Johnston Once Again will Represent Canada

ITHACA, N.Y. --  Cornell sophomore forward Rebecca Johnston (Sudbury, Ontario) is among 22 players who will comprise Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 Team at the 2009 MLP Cup (formerly the Air Canada Cup), January 2-6, 2009 in Ravensburg, Germany, Hockey Canada announced Monday.

Johnston, the reigning ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year, has amassed a league-leading nine goals in six league contests. She has added three assists and is plus-5. Last season, Johnston led the Big Red with 32 points, including 16 goals and 16 assists. She became the first Cornell player to be named ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year or receive ECAC Hockey first-team honors.

Canada will play a pair of games against Switzerland’s national women’s team, on December 29 and December 31, prior to traveling to Ravensburg for the 2009 MLP Cup. The team will depart for Germany on December 27 as it looks for a seventh-consecutive title at the event.

Canada’s roster includes 21 of the 22 players who dressed for Canada in a three-game series against the United States’ Women’s Under-22 Select Team in Pierrefonds, QC in August. Canada won the final two games of the series after losing the opener in a shootout.

Click here for Canada's Women's Under-22 Team Roster

“We are very excited about the roster that we have assembled for this event,” said Sarah Howald, head coach of Canada’s National Women’s Under-22 Team. “We had great success in Pierrefonds, and look forward to continuing the development of these players in Germany.”

Canada’s roster includes 11 players who won gold at the 2008 Air Canada Cup (Agosta, Birchard, Blais, Fridfinnson, Irwin, Johnston, Larocque, Smith, Thibault, Wakefield, Ward) and four players who won silver with Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team at the 2008 IIHF World Women’s Under-18 Championship (Bram, Haverstock, Rougeau, Spooner). In addition, six players (Agosta, Johnston, Larocque, Spooner, Wakefield, Ward) won a silver medal with Canada’s National Women’s Team at the 2008 4 Nations Cup in Lake Placid, NY in early November.

Canada is the six-time defending champion at the MLP Cup, having won every year since the tournament’s inception in 2003, losing only once in 20 games. Canada will play in Group A with Finland and Russia, while Germany, Sweden and Switzerland will make up Pool B.