By Hockey Canada

REGINA, Sask. - Eight provincial and regional teams are eyeing a gold medal at the 2016 National Women’s Under-18 Championship, once the puck drops on the five-day tournament Wednesday, Nov. 9 at Evraz Place in Regina.

Defending gold-medallist Ontario Red is featured in Group A with Team Atlantic, Ontario Blue, and host Saskatchewan, while Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Quebec highlight Group B. Wednesday’s opening game at 11 a.m. ET features British Columbia and the 2015 silver-medallists from Manitoba. Ontario Red will be looking for a tenth overall gold medal, and its third straight, when it opens the tournament against provincial rival Ontario Blue before the feature game between Saskatchewan and Team Atlantic at 8 p.m. ET.

“We’re excited to host this event for the first time in the province and are eager to showcase the incredible talent of the players,” said Kelly McClintock, general manager of the Saskatchewan Hockey Association. “We know fans will come out and support this event, and look forward to an exceptional week of high-level hockey featuring the best female players in the country within this age group.”

Full-event ticket packages are available online for $50, and include all 18 games at Evraz Place. Day passes will also be available on-site starting Wednesday. Round-robin day passes are $10 and medal-round passes are $15.

All preliminary-round games, placement games, semifinals, and the bronze-medal game will be streamed live online at www.hockeycanada.ca/nwu18c, while TSN and RDS, Hockey Canada’s official broadcast partners, will broadcast the gold-medal game Sunday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT; check local listings for details.

For more information on the 2016 National Women’s Under-18 Championship, please visit HockeyCanada.ca and follow along via social media at Facebook and Twitter.