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Britni Smith grew up playing hockey on the frozen-over pond on her family’s farm in Port Perry, Ontario. Her favorite team was the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs. But to see female hockey athletes “pour their hearts out for their country,” she watched the Olympics.

Now, she’s heading there herself, coaching what she called the “pinnacle” of women’s hockey.

Smith, Syracuse’s women’s head ice hockey coach, will be an assistant for Canada’s women’s national team at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Canada won the gold medal in five of the seven women’s Olympic ice hockey tournaments — including the 2022 Beijing Games. Smith and Canada open their gold medal defense against Finland Thursday, ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.

“Our goals are definitely to win the gold,” Smith said.

Smith began coaching with Hockey Canada in 2014, the same year she became assistant coach of Clarkson University’s women’s team, and has been working with the team since.

“Pretty early in my career, I was lucky to get that opportunity,” Smith said. “There was still a lot in my career I had to learn and make my way through, but to have the opportunity to work both players and staff at that level set the bar right for my young career. It was a huge step for me in terms of understanding what it takes to be at that level.”

In 2025, she helped Hockey Canada to a win over the United States at the 2024-25 Rivalry Series and to a silver medal at the IIHF Women’s World Championship in April. The U.S. — who Canada has faced in the last four gold medal games, winning three times — is in Canada’s group in Milan.

Conversations about Smith coaching the Canadian Olympic team began two summers ago. She was confirmed as the assistant coach in July 2025. It was “fantastic” to get the news, she said.

After the initial excitement, she pivoted to logistics. Coaching the Olympic team meant traveling to Canada for four one-to-two-week training blocks during Syracuse’s season.

Smith’s four-year tenure at SU has been “substantial” in her preparation to be on Canada’s staff. She coaches the Olympians the same way she coaches her SU athletes, valuing culture and player development, she said.

While Smith heads to Italy, Heather Farrell is acting as the Orange’s head coach, which has been a “seamless transition,” Smith said.

“We’re very excited for her to have that experience and to be a part of coaching the best players in the world,” Farrell said. “It’s a lifetime of work to get to this spot. She didn’t do it as a player, but to be able to be a coach and coach on this world stage at this level, that’s something you’ve worked (for) your whole life, so pretty exceptional.”

Matt Desrosiers, Clarkson’s women’s ice hockey head coach, hired Smith as an assistant in 2014. Desrosiers said Smith has an “extremely high hockey IQ” and has confidence in her abilities as an Olympic coach. Whether she’s coaching at Clarkson or at the Olympics, she’ll provide the same guidance and support, Smith said.

“She’s very detailed with what she does, on and off the ice,” Desrosiers said. “She’s going to put the word in. She’s going to do everything she can to help them get better and bring that team together to accomplish that goal.”

Smith previously represented Canada on the global stage when she played for the under-22 Canada National Team from 2006 to 2010, winning the MLP Nations Cup in her last season. While it’s always an honor to represent her country, doing so on the Olympic stage is a different level of excitement and emotion, she said, calling it “once-in-a-lifetime.”

Britini Smith loved NHL hockey while growing up, but she tuned into the Olympics to watch female athletes “pour their hearts out for their country.” She’ll serve as Canada’s assistant coach at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Courtesy of SU Athletics

Still, Smith said she didn’t think the weight of participating in the Olympic Games would truly sink in until she arrived in Italy and coached Canada’s first game. It can become overwhelming if she thinks too far ahead, she said.

Smith’s SU players plan to have watch parties for Canada’s games, said Syracuse forward and assistant captain Heidi Knoll, who is also Canadian.

“We have a good amount of Canadians, so there’ll be a lot of people cheering for Canada, but we’ll all be cheering for her,” Knoll said.

When Smith was first introduced to the sport, there was no professional league for women. The Professional Women’s Hockey League was founded in 2023 and expanded from six to eight teams in 2025. Now, coaching players who compete in the PWHL, she can serve as an inspiration for others.

“To hopefully be someone that people are looking up to, whether it be a younger player or a coach earlier in their career, that is not something I take lightly,” Smith said.

Smith told her SU athletes she’d be going to the Olympics on a Zoom call over the summer, before it was officially announced in late July.

“I’ve felt nothing but support from our athletes,” Smith said. “They’ve been fantastic with wishing me well when I’m gone and then welcoming me right back in when I arrive back in Syracuse.”

Knoll’s excited for Smith to bring back what she learns while coaching the “best of the best,” she said. That might not be limited to who Smith coaches, but also what she wins.

“Definitely excited to see her bring that gold medal home,” Knoll said. “I’m happy for her that she gets to live that Olympic dream.”

Published on February 5, 2026 at 12:03 am
Contact Eliana: ehrosen@syr.edu