The British Are Coming

There was joy on the ice in Jaca, Spain yesterday as the British women celebrated their efforts from the past week. In news that shocked me, there was no medal round played at the 2022 Women's World Division II Group A Ice Hockey Championship to determine the winner who would ascend the ranks to the Division I Group B tournament, but that's the IIHF for you. As a result of this no-medal-round situation, all Great Britain needed to do was not lose in regulation to Latvia on Friday, and they'd capture the gold medal and be elevated to the 2023 Division I Group B event. That joyous celebration pictured above should tell you what happened!

The 4-0 victory over Latvia was Nicole Jackson's second shutout of the tournament, and it marked an utterly dominant performance for a team whose ceiling isn't even in view. In the four games that the Great Britain played in Jaca, they allowed a single goal - Sofia Scilipoti of Spain is the answer to who scored - while scoring 18. In three games, they put more than 50 shots on the opposing nets, ending the tournament with a 201-56 advantage in shots. In short, the Brits came to play!

In terms of tracking players who we need to keep an eye on, Calgary Dinos netminder Ella Howard played in one game, recording a nine-save shutout against the Mexicans in her own game of the tournament. While she wasn't tested often in the British net, she responded to the few shots she saw on Thursday to help her team record the win!

Seeing the British dominate the likes of Latvia, Mexico, and Chinese Taipei means they should be moving up to face higher competition, and they'll know who they'll play following this weekend's action in Katowice, Poland where the 2022 Women's World Division I Group B Ice Hockey Championship is being played. Among the teams there, one of Slovenia, China, Korea, Poland, Kazakhstan, or Italy will be relegated with Team Great Britain taking that spot. As it stands, both Korea and Italy are winless, and those two teams will meet on April 14 in a game that likely will determine who is replaced by Team Great Britain.

When we talk about the evolution of the game, specifically in the women's game, having teams like Great Britian show that they've improved from playing against tougher opponents in Olympic qualification tournaments and IIHF World Championships means that the process does work. Of course, every country who is playing higher-calibre talent should improve over time, but it's really showing with this British team as they fell a little short in their quest for the Olympics, but continue to trend upwards over time.

As Andy Potts wrote in his recap for the IIHF, "Britain has been in IIA for six seasons, finishing second in the last two tournaments before the pandemic. And you have to go back to 2008 to find the last time a GB women's roster won gold." They need to continue to work hard if they want to make a statement in Division I Group B, but this British team has yet to shy away from a challenge.

With players like Ella Howard playing with the University of Calgary in Canada West, Katherine Gale having graduated from the University of Toronto in the OUA before playing in England, and an up-and-comer in Scottish forward Amy Headland playing with Norwich University in NCAA Division-III, the foundation of Team Great Britain looks very strong for years to come. Those three players, plus a number of others, are the next wave of stars behind names like Nicole Jackson, Saffron Allen, Katie Henry, and Kathryn Marsden. Beyond that, the youth of this team means that this squad has a chance to do some amazing things together before any of these players consider moving on from hockey.

At the end of the day, though, no one here is saying that Team Great Britain is a lock for a medal at the 2023 Women's World Division I Group B Ice Hockey Championship. It will require a lot of hard work, some exceptional efforts, a pinch of luck, and overcoming some adversity and setbacks for the Brits to climb that next ladder. The key is that they'll play better competition yet again, and that opportunity will force them to improve once more just as they did in finally winning the Division II Group A tournament.

What matters today, though, is that Team Great Britain battled, persevered, overcame, and finally emreged triumphant in their quest to become one of the IIHF powers. While they aren't on the level of a Canada, USA, or Finland yet, the British have shown that they're willing to put in the work and battle hard to chase down those dreams. It might take them another six seasons or, possibly, longer to emerge from the Division I Group B tournament, but they've made a statement that historians will know well.

Just as the Americans were warned in 1775, the British are coming!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!