How Canadian cruisers might have served in wartime

Would Canadian cruisers have remained in the Atlantic or deployed globally?

Probably both, with ships allocated into Royal Navy operations much like Australian cruisers.

Canadian cruisers would probably have combined Atlantic duties with service farther afield, much like Australian ships integrated into Royal Navy operations. They would not be confined to a purely national patrol zone once coalition demands grew. Dominion ownership could coexist with broad operational allocation across the Royal Navy's global war. The ships' flag would shape their identity without fixing them to one theater.