2023 IIHF Women's World Championship: Here’s everything you need to know about the international hockey tournament

The 2023 IIHF Women's World Championship has begun in Brampton, Ontario, with the best women's hockey teams from around the world competing. Canada is the defending champion after defeating the United States in the 2022 gold-medal game. The two North American rivals have dominated the event, facing each other in every gold-medal game except for 2019 when Finland shocked Canada in the semis and lost to the USA in the final.

Canada has the most gold medals with 12 and is aiming for a three-peat, coming off wins in 2021 and 2022. The team is led by captain Marie-Philip Poulin and features star players such as Sarah Nurse, Brianne Jenner, Renata Fast, and Ann-Renee Desbiens. The United States has won nine gold medals at the Women's World Championship but has not won gold since 2019. The team looks to the leadership of Hilary Knight, Amanda Kessel, Taylor Hsise, and Lee Stecklein to guide them to victory in 2023.

2023 IIHF Women's World Championship: Start and end date

Start: Wednesday, April 5
End: Sunday, April 16

The tournament is scheduled to commence on Wednesday, April 5th with the initiation of the group stage matches.

This phase will continue for a week, concluding on Tuesday, April 11th. Following this, the playoffs are set to begin on Thursday, April 13th, starting with the quarterfinals.

The semifinals are scheduled for Saturday, April 15th, and the bronze- and gold-medal matches will be held on Sunday, April 16th.

2023 IIHF Women's World Championship: Where to watch the tournament?

In the United States, games involving Team USA will be broadcast on NHL Network, as well as the semifinal and medal games. Cord cutters can stream NHL Network through Fubo.

Canadians can view games involving Team Canada on TSN (English language) or RDS (French language). The network will also broadcast the semifinal and medal games. TSN can be streamed on TSN.ca, through the TSN App, and TSN+.

2023 IIHF Women's World Championship: Venue

The tournament is taking place in Canada, as Brampton, Ontario hosting the annual international competition. All games will be played at the CAA Centre, the former home of the Brampton Battalion of the OHL and the Brampton Beast of the ECHL. It is the first time Brampton has hosted the tournament.

FAQs:

Q1: Which teams will be participating in the tournament?
A: The top ten women's national ice hockey teams in the world, as determined by the IIHF, will be participating in the tournament. These teams are Canada, the United States, Finland, Russia, Switzerland, Sweden, Japan, the Czech Republic, Germany, and Denmark.

Q2: Where can I find the schedule for the IIHF Women's World Championship 2023?
A: The schedule for the IIHF Women's World Championship 2023 can be found on the official website of the IIHF, as well as on the websites of the participating teams.