NEW YORK AND TORONTO (May 21, 2026) – The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) today announced that Ann-Renée Desbiens of the Montréal Victoire, Aerin Frankel of the Boston Fleet, and Gwyneth Philips of the Ottawa Charge have been voted as the three finalists for the 2026 PWHL Goaltender of the Year award presented by Rogers. All three players were finalists for the 2025 award.
The PWHL Goaltender of the Year award is presented by Rogers to the goaltender who showcases the most outstanding ability at the position throughout the regular season.
ANN-RENÉE DESBIENS, MONTRÉAL VICTOIRE
Desbiens could become the first two-time recipient of the award after standing tall in net for the Victoire, setting new standards across multiple goaltending categories. The Clermont, QC native set single-season records with a 1.11 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage and co-led the league with a record 19 wins in 25 games. Her six losses tied for the fewest among goaltenders with at least 10 starts, with just four coming in regulation. Desbiens allowed a league-low 28 goals among netminders with 15 or more starts, complemented by seven shutouts, which ranked second in the PWHL. She opened the 2025-26 campaign by allowing two or fewer goals in 15 consecutive games to match her own single-season record from last year, allowed one or fewer goals in 17 games, and had only one game with more than two goals against in 25 starts. Desbiens also recorded a career-high 592 saves on 620 shots faced, ranking fifth overall behind only goaltenders who faced more attempts. Additionally, she was one of just three goaltenders to record an assist this season, becoming one of seven to do so in PWHL history.
AERIN FRANKEL, BOSTON FLEET
Frankel becomes the first player to be named a position award finalist in each of the PWHL's three seasons after backstopping the Fleet with clutch performances and record-setting results. Boston’s netminder set a new PWHL single-season record with eight shutouts, four more than the previous mark set by Corinne Schroeder in 2024-25, and became the first goaltender in PWHL history to record three consecutive shutouts, including a streak of 226:09 without allowing a goal. Frankel allowed one or fewer goals in 18 of her 26 starts for a new single-season record, and logged the second-most minutes in league history with 1583:12. She opened the season with five straight victories and co-led the league with a record 19 wins—14 in regulation—alongside Desbiens, while allowing the second-fewest goals (31) among goaltenders with at least 15 starts. The 26-year-old from Chappaqua, NY ranked second in the league with career-best marks, posting a 1.17 goals-against average and .953 save percentage. She finished the season with a career-high 631 saves on 662 shots faced, ranking second and third, respectively.
GWYNETH PHILIPS, OTTAWA CHARGE
Philips earns a second consecutive finalist nod following a standout sophomore season in which she consistently gave the Charge their best chance in goal. The Athens, OH native set a single-season record with 28 starts, including a record 18 consecutive appearances to finish the season, and logged 1643:15 minutes—setting a new single-season record by more than 300 minutes. Philips finished third with 16 wins, highlighted by a league-leading seven victories in eight games that went beyond regulation after appearing in just two such contests during her rookie campaign. The 25-year-old faced a PWHL single-season record 844 shots and made a record 786 saves, 151 more shots and 155 more saves than the next highest goaltender, and set new records with 11 games of 30 or more saves and three performances featuring at least 40 saves. As the first player in league history to record multiple starts with 40-plus saves in a single season, Philips posted a career-high three shutouts, including a 42-save blank on April 11 that eclipsed Frankel’s previous league record of 41 saves in a shutout win.
A selection committee cast their votes for six regular-season PWHL awards, including Goaltender of the Year presented by Rogers, along with the league’s First and Second All-Star Teams and an All-Rookie Team, between the conclusion of regular season and the commencement of playoffs. The three players that received the most voting points for Goaltender of the Year have been named finalists. Winners of all PWHL Awards will be announced on June 16 in Detroit.
Last season, Desbiens was the recipient of the Goaltender of the Year award, voted over finalists Frankel and Philips.
ABOUT THE PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S HOCKEY LEAGUE (PWHL)
The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that features the best women’s players in the world. As of the 2025-26 season, it is comprised of eight teams — Boston, Minnesota, Montréal, New York, Ottawa, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver — with Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose added as the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th teams ahead of the 2026-27 season. Launched on January 1, 2024, the PWHL has broken multiple attendance records and holds the worldwide all-time record for a women’s hockey game. The league was recognized by Sports Business Journal as the Sports Breakthrough of the Year, and ranked No. 1 in Canada for corporate reputation in both 2024 and 2025, according to the Harris Poll. Visit thepwhl.com to purchase tickets and merchandise, and subscribe to the PWHL e-newsletter for the latest updates. Follow the league on social media @thepwhlofficial.
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