Trio of Canadian women's soccer stars take centre stage in NWSL Championship

When the 2022 National Women's Soccer League playoffs kicked off on Oct. 15, members of the Canadian national team were front and centre.

All six clubs that qualified for the post-season had at least one player from Canada's women's team on their respective rosters. Most notable among them was San Diego Wave FC's Kailen Sheridan who earlier this week was named the NWSL goalkeeper of the year, becoming the first Canadian to win one of the league's major individual awards. Sheridan was also named to the NWSL Best XI for the second year in a row.

But Sheridan, a 27-year-old from Pickering, Ont., came up short in the semifinals of the playoffs last weekend, as San Diego lost a heartbreaking 2-1 decision to the Portland Thorns when the home side scored deep into injury time.

Even without Sheridan in the mix, Saturday's NWSL Championship (8 p.m. ET) at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. will still have a distinct Canadian flavour to it as it pits the Portland Thorns, featuring Christine Sinclair and Janine Beckie, against fellow Olympic gold medallist Desiree Scott and the Kansas City Current.

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Saturday's final is a chance for Sinclair, a 39-year-old from Burnaby, B.C., to add more silverware to her already crowded trophy cabinet. The iconic Canadian captain will be shooting for her third NWSL Championship, having previously won it with Portland in 2013 and 2017.  Although she's at an age where most players have retired, Sinclair showed that she still has plenty of life in her legs by scoring five goals for Portland this season, underlining how important the veteran striker still is for the Thorns.

Beckie, 28, found the going much tougher in 2022 after