Boston Fleet goaltender Aerin Frankel accepts the 2026 Defender of the Year Award at the PWHL Awards presented by Ally Financial. The PWHL Awards took place on June 16, 2026 in Detroit, MI. Frankel, a 26-year-old from Chappaqua, NY, is the first goaltender in league history to earn MVP honors and was instrumental in Boston’s record season, posting multiple PWHL single-season benchmarks including 19 wins in 26 starts (tied with Ann-Renée Desbiens), eight shutouts, and 18 games allowing one or fewer goals against. She is the first goaltender in PWHL history to post three consecutive shutouts, spanning a streak of 226:09, and finished the season with a career-best 1.17 goals-against average and .953 save percentage.
