PWHL’s 61 Olympians return with 41 medals from the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 as the season resumes tonight
NEW YORK AND TORONTO (February 26, 2026) – The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) had an unprecedented impact at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, driven by more than 100 athletes, coaches, staff, officials, and media personnel delivering “The Ultimate Away Game” that will launch the league’s second half with a wave of momentum. The race for the Walter Cup is in full swing with just 59 games remaining in the 2025-26 regular season, with action set to return tonight.
ALL EIGHT PWHL TEAMS CELEBRATE OLYMPIC MEDALISTS
Olympic medals were won by 41 PWHL players, and all eight PWHL teams had players win Olympic medals, including the Boston Fleet (3 Gold, 1 Bronze); Minnesota Frost (6 Gold); Montréal Victoire (1 Gold, 5 Silver); New York Sirens (3 Silver, 1 Bronze); Ottawa Charge (2 Gold, 3 Silver); Seattle Torrent (4 Gold, 1 Silver); Toronto Sceptres (6 Silver); and the Vancouver Goldeneyes (5 Silver). The league now counts more than a quarter of its 207 players as Olympic medalists. For more Olympic news and content, visit the PWHL's Milano Cortina 2026 Hub here.
WELCOME HOME
On Wednesday afternoon, the Torrent hosted a celebratory press conference for the team’s Olympic gold medalists at the Seattle Space Needle, with special guests including U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team Olympic gold medalist Megan Rapinoe. On Monday, the Fleet will host a special Olympic celebration with fans at View Boston. After hosting more than 40 Watch Parties in their respective markets, bringing PWHL players and thousands of fans of all ages together to celebrate the Olympic spirit, all PWHL teams will welcome back their Olympians and celebrate their achievements during their first home games of the second half: New York (tonight at Prudential Center); Seattle (Friday at Climate Pledge Arena); Ottawa (Saturday at TD Place); Montréal (Sunday at Place Bell); Vancouver (Sunday at Pacific Coliseum); Toronto (Mar. 3 at Coca-Cola Coliseum); Minnesota (Mar. 13 at Grand Casino Arena); Boston (Mar. 17 at Agganis Arena). Click here for the full PWHL schedule and here for the standings.
CLOSING IN ON 2 MILLION PWHL FANS
When the PWHL paused following action on Jan. 28, attendance through 61 games of the 2025-26 season reached 527,663 fans, growing 17% from last season, with a per-game average of 8,650. Including playoffs, all-time PWHL attendance is currently 1,748,648 since the league launched on Jan. 1, 2024, putting the milestone of 2 million fans within reach before playoffs.
BIG GAMES STILL TO COME
The final stage of the PWHL Takeover Tour™ will engage fans in markets outside the league’s current complement of cities with the last six of the Tour’s 16 games to be played in Denver (Mar. 15 at Ball Arena); Winnipeg (Mar. 22 at Canada Life Centre); Chicago (Mar. 25 at Allstate Arena); Detroit (Mar. 28 at Little Caesars Arena); Calgary (Apr. 1 at Scotiabank Saddledome); and Edmonton (Apr. 7 at Rogers Place). Three teams will also showcase the PWHL to larger audiences in home games at non-primary home venues: Ottawa (Apr. 3 at Canadian Tire Centre); New York (Apr. 4 at Madison Square Garden); and Boston (Apr. 11 at TD Garden). Click here for tickets.
HEFFORD AND SCHEER NAMED 2026 CNBC CHANGEMAKERS
On Wednesday morning, the third annual CNBC Changemakers list was announced with Jayna Hefford, PWHL Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations, and Amy Scheer, PWHL Executive Vice President of Business Operations, honored for leading meaningful achievements across the PWHL in 2025. The list recognizes women transforming business and philanthropy across sectors including energy, financial services, health care, media, retail, sports and technology. Click here for more.
CYNOPSIS NAMES PWHL ITS 2026 SPORTS LEAGUE OF THE YEAR
Cynopsis recently announced the PWHL as the first Luminary Award recipient for the 2026 Cynopsis Sports Awards, recognizing the PWHL as Sports League of the Year. Stephanie Cronk, Brand Director of Cynopsis Sports Awards, said “What sets the PWHL apart is not just the speed of its growth, but the intention behind it. In a remarkably short period of time, the league has built trust with fans, partners, and players by prioritizing long-term vision over short-term wins. The result is a league that feels established, authentic, and culturally relevant, not aspirational. The PWHL is redefining what a modern sports league can look like, and its impact will extend well beyond women’s hockey.” The PWHL will be formally honored alongside other industry leaders in a live awards gala on June 4 in New York. Click here for more.
BELL NAMED JANUARY’S INTACT IMPACT AWARD RECIPIENT
Goldeneyes captain Ashton Bell is the Intact Impact Award recipient for the month of January, honored for her selfless leadership, commitment to her teammates, and unwavering support both on and off the ice. Through the PWHL’s partnership with Intact Insurance, a $5,000 donation will be made on her behalf to HEROS Hockey (Hockey Education Reaching Out Society), which delivers free hockey and life skills programming to marginalized youth across Canada.
KNIGHT AND MÜLLER HISTORIC FLAG BEARERS
When the Olympic Winter Games officially came to an end on Sunday, history was made by Seattle captain Hilary Knight of the United States and Boston alternate captain Alina Müller of Switzerland who became the first-ever PWHL players named flag bearers for a closing ceremony. Knight set all-time U.S. Olympic records for goals (15) and points (33) with her game-tying tally in the gold medal final, tied the all-time Olympic women’s hockey record for career games played (29), and is one of only four hockey players to win five Olympic medals. Müller scored the bronze-medal winning goal in overtime to move into fourth all-time in Olympic goals (16), also set the all-time Swiss Olympic record for assists (13), and was named a Tournament All-Star for the second time in her career.
POULIN SURPASSES UNIQUE CENTURY MARK
Montréal and Team Canada captain Marie-Philip Poulin notably set a new all-time Olympic record with her 19th and then 20th career goals in her memorable semifinal performance and, in the process, established a new milestone to measure impact on women’s hockey’s greatest stages. She is the first player to surpass 100 career points (102) recorded between the Olympics, where she ranks second all-time with 39 points, and the PWHL, where she is currently the league’s all-time leader with 63 points. Like Knight, Poulin is one of four players with five Olympic medals alongside fellow Canadians Hefford and Hayley Wickenheiser. She was also named the tournament’s Best Forward and received her third Olympic All-Star recognition. See PWHL all-time leaders here.
FAMILIAR FRANKEL
Boston’s Aerin Frankel was nearly unbeatable in her Olympic debut, which should come as no surprise given her standout play for the first-place Fleet. Her five straight Olympic wins tied a tournament record, which mirrors her five straight wins to open the 2025-26 PWHL season, posting three shutouts in both cases. Her three Olympic shutouts set a new tournament record, and in tandem with Ottawa’s Gwyneth Philips, set an Olympic record shutout streak of 352:17. Her Olympic goals-against-average of 0.39 and save percentage of .980 are new benchmarks for goaltenders with at least five games played. While those numbers are stronger than her current 1.35 GAA and .946 SV% in the PWHL, her save percentage in the first five games for the Fleet was .985 and a big reason why they sit at the top of the league standings.
STAR SPANGLED DANGLE
Fleet captain Megan Keller leads all PWHL defenders with five goals and 11 points this season and was the only defender in Milan to score three goals, while tying for the tournament lead with nine points. It’s safe to say her most memorable play was scoring the highlight-reel golden goal for Team USA, which, interestingly, is her first overtime goal in nearly a decade. Keller’s last overtime goal came on Dec. 7, 2018, as a senior for Boston College in a 4-3 win against Merrimack, assisted by Eagles teammate Daryl Watts of the Sceptres, who led Canada in Olympic scoring. Keller has played in 26 PWHL games that have gone to overtime, including playoffs, and her golden goal came in the tenth overtime game she’s played in during her Team USA career between three Olympics and nine Women’s Worlds.
FIVE OLYMPIC BREAKOUTS
Among the most notable offensive performances on the Olympic stage came from five players whose production exceeded their PWHL statistics to date. Laura Kluge had one assist in 13 PWHL games with Boston before setting a German record with seven points (3G, 4A), leading the preliminary round in scoring. Sara Hjalmarsson has been held without a point in her first 16 games with Toronto but scored two goals and three assists with Sweden. Fellow Sceptres forward Kristin Della Rovere, who has been a Reserve Player so far this season, set a tournament record for Italy with two goals and two assists. Montréal’s Lina Ljungblom, who is without a point in six games so far this season for the Victoire, recorded two goals and one assist for Sweden. On defense, Vancouver’s Nina Jobst-Smith is still looking for her first career PWHL goal but returns home having set a record for a German defender with two tallies.
THE NEXT TRIPLE GOLD CLUB CANDIDATES
The PWHL’s Triple Gold Club consists of nine players who have won Olympic gold, World Championship gold, and the Walter Cup, in Minnesota’s Kendall Coyne Schofield, Britta Curl-Salemme, Taylor Heise, Nicole Hensley, Kelly Pannek, Maddie Rooney, Lee Stecklein, Grace Zumwinkle and Vancouver’s Claire Thompson. Based on current PWHL rosters, the list will stay at nine if the Frost three-peat; otherwise, the list will grow by at least two, with up to six names being added when the Walter Cup is awarded this spring. Here’s a list of who is eligible based on gold medals at the Olympics and Women’s Worlds:
- BOS (6): Frankel, Keller, Hannah Brandt, Jamie Lee Rattray, Jill Saulnier, Haley Winn
- MTL (5): Poulin, Erin Ambrose, Ann-Renée Desbiens, Hayley Scamurra, Laura Stacey
- NY (2): Sarah Fillier, Micah Zandee-Hart
- OTT (5): Philips, Emily Clark, Rory Guilday, Brianne Jenner, Jocelyne Larocque
- SEA (4): Knight, Cayla Barnes, Hannah Bilka, Alex Carpenter
- TOR (6): Renata Fast, Kali Flanagan, Emma Maltais, Ella Shelton, Natalie Spooner, Blayre Turnbull
- VAN (4): Bell, Kristen Campbell, Emerance Maschmeyer, Sarah Nurse
LESLIE HEADLINES FIRST HALF’S MOST IMPROVED
Ottawa’s Rebecca Leslie is currently tied for sixth in PWHL scoring with 14 points (8G, 6A) in 16 games, which represents the highest points-per-game increase (0.77) among players in the first half relative to their full 2024-25 season production. Five other players have so far increased their points-per-game averages by more than a half point, including the Frost’s Pannek (0.63), Mae Batherson (0.55) and Curl-Salemme (0.53), along with Seattle’s Julia Gosling (0.53) and Vancouver’s Nurse (0.53). Click here for PWHL leaders.
CHARGE AND VICTOIRE JOIN NHL SKILLS EVENTS
On Sunday, members of the Charge joined the Ottawa Senators and the Victoire joined the Montreal Canadiens for their annual skills competitions. Leslie was one of four Charge players in the event and recorded the best result in the accuracy contest, hitting all four targets on five shots in 9.54 seconds. She was joined by Gabbie Hughes, Ronja Savolainen and Sarah Wozniewicz. In Montréal, Maureen Murphy also exceled in the accuracy shooting (12.357 seconds) and was joined in the event by Jade Downie-Landry, Nicole Gosling and Alexandra Labelle.
FUTURE PWHL TALENT
On Sunday, Mar. 1, the Draft Declaration Window opens for prospective PWHL players to declare their eligibility for the 2026 PWHL Draft. Five U.S. Olympic gold medalists are among a talented group of collegiate seniors who could declare: Wisconsin’s Caroline Harvey, Laila Edwards, and Kirsten Simms; Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy; and Penn State’s Tessa Janecke.
THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE
All eight teams are in action this week as the PWHL welcomes back its Olympians across five games, beginning tonight with New York’s Black History Celebration Unity Game, as the Sirens host Montréal at Prudential Center at 7 p.m. ET. On Friday night, Seattle hosts Toronto at Climate Pledge Arena at 10 p.m. ET, then on Saturday afternoon, it’s Ottawa’s Black History Celebration Unity Game when the Charge host Boston at 2 p.m. ET at TD Place. On Sunday, the Victoire host Minnesota at 1 p.m. ET at Place Bell, where the first 6,000 fans will receive a Victoire Collectible Car Plate, while quantities last. Then at 4 p.m. ET, Vancouver hosts Toronto at Pacific Coliseum to close out the week. Full broadcast details are below and available online here.
Thursday, February 26 – 7 PM ET
Montréal Victoire at New York Sirens (Prudential Center)
- Canada: TSN, RDS
- U.S. (In-Market): MSGSN 2
Friday, February 27 – 10 PM ET
Toronto Sceptres at Seattle Torrent (Climate Pledge Arena)
- Canada: TSN
- U.S. (In-Market): FOX 13+
- U.S. (Out of Market): FanDuel Sports Network (Detroit, Florida, Midwest Extra, North Extra, Ohio, South, Southwest, West), Last Frontier Sports & Entertainment Network (Alaska), NESN (Boston), SNP (Pittsburgh)
Saturday, February 28 – 2 PM ET
Boston Fleet at Ottawa Charge (TD Place)
- Canada: CBC and CBC Gem
- U.S. (In-Market): NESN, NESN+
- U.S. (Out of Market): FanDuel Sports Network (Detroit Extra, Florida, Midwest Extra, North, Ohio, South, Southwest, West, Wisconsin), FOX 10 Xtra Phoenix, SNP (Pittsburgh)
Sunday, March 1 – 1 PM ET
Minnesota Frost at Montréal Victoire (Place Bell)
- Canada: Sportsnet ONE, RDS
- U.S. (In-Market): FanDuel Sports Network North, FOX 9+
- U.S. (Out of Market): FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin Extra, FOX 10 Xtra Phoenix, Matrix Midwest (St. Louis), Scripps Sports (excludes Denver)
Sunday, March 1 – 4 PM ET
Toronto Sceptres at Vancouver Goldeneyes (Pacific Coliseum)
- Canada: TSN
- U.S. (Out of Market): FOX 11+ Los Angeles, Matrix Midwest (St. Louis), NESN (Boston), SNP (Pittsburgh)
Fans around the world can continue to follow every game live via the PWHL YouTube channel and thepwhl.com, with the exception of Canada, and in Czechia and Slovakia — where Nova Sport will continue to carry games locally.