U.S. women's hockey roster reworked; Knight set for 5th Games - ESPN

Hilary Knight is set to make her fifth Olympic appearance and will lead a younger, faster U.S. women's national team that is favored to win gold at the Milan Cortina Winter Games next month.

Knight, 36, headlined USA Hockey's 23-player Olympic women's roster that was released Friday. It's a group that returns just 11 members from the team that won silver at the 2022 Beijing Games and features several newcomers, highlighted by defender Laila Edwards.

From Cleveland, the 21-year-old Wisconsin senior is set to become the first Black women's hockey player to compete for the U.S. at the Olympics.

«It still hasn't really kicked in yet. Getting that call is like a dream come true,» Edwards said. «Always had dreams of playing in the pros, but the biggest dream was to go the Olympics, for sure.»

Forwards
Hannah Bilka
Alex Carpenter
Kendall Coyne Schofield
Britta Curl-Salemme
Joy Dunne
Taylor Heise
Tessa Janecke
Hilary Knight
Abbey Murphy
Kelly Pannek
Hayley Scamurra
Kirsten Simms
Grace Zumwinkle

Defense
Cayla Barnes
Laila Edwards
Rory Guilday
Caroline Harvey
Megan Keller
Lee Stecklein
Haley Winn

Goaltenders
Aerin Frankel
Ava McNaughton
Gwyneth Philips

As for Knight, she will set a U.S. women's hockey record for most Winter Games appearances after winning gold in 2018 and three silver medals. The Seattle Torrent captain previously announced these will be her final Winter Games, although she plans to continue her PWHL career.

The U.S. roster features various familiar faces, including forward Kendall Coyne Schofield and defender Lee Stecklein, who will both be competing in a fourth Winter Games. Other returnees include forwards Alex Carpenter and Kelly Pannek and defenders Megan Keller and Caroline Harvey, who at 23 is completing