gold medals, 10 silver medals and one bronze in 24 previous appearances at the Women's World Championship.
Its most recent gold came in 2024, and after finishing second in 2025 and at the 2026 Olympics, the Canadians will be determined to return to the top of the podium.
For Tabin, Manness and McDonald, the opportunity represents something special. Three Manitoba players, three different hockey journeys, one Canadian sweater and one common goal.
Bring home the gold.
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