A quick look at Canada’s semifinal against Finland at women’s world championship

MALMO, Sweden – A quick look at Friday’s semifinal between Canada and Finland at the women’s world hockey championship:

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Canada

Marie-Philip Poulin — A clutch goalscorer for Canada in big games, leadership responsibilities have been added to her plate as captain for the first time.

Courtney Birchard — Hard, accurate shot makes her an effective two-way defender. She leads tournament defencemen with two goals and two assists.

Natalie Spooner — Her human-bowling-ball style is the catalyst on Canada’s top line alongside Brianne Jenner and Jennifer Wakefield.

Finland

Michelle Karvinen — Dynamic, smart forward is Finland’s best player.

Riikka Valila — Assistant captain is the set-up woman to Karvinen.

Rosa Lindstedt — Six-foot-one, 174-pound defender difficult to beat one-on-one.

KEYS TO THE GAME

Canada — Patience and finesse in the offensive zone to open up scoring lanes. Finland’s transition game is suspect so jump on turnovers in the neutral zone.

Finland — Keep Canada’s shooters to the outside. Exploit the inexperienced players in Canada’s lineup with a hard forecheck.