Color of Hockey: Edwards led U.S. in IIHF U18 Women's Worlds

William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog since 2012. Douglas joined NHL.com in March 2019 and writes about people of color in the sport. Today, he profiles Laila Edwards, a forward and alternate captain on the United States team that finished second at the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship in Madison, Wisconsin.

Laila Edwards has been giving University of Wisconsin hockey fans a taste of things to come.

The 18-year-old forward from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was an alternate captain for the United States at the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship, which ended Monday in Madison, Wisconsin.

The U.S. played its games in the eight-nation tournament at LaBahn Arena, where Laila will join her older sister, Chayla Edwards, on the Badgers this fall.

"It's definitely a dream come true," Laila said. "It's a good preview of what it's going to be like. I feel really comfortable; I feel I'm already at home getting used to the rink."

She led the U.S. and was third among all players with eight points (four goals, four assists) in five games. She was named the tournament's most valuable player, its best forward and was earned a spot on the All-Tournament team.

Laila assisted on defenseman Grace Dwyer's game-winning goal in a 3-2 comeback victory against Sweden in the semifinals Sunday. She had a goal and an assist in a 7-0 win against Canada on Thursday, scored twice in a 5-0 victory against Finland on June 7, and had a goal and two assists in a 6-1 win against Sweden on June 6.

Edwards had two shots on goal in the United States' 3-2 loss to Canada in the championship game Monday.

Chayla, a 21-year-old senior defenseman who won an NCAA Division I championship with Wisconsin in 2021, said she was impressed by her sister's performance, but not surprised; she long has predicted Laila would become better than her.

"I stand by that," Chayla said. "Just watching her, I'm constantly in awe. She really knows how to slow the game down and she sees the ice so well. Her stick-handling is so impressive to me, how she can slow the game down, speed it up real quick, go around someone. And her shot is just so good, so good."

Laila (6-foot-2) was a prolific scorer for Bishop Kearney High School in Rochester, New York, where she had 97 points (38 goals, 59 assists) in 64 games last season for their 19U AAA girls' team.

She had 413 points (147 goals, 266 assists) in 287 games at Bishop Kearney and its Selects Academy from 2018-22.

Laila said she enjoys scoring but loves being a team leader. She said she relished being an alternate captain for the U.S. at the tournament.

"It means a lot," she said. "My goal as a player of color is to try to set down a path for other players of color, maybe give them that, 'OK, maybe I do want to play hockey. If she can do it, I can do it,' kind of a boost of confidence," she said. "To be a role model to everyone, obviously, but especially people of color because how [few] there are in this game."

Laila and Chayla got into hockey through their father, Robert Edwards, a recreational hockey player and fan. He and his wife, Charone, would take their daughters skating almost every day with their older brother, Bobby, now 23, who went on to become a defenseman for Bowling Green State University's club team in the Tri-State Collegiate Hockey League in 2019-20.

"They benefited from that, for sure," Robert Edwards said. "Through their first years, they were one of the best skaters."

Chayla said hockey quickly became a staple in their household.

"We would play mini-sticks all the time, watch hockey highlights. Hockey was always on TV," she said.

Laila progressed to play prep hockey in Rochester, and Chayla advanced to play for Pittsburgh's Shady Side Academy and the Pittsburgh Penguins 19U Elite girls' team before heading to Wisconsin.

Chayla was among the players profiled in a February 2019 NHL.com profile of the up-and-coming generation of Black players. The group included center Quinton Byfield, selected by the Los Angeles Kings with the No. 2 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft; defenseman Marshall Warren, selected by the Minnesota Wild in the sixth round (No. 166) of the 2019 NHL Draft; goalie Isaiah Saville, selected by the Vegas Golden Knights in the fifth round (No. 135) in 2019; and Rayla Edwards, a Syracuse University forward.

Chayla (5-foot-9) had nine points (one goal, eight assists) in 56 games for Wisconsin. She was a Western Collegiate Hockey Association All-Tournament Team selection in 2021.

Each sister said she's excited about being teammates next season, and possibly longer. Chayla was granted an extra year of NCAA eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"This is one of the best schools and the best hockey program, so it caught my eye," Laila said. "Then to be able to play with my sister for a year, maybe two, that was kind of icing on the cake."

The two have played on the same organized team only once before, a painful memory for Laila.

"There was one tournament, like U12, and I played one game with her, and she actually shot a puck from the point and hit me," she said with a laugh. "That's all I remember from the game. So maybe I don't want to play with her."

Photos: USA Hockey; University of Wisconsin; Charone and Chayla Edwards