The long wait is nearly over for Kate Ball, Miranda Heidt, Jadyn Kushniruk and Abby Soyko.
On Sunday in Red Deer, the Prince Albert Northern Bears teammates will take to the ice as members of Team Saskatchewan as they take part in the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.
“We’ve known that this opportunity was coming for about a year so this was something that we all had as a goal for this season,” Heidt said.
“It’s obviously going to be a once in a lifetime experience and we’re all looking forward to it.”
Heidt, Ball and Kushniruk are all representing Saskatoon at the event while Soyko is the lone Prince Albert product on the roster.
A former member of the team will also be in Red Deer.
Warman’s Jayda Sachs, who played for the program from 2014-16, is now a member of the Saskatoon Stars.
“A lot of has played together before on provincial teams and we all have chemistry from our time here in the Midget AAA league,” said Soyko, who is the lone Prince Albert product on the roster. “We all know what we were capable of and all of us are accepting of the roles that we are being asked to play on this team.”
“It’s nice knowing that you have girls with you that have your back and it should be a comfortable feeling when we go to a different environment,” Heidt added.
Following a training camp in Regina this week, Saskatchewan will open up Pool A play on Sunday against Manitoba.
They will then take on New Brunswick on Monday before a Tuesday matchup with Quebec to conclude their round-robin schedule.
“Our team has a lot of speed and a lot of skill,” Heidt said.
“I think if we use those elements of our game correctly, and put in the hard work, we will be rewarded with a good result.”
The playoff round will get underway on Thursday, with the gold medal game taking place on Saturday afternoon.
