URL:http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/970331/925700.html The Ottawa Citizen Online Sports Page Monday 31 March 1997 COACH HAS TEAM ROLLING ALONG TOWARD TITLE Canadian women's hockey team looks for fourth straight championship Martin Cleary The Ottawa Citizen Coach Shannon Miller and goalie Lesley Reddon get set for women's world hockey play today in Kitchener KITCHENER -- Head coach Shannon Miller has developed a unique motivational message in a bid to help the powerful Canadian women's hockey team win its fourth consecutive world championship. The former Calgary police officer wants the 20 Canadian players to confront the pressure at this week's world championships here by thinking: Snowball. Yes, snowball. "We've been gathering positive momentum from year to year to year,'' Miller said yesterday on the eve of the eight-country championship, which begins today with two games in each of the two round-robin pools. Canada, which won the world titles in 1990, 1992, and 1994, meets Switzerland in its first game tonight at 7:30. Its other two A pool games are tomorrow against Russia and Thursday against China. The United States, Finland, Sweden and Norway will play in the B pool. The top two teams from each pool will qualify for the medal round. Semifinal games will be played Saturday in Kitchener, with the bronze- and gold-medal games are set for Sunday, also in Kitchener. Canada's game tomorrow against Russia will be broadcast on TSN and RDS (7:30 p.m.) The top five teams at this event qualify for the 1998 Winter Games, where women's hockey will make its Olympic debut. "We're getting bigger and stronger and gathering more snow," Miller said. "As we grow, the program grows with more media and fan support and sponsors. We're just one large snowball, rocking into the worlds against the pressure." There is plenty of pressure to keep on winning, especially since Canada's top NHL professionals lost the World Cup to the U.S. last year. As well: Canada has won all three women's world championships. The Canadians have won 15 straight games and outscored opponents 136-18; Canada is the early favourite to win Olympic gold; The worlds are in Canada for the first time since the host country wore hot pink uniforms and won the first title in 1990 at the Ottawa Civic Centre. If the Canadian squad of snowball thinkers dare to look over their shoulders, they'll see an avalanche closing fast, but Miller isn't worried. The United States has lost all three world finals: 5-2 in 1990, 8-0 in 1992, and 6-3 in 1994. However, at the Three Nations Cup last fall, the Americans showed they're ready to mimic their male counterparts and take the world title south of the 49th parallel. The U.S. beat Canada in overtime in the round-robin of the Three Nations Cup, which was played in Eastern Ontario, then lost 1-0 in the final. At the 1995 Pacific Rim championship, the U.S. beat Canada 5-2 in the round-robin, but Canada won a shootout against the U.S. to claim the gold medal. The Americans also were ticked off at how the Canadians celebrated the Three Nations Cup victory by wrapping themselves in maple leaf flags. Then there's China. Canada has only beaten China by one goal in each of the past two meetings, including another shootout victory in the Pacific Rim tournament. While the U.S. and China have made giant strides in women's hockey, Miller says Canada hasn't stood still, either. "I'm calmly confident and positive. I anticipate we can win the gold." There are 12 players from Canada's 1994 championship team on this year's squad, including five players with three gold medals each: Judy Diduck, Geraldine Heaney, Angela James, France St-Louis and Stacey Wilson, whose average age is 32. Teams: Canada looks strong, B2 Deschamps: Hawkesbury native released, B2 Today's games 4 p.m.: Norway vs U.S. (in Kitchener); Finland vs Sweden (in Brampton) 7 p.m.: China vs Russia (in Hamilton); Canada vs Switzerland (in Kitchener) Copyright 1997 The Ottawa Citizen