Danelle Steffen and Ayden Kehrig (submitted photo/Danelle Steffen)

By Ben Tompkins

Team Saskatchewan

Local hockey trio to compete at U18 Women’s National Championships

Oct 2, 2025 | 5:09 PM

Three local hockey players will soon be competing on the National stage as members of Team Saskatchewan.

Danelle Steffen, Ayden Kehrig, and Tarynn Sutter were recently named to the provincial roster for the Women’s U18 National Championships.

Steffen is a Melfort native, while Kehrig hails from Bjorkdale, and Sutter is a local of Kelvington.

All three are familiar with each other’s games, having played together at different levels before.

Steffen and Sutter are currently teammates on the Saskatoon Stars, while Steffen and Kehrig played on Team Sask last year in this tournament.

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“They’re both definitely unreal players, and we have some previous chemistry that we’re bringing to this event… this tournament is definitely all of Canada’s best players, it’s super high speed and extremely competitive. We’re hoping to make it to the final day, and personally speaking, I’m just going there to work hard and hopefully, have a good tournament,” Steffen told northeastNOW.

“I’m excited to be a part of the team again, and I’m very proud to be representing Saskatchewan… it’s definitely a bit more reassuring having the experience from last year and knowing what to expect, and just being more prepared. We’ve got a good team this year.”

Sutter and Steffen on the Stars (submitted/Danelle Steffen)

Saskatchewan placed fourth in last year’s championships, falling in the semi-finals and the bronze medal match.

The hope for the Sask girls is that it will fuel the fire a little bit this year, knowing how close they were to a medal less than 12 months ago.

The eight-team tournament, which will take place November 2-8 in Mount Pearl and Conception Bay South, N.L., will also feature Alberta, Atlantic, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario Blue, Ontario Red, and Quebec clubs.

“This event definitely improves me as a player, on the ice and off the ice, just getting that experience. The biggest difference I noticed last year was the speed, so it makes me make my decisions quicker and move my feet faster… as a second-year player, I’m going to try and take more of a leadership role and just be there to support the team and help the new girls feel comfortable,” Steffen added.

“This next month, I just want to get my fitness maintained and be completely physically ready for the week of playing, so just keep working hard in the gym and at practices… this tournament just adds a whole bunch of exposure, and I know that a lot of schools are going to be watching this, so I think that’ll help us out a lot.”

Steffen and Kehrig have ties to the Melfort Mustangs, as Steffen is the step-daughter of head coach and general manager, Trevor Blevins, while Kehrig’s cousin, Jaxon, is a former forward.

Meanwhile, Team Sask’s athletic therapist, Emma Galloway, has ties to the Nipawin Hawks, holding the same position with the SJHL club.

“I think the most important thing for the team this year would just be to work together. It’s super hard at this next pace to do it all by yourself and go end-to-end, so having those clean breakouts where everyone touches the puck is definitely the way to go,” Steffen concluded.

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On X @BenTompkins_8