By Amy Tennery
NEW YORK, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Canada are entering a critical rebuilding phase ahead of next month's ice hockey Women's World Championship, retired US great Angela Ruggiero told Reuters, after falling to the US in the Milano Cortina Olympic gold medal game.
Canada have often had the upper hand in the countries' rivalry, with five Olympic golds to three for the US. But US youth conquered Canadian experience in Milano Cortina, as an American roster loaded with collegiate talent held off
the veterans from the north in a spine-tingling finale.
Eight months later, Canada announced a World Championship roster with seven tournament debutants at the worlds, with an eye towards replicating US success in developing young up-and-comers.
"They're going with a very young team, an inexperienced team that could really work in their favour," said Ruggiero, speaking to Reuters at the Women's Sports Foundation annual gala this week. "They're building for four years from now. So it was a strategic decision."
The Hall of Famer helped propel the US to four world golds and made her Olympic debut at 18 years old, when the Americans took the first-ever women's ice hockey gold at the 1998 Games.
She said Canada's youth corps should not be underestimated.
"I think back to the 2008 World Championship team. We were a very, very young team. And we believed in ourselves. We were able to win those World Championships because of the psychology in the locker room, even though on the ice we weren't the best team," said Ruggiero.
"If I were Canada's GM, I think it's the smartest thing to do. Reset the clock, figure out chemistry."
The World Championship begins on November 6 after a memorable Milano Cortina Olympics, with the advent of the Professional Women's Hockey League in North America bringing the game into a new era.
"It was probably all around the most elite, highest skilled, fastest, best brand of women's hockey I have ever seen," said Meghan Duggan, Ruggiero's 2010 Olympic teammate who also appeared at the WSF gala in support of women's sports.
"That shows what the professional league is doing to elevate the game."
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New YorkEditing by Toby Davis)
