Did Canada make a massive mistake by leaving teenage phenom off Olympic roster?
It was a fear heading into the Olympics.
On Tuesday, that fear was confirmed.
The United States looks far superior to Canada in women’s hockey. They proved that by winning all four games during the 2025 Rivalry Series, and they proved it at the Olympics as well with an emphatic 5-0 win over Canada.
Another inferior performance from Canada against the United States begs the question: Did they really build the best roster possible to compete with their rival?
One young phenom was left off Canada’s roster… someone who would have injected youth and talent into the oldest team in the tournament.
Chloe Primerano is arguably considered the best young female hockey player on the planet. Some have dubbed the defender the Cale Makar of women’s hockey.
The 19-year-0ld has already been a trailblazer of sorts, largely competing against boys throughout her upbringing. The North Vancouver native also became the first female ever to be drafted by a CHL team, when the Vancouver Giants selected her with the 268th overall pick (13th round) back in 2022.
Her skating, puck skills, and two-way ability are already considered levels above most in her age group.
Not only that, but she was on Canada’s Olympic radar.
Primerano competed for Canada during the 2025 Women’s World Hockey Championships, where Canada finished second to the United States. WhileĀ Primerano was held pointless in the tournament, she was placed in a marginalized role. In the gold medal game, she played just 8:07 overall.
However, Primerano has dominated during international competitions with her age group. In 2024, she set a record with 16 points in six games at the U18 World Championships. That was the most points by a defender in one tournament, and second-most ever behind only the U.S.’s Amanda Kessel and her 19 points in 2009.
She was young enough in 2024 to return for the 2025 World Championships, where she captained the team and led them to gold. Her 26 points across the two tournaments tied her with Marie-Philip Poulin for the most points in U18 Women’s World Championship history.
Her omission from the roster gets called further into question due to the fact that Canada is lacking youth compared to other countries.
Number of players on other teams who are younger than Canada's youngest skater (Jennifer Gardiner):
USA: 9
Czechia: 12
Finland: 9
Switzerland: 12
Sweden: 11
Japan: 11
Germany: 10
Italy: 9
France: 12#MilanoCortina2026— šØš¦ Nick šØš¦ (@nicktheiihffan) February 10, 2026
At 24 years old, Jenn Gardiner is the youngest member of Canada’s team.
During Canada’s 5-0 loss to the United States, three of the latter’s goal scorers were younger than Gardiner. The only one who wasn’t was Hannah Bilka, who’s only older than Gardiner by a matter of months.
“I was surprised not to see Primerano on the roster,” former Canadian Olympic hockey defender Tessa Bonhomme said recently.
“I was expecting to inject some type of youth in this Olympic roster.”
Based on the results from Tuesday, that would have been welcomed.
On Canada’s men’s team, they weren’t afraid of taking a risk by adding 19-year-old Macklin Celebrini to the roster. Even in 2010, then-20-year-old defenceman Drew Doughty was a worthwhile addition to the team.
So far in the 2026 Winter Olympics, Canada’s decision to leave one of the most talented young players off the team is looking like a head-scratcher.