The 2025 Rivalry Series begins Nov. 6 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, with the first of four games of competition between the U.S. and Canada’s women’s national hockey teams. The series is in its sixth year and will serve as a warm-up for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, beginning Feb. 6.

Four-time Olympian, Hilary Knight, and three-time Olympian, Kendall Coyne Schofield, will provide veteran leadership for Team USA, while newcomers Laila Edwards and Caroline Harvey will look to add a youthful spark on the ice. The full 30-player roster can be found here.

For Canada, four-time Olympian and three-time gold medalist, Marie-Philip Poulin, leads the 25-player squad. The veteran is surrounded by 19 other Canadian players who secured a silver medal at the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship. The full roster can be found here.

With just three months until the Olympics, the rivalry between the U.S. and Canada is expected to be more competitive than ever. Since women's hockey debuted at the Olympics in 1998, every gold has been won either by Fthe U.S. or Canada. However, the overall gold-medal count is dominated by the Canadians, who have won five times with the Americans taking home gold just twice.

But the tides may finally be turning for Team USA. The U.S. women's team won the 2025 world title with an overtime victory over Canada in the spring and now players like Edwards and Harvey believe Team USA is primed and ready with the right puzzle pieces. “We’ve got to play a consistent 60 minutes. We have to keep our foot on the gas the whole time and just stick to what we know and what we've been practicing,” Harvey said.

Team USA captain Knight said the ability to play Canada ahead of the Olympics is helpful in terms of picking up different tendencies and getting more time competing against certain players. “You’ve got that mental memory of how they approach different situations. There's definitely some nuances that you can pick up and go back and figure out what works, what doesn't work, and get ready for the next game,” Knight said.

Knight is closing in on nearly a two-decade career with Team USA and called the rivalry between the two neighboring countries beautiful because of the passion and pride it radiates. “When the puck drops, your heart is beating out of your chest. You're like, 'Am I human? This is insane. This is awesome,’” Knight said. 

Edwards joined the women’s national team in 2023 and became the first Black woman to ever play for the U.S.. In just two short years, she’s already echoing her captain’s sentiments about the country match-up that seems to transcend generations.

There’s nothing else like it. We hate each other so much in the most respectful way. And the hockey is just always so good and entertaining. I think it's one of the greatest rivalries in sports.

USA Hockey hosts the first half of the Rivalry Series with the first puck drop in Cleveland at 7 p.m. EST on Nov. 6. for Game 1. The teams then head north to KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY. for Game 2 on Nov. 8 at 6 p.m. EST. Hockey Canada hosts the remainder of the series at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta on Dec. 10 and 13 both at 9 p.m. EST.