Team USA Unveils 2025 IIHF World Championship Roster

This afternoon, USA Hockey unveiled its 25-player roster for the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship, which is set to take place from April 9-20 in České Budějovice, Czechia. 

16 players on the roster are currently in the PWHL, while the other nine are in the NCAA. The Minnesota Frost have the most PWHL players on the roster with six, while the New York Sirens have the fewest with just Alex Carpenter selected. From the NCAA, the University of Wisconsin leads the pack with five representatives, while no other school has more than one.

Lee Stecklein is set to return to the national team for the first time since she chose to step away from the program after the 2023 World Championships. A three-time Olympian and eight-time Worlds medalist, Stecklein’s leadership and steady defensive presence will be a huge boost to the U.S. blueline.

Only two players—defender Anna Wilgren and goaltender Ava McNaughton—have never appeared in a senior world championship before. Wilgren has skated for the team in the past two Rivalry Series, while McNaughton’s only senior national team experience was at the Six Nations tournament this past December, which the U.S. chose to send only collegiate players to. McNaughton previously represented Team USA at the 2022 U18 Worlds and the 2024 Collegiate Series.

Overall, this is a similar roster to last year’s Worlds, with just four different faces. Up front, only Hannah Bilka will not return as she recovers from an injury sustained in the Rivalry Series. In her place, Jesse Compher will make her return to the Worlds stage for the first time since 2022, thanks to an excellent season with the Toronto Sceptres. On defense, Rory Guilday and Sydney Morrow will not return from the 2024 roster. Meanwhile, Laila Edwards, who still plays forward at the University of Wisconsin, will stick on the backend for Team USA after making the switch for this year’s Rivalry Series. Finally, Gwyneth Phillips appears to be in line to take over as Team USA’s backup after serving as the third goaltender in 2024, as Nicole Hensley was not selected for the first time in four years after a tough season with the Minnesota Frost. 

Team USA’s schedule for the 2025 Worlds can be found here. All of their games will be broadcast on NHL Network in the United States.

Roster

The full roster for the upcoming Worlds can be found below, along with each player's current team.

Forwards (14):

• Alex Carpenter (New York Sirens/PWHL)
• Jesse Compher (Toronto Sceptres/PWHL)
• Kendall Coyne Schofield (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)
• Britta Curl-Salemme (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)
• Joy Dunne (Ohio State University/NCAA)
• Lacey Eden (University of Wisconsin/NCAA)
• Taylor Heise (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)
• Tessa Janecke (Penn State University/NCAA)
• Hilary Knight (Boston Fleet/PWHL)
• Abbey Murphy (University of Minnesota/NCAA)
• Kelly Pannek (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)
• Hayley Scamurra (Ottawa Charge/PWHL)
• Kirsten Simms (University of Wisconsin/NCAA)
• Grace Zumwinkle (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)

Defenders (8):

• Cayla Barnes (Montréal Victoire/PWHL)
• Laila Edwards (University of Wisconsin/NCAA)
• Savannah Harmon (Toronto Sceptres/PWHL)
• Caroline Harvey (University of Wisconsin/NCAA)
• Megan Keller (Boston Fleet/PWHL)
• Lee Stecklein (Minnesota Frost/PWHL)
• Anna Wilgren (Montréal Victoire/PWHL)
• Haley Winn (Clarkson University/NCAA)

Goaltenders (3):

• Aerin Frankel (Boston Fleet/PWHL)
• Ava McNaughton (University of Wisconsin/NCAA)
• Gwyneth Phillips (Ottawa Charge/PWHL)