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The Canadian women’s hockey team arrived at last year’s world championship tournament in Brampton, Ont., as the undisputed queens of women’s hockey.

Following a barren stretch where the rival United States won five straight major titles leading up to the pandemic, Canada reclaimed the world title in a Calgary bubble in 2021 and retained it in 2022 while also recapturing the Olympic gold medal that year in Beijing — beating the U.S. in the final each time. Canada had also scored a dramatic victory over the Americans in that season’s Rivalry Series, rallying from down three games to none to win the final four contests.

But, despite enjoying home-ice advantage in front of supportive crowds in the hockey-mad Greater Toronto Area, the Canadians got knocked off their throne in Brampton. After nearly getting toppled in the quarterfinals by Sweden’s red-hot goalie (Emma Soderberg made 51 saves before Sarah Nurse scored in overtime to rescue her team from a massive upset), Canada coughed up four unanswered goals in the third period of the final against the Americans to lose 6-3 and watch their jubilant archrivals hoist the world-championship trophy on Canadian ice.

Canada earned a measure of revenge this season by once again rallying from a 3-0 deficit to win the Rivalry Series, capped by an emphatic 6-1 rout in Game 7 in Minnesota in February. But the Canadians are seeking a full payback at this year’s world championship in Utica, N.Y., where group play began today as Canada prepares for its opener on Thursday night.

Here’s what to know for the tournament:

Yes, Canada and the U.S. will probably meet in the final again.

We’ll spare you the suspense right away. While it’s possible that another country could upset one of the two superpowers in the knockout rounds (Sweden almost did it last year), history strongly suggests another Canada-U.S. showdown for gold is looming.

The cross-border rivals have played each other in 21 of the 22 women’s world championship finals, and no other country has ever won one. They’ve duopolized the Olympics too, meeting in six of the seven women’s finals and winning all of the gold medals. Add those numbers up and, that’s right, Canada and the U.S. have squared off in 27 of the 29 major women’s hockey championship games.

Not that this is a bad thing. The Canadian and American women have given us some of the most memorable international hockey moments of this century. Think of an enraged Hayley Wickenheiser accusing the Americans of trampling the Canadian flag before Canada’s victory in the 2002 Olympic final in Salt Lake City. Or the Canadian women gleefully chugging beers and puffing cigars on the ice after capturing the gold in Vancouver in 2010. Or the raw ecstasy and agony following Canada’s incredible comeback to win the classic 2014 Olympic title game in Sochi. Their world-championship showdowns have delivered plenty of drama too, with nearly half of the Canada-U.S. finals since 2000 decided in either overtime or a shootout.

While Canada is sticking with mostly the same veteran roster that fell short at the worlds last year, the champion Americans are adding some fresh ingredients to the rivalry by bringing 14 college players to Utica.

This is the first world championship since the birth of the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

The launch of the six-team PWHL in January finally gave the Canadian and U.S. national team players a proper league of their own. Prior to that, they’d toiled in the barnstorming Dream Gap Tour under the banner of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association while trying to build a more “sustainable” alternative to the rival Premier Hockey Federation.

The PWHL began taking shape in June when a group led by billionaire Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter bought out and folded the PHF and quickly struck a labour deal with the PWHPA. Franchises were awarded to Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Boston, Minnesota and New York; each team signed a few star players; a draft took place in September; and the PWHL’s inaugural 24-game season took off on New Year’s Day in Toronto.

Understanding that the international game still drives a ton of interest in women’s hockey, the PWHL is taking a break to allow its best players to compete in the world championships before resuming on April 18 for the final 2½ weeks of the regular season, followed by the playoffs.

Some players to watch:

Natalie Spooner (Canada): The PWHL leader in goals (15) and points (20) in 19 games for league-best Toronto scored twice in Game 7 of the Rivalry Series.

Marie-Philip Poulin (Canada): The 33-year-old captain with an uncanny knack for clutch international goals remains one of the best scorers in the sport. She ranks third in the PWHL in both goals (eight) and points (17) in 16 games for Montreal. Poulin is banged up heading into the worlds but is expected to play.

Sarah Fillier (Canada): After scoring eight goals in her Olympic debut in 2022, the young forward won the world championship MVP award last year by racking up 11 points in seven games. Fillier, 23, stayed at Princeton University this season but is expected to go No. 1 overall in the next PWHL draft. Read more about her here.

Taylor Heise (United States): The 2022 worlds MVP and the top pick in this year’s PWHL draft has 11 points in 14 games for Minnesota, the league’s top U.S.-based team. Heise, 24, missed time with an upper-body injury suffered in Game 7 of the Rivalry Series, but she has five points in five games since returning to the Minnesota lineup.

Hilary Knight (United States): After scoring a hat trick in last year’s final, the 34-year-old captain is set to become the oldest American ever to appear in the world championship. Knight, who plays for Boston in the PWHL, already owns the all-time records for points (101) and goals (61) at the worlds.

Katerina Mrazova (Czech Republic): The edgy forward helped her country to bronze at the past two world championships and is now the PWHL’s top European scorer with 17 points in 19 games for Ottawa.

Canada’s schedule:

The Olympic champs open Thursday at 7 p.m. ET against Finland, which defeated Sweden in the fifth-place game last year to earn promotion to the top group. Canada faces Switzerland on Friday at 3 p.m. ET and the bronze-winning Czech Republic on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET before closing out its preliminary-round slate Monday at 7 p.m. ET vs. the United States. TSN is showing the games.

How the tournament works:

All five teams in Canada’s group are guaranteed a spot in the quarter-finals on April 11. They’ll be joined by the top three finishers from Group B, made up of Sweden, Japan, Germany, China and Denmark. Russia remains banned from international hockey due to the invasion of Ukraine.

Barring a major surprise, Canada and the U.S. will play in separate semifinals on April 13 before squaring off in the final again on April 14.

For more on the women’s world championship, read this preview by CBC Sports contributor Karissa Donkin and watch her appearance on the latest episode of Hockey North with host Rob Pizzo.