There will be plenty of southerners on show when Dunedin hosts some of the best ice hockey players in the world next year.
The Ice Ferns squad has been confirmed for the division two, group B world championships at the Dunedin Ice Stadium from April 14 to 20.
Six Dunedin Thunder women and four Wakatipu Wild players have made the cut in the main squad.
One of the more experienced Thunder representatives is forward Abbey Heale, who has spent 10 seasons in the New Zealand league and has signed for the Melbourne Ice in the Australian league.
Heale, who has competed at six world championship events, is joined in the Ice Ferns by sister Caitlin-Judith.
The other Thunder players in the squad are Rebecca Lilly, the Gore product who has played in the European league for an Austrian team, Sammy Heyward, Hannah Cross and Kate Vernal.
Wakatipu Wild players Kellye Nelson, Caitlin Hollyer, Gabby Mills and Gracie Hellmrich will also not have far to travel for the tournament.
Nelson is a new-ish face but has plenty of experience, having learnt her ice trade in her native Minnesota and played both college hockey and in Germany before moving to New Zealand.
Talented forward Gabby Mills is joined by Wild teenagers Hollyer and Fairlie-based Hellmrich.
Queenstown schoolgirl Aoife Orr, Wild defender Libby-Jean Challis and Thunder goalie Breane Byck are among the reserves.
One of the key players in the Ice Ferns is Hamilton-based Auckland Steel forward Anjali Mulari.
The police officer has the most games (48), most goals (32) and most points (75) for the national side, and has had two children in between playing at eight world tournaments.
A key at the back is goaltender Grace Harrison, who led the NCAA in goals against average and save percentage a few years ago while at St Lawrence University.
It is a rare treat for the Ice Ferns to play at home, and they will doubtless be excited to host Australia, Belgium, Hong Kong, Turkey and Ukraine at the world championships.
They finished fourth at the equivalent tournament in Turkey last year, won silver in Romania in 2019, and won bronze in Cape Town (2023) and Iceland (2020 and 2017).
The Ice Ferns showed some positive signs in their series in Australia a couple of months ago, losing the opening game 5-0 before a competitive 3-2 loss in game two.
Their world championship tournament in Dunedin is followed by the men’s equivalent in Dunedin.
Ice Ferns
Tournament team
Goaltenders: Grace Harrison, Lochlyn Hyde.
Defenders: Alex Hefford, Caitlin Hollyer, Gracie Hellmrich, Hannah Cross, Jaime Jones, Rachael Richmond, Rebecca Lilly.
Forwards: Abbey Heale, Anjali Mulari, Caitlin-Judith Heale, Gabby Mills, Hannah Shields, Helen Murray, Hope Gregory, Jasmine Horner-Pascoe, Kate Vernal, Katya Blong, Kellye Nelson, Lily Hansen, Sammy Heyward.
Reserves: Aoife Orr, Ashley Richmond, Breane Byck, Eden Greaves, Libby-Jean Challis, Nerhys Gordon, Reagyn Shattock, Zadia Paulse.
