Jennifer Botterill and Sami Jo Small first became teammates when they joined Team Canada in the late 1990s. Although each had grown up in Winnipeg, their paths had crossed only from a distance: Small once played high school volleyball against Botterill and faced off in boys hockey against her older brother, Jason. The teenagers bonded quickly over their shared roots.

Botterill, a forward, and Small, a goalie, played together in three Olympics, winning two gold medals and one silver, and four IIHF World Championships, winning four golds. The two served as maids of honor in each other’s weddings. They now live near one another in Mississauga, Ontario, and have daughters the same age.

Here, Small shares her unique insight into her close friend, who will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of F

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