PWHL schedule pauses for International Break at midway mark of Season Two
NEW YORK AND TORONTO (February 5, 2025) – A closer look at highlights on and off the ice from around the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) heading into the international break.
WEEKEND GAMES ATTRACT SEASON-HIGH ATTENDANCE
The final three games before the international break featured season-high attendances for Boston, Toronto, and New York at their primary home venues. The Fleet welcomed a sold-out crowd of 5,912 to the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell on Friday night, the Sceptres had a sold-out crowd of 8,351 at Coca-Cola Coliseum on Saturday afternoon, and the Sirens wrapped up the weekend with 4,346 fans at Prudential Center on Sunday afternoon. Attendance through 43 games of the league’s 90-game schedule is 312,700 – an average of 7,272 per game and a 33% increase over last season’s average attendance of 5,448.
NHL’S KIM DAVIS DROPS THE PUCK TO LAUNCH BLACK HISTORY MONTH UNITY GAMES
The PWHL is celebrating Black History Month with Unity Games hosted by all six teams in February. The first such game was hosted by New York on Sunday where Kim Davis, NHL Senior Executive Vice President of Social Impact, Growth Initiatives & Legislative Affairs, performed the ceremonial puck drop, spreading awareness of the importance of diversity in hockey. Each team’s celebration will include unique moments, special collaborations, and engagement with youth organizations and Black-owned businesses. Click here to visit the PWHL’s Black History Month page and read more about Davis’ experience at the Sirens game at nhl.com.
NHL 25 TEAM OF THE YEAR
The EA Sports NHL 25 Team of the Year (TOTY) has been named and features a lineup of the PWHL superstars who burned brightest over the previous calendar year. Out of the 15 nominated players (seven forwards, five defenders, three goaltenders), PWHL winners include forwards Taylor Heise (MIN), Marie-Philip Poulin (MTL) and Natalie Spooner (TOR), defenders Erin Ambrose (MTL) and Megan Keller (BOS), and goaltender Kristen Campbell (TOR). The TOTY is a celebration of their skill, grit, and achievement, and a way for gamers to build out their squad with the sport’s best. Winners were presented with custom skates to commemorate the honor. Click here for more.
TESSA BONHOMME Q&A
Jocks in Jills co-host Tessa Bonhomme has been featured in theScore’s Leadership Survey – a list of questions posed to the people who have shaped sports to gain more insight into their personalities and motivations. Bonhomme has demonstrated her commitment to women’s hockey with a pioneering approach in both the sport and media. Hosted by Bonhomme and Julia Tocheri, the Jocks in Jills podcast recently celebrated its one-year anniversary of showcasing the biggest stars in women’s hockey, up-and-coming talent, and offering insights into the past, current and next generation of PWHL stars.
TRIO OF SHOOTOUTS MATCHES INAUGURAL SEASON TOTAL
Three of last week’s seven games were decided by a shootout, including Minnesota’s 4-3 win over Toronto last Tuesday, Montréal’s 4-3 win over Toronto on Thursday, and Boston’s 3-2 win over New York on Friday. So far this season, seven of the league’s 43 games have gone to a shootout, representing 16.3% of all games, while seven of the league’s 72 games during the inaugural season were shootout results, representing 9.7%. All six teams have now competed in at least one shootout so far this season. Boston (2-0) holds the best record in shootout decisions, followed by Minnesota (2-1) and Montréal (2-1), New York (1-2), Ottawa (0-1), and Toronto (0-2). Poulin leads the league with three shootout goals, including two shootout winners, in five attempts. Click here to see the PWHL schedule and scores.
TORONTO’S TOP POWER PLAY
The Sceptres head into the break with the league’s top power play, clicking at a 28.9% success rate, a full eight percentage points above the Frost’s second-ranked unit at 20.9%. Seven of Toronto’s 10 goals last week were scored on the power play, with the Sceptres scoring multiple times with the advantage in all three of their games. With 13 power play markers so far this season, including three each from league-leaders Hannah Miller and Sarah Nurse, Toronto has also surpassed their goal total on the advantage from last season, when they scored 11 PPG in 24 games. Sceptres defender Renata Fast leads the league with nine power play points (2G, 7A).
FRANKEL FIRST TO 1,000 SAVES
Boston’s Aerin Frankel became the first goaltender to surpass a special milestone on Friday night against New York with over 1,000 career saves. The 25-year-old achieved the feat in overtime as part of the Fleet’s 3-2 shootout win against the Sirens. Frankel now stands at 1,001 career saves, which includes 260 saves in 10 games this season, 455 saves in 18 regular-season games last season, and 286 saves in eight playoff games. Ottawa’s Emerance Maschmeyer is on pace to be the first goaltender to reach 1,000 regular-season saves, currently with 870 in 35 appearances over two seasons.
POULIN SCORES SEASON’S FIRST HAT TRICK
Poulin became the first player in the 2024-25 season to record a hat trick, netting three goals in the Victoire’s 4-1 win over Ottawa last Wednesday. The captain, who leads the PWHL with 10 goals in 14 games, was the second of eight players to register a hat trick during the inaugural season, on Jan. 10, 2024, against New York. Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle scored the first hat trick in league history on Jan. 6, 2024, followed by Poulin, New York’s Jade Downie-Landry (Jan. 20, 2024), Toronto’s Spooner (Feb. 14, 2024) and Nurse (Apr. 28, 2024), Montréal’s Claire Dalton (Feb. 24, 2024), and Ottawa’s Daryl Watts (Mar. 23, 2024) and Brianne Jenner (Apr. 20, 2024).
FIRST SHUTOUT FOR OSBORNE
Kayle Osborne stopped all 31 shots she faced last Monday, backstopping New York to a 3-0 shutout victory over Ottawa in her hometown debut - and in just her third PWHL appearance. The Westport, ON, native became the second rookie goaltender to record a shutout in the PWHL all-time, following Charge goaltender Gwyneth Philips on Jan. 21, 2025. The Sirens’ fifth-round pick from Colgate University is now the youngest goaltender to post a shutout in PWHL history at 22 years, 10 months, and 30 days, surpassing Philips, who briefly held the record at 24 years, 4 months, 4 days. New York has recorded three shutouts in their 14 games so far this season, matching the league-leading total achieved by both Toronto and Minnesota in the 24-game inaugural season.
FIRST GOALS FOR GOSLING AND SIMPSON
Toronto forward Julia Gosling scored her first career PWHL goal on Saturday against Ottawa, and New York defender Allyson Simpson scored her first against Montréal on Sunday. The Sceptres’ first-round pick from St. Lawrence University tallied on her 31st shot on goal, while the Sirens’ third rounder from Colgate found the back of the net on her 27th shot. The pair are ranked second and sixth, respectively, in rookie shots on goal this season. Of the 86 different PWHL goal scorers so far this season, 20 are rookies.
LEAGUE LEADERS
New York rookie Sarah Fillier stands alone atop the PWHL scoring lead with 15 points (5G, 10A) in 14 games. The first overall pick carries the league’s longest active point streak into the break at six games, amassing a goal and five assists during that stretch. A trio of Minnesota players are tied for second in scoring with 14 points apiece, including captain Kendall Coyne Schofield (6G, 8A), 2023’s top pick Heise (4G, 10A), and defender Claire Thompson (3G, 11A). Following Fillier, four players are currently riding four-game point streaks including Boston’s Alina Müller (2G, 4A), New York’s Ella Shelton (3G, 2A), and Toronto’s Nurse (2G, 3A) and Watts (1G, 4A). In goal, Montréal’s Ann-Renée Desbiens leads the league with eight wins, a 1.77 goals-against-average, and a .935 save percentage. The Victoire (8-3-1-2) are the league’s hottest team with five straight wins and top the standings with 31 points. Minnesota (5-4-2-4) ranks second with 25 points, followed by New York (4-3-2-5) in third place with 20 points. Toronto (5-0-4-6) has points in four straight games and sit fourth with 19 points, two ahead of Boston (3-3-2-5) and Ottawa (5-0-2-8) with 17 points each. Click to see standings and stats.
RIVALRY SERIES
The final two games of the 2024-25 Rivalry Series between Canada and the United States will take place on Thursday night in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Saturday in Summerside, Prince Edward Island. Rosters for both February games are entirely comprised of 46 PWHL players from Montréal (10), Ottawa (9), Toronto (9), Minnesota (7), Boston (6) and New York (5).
Team Canada:
Forwards: Emily Clark (OTT), Sarah Fillier (NY), Jennifer Gardiner (MTL), Julia Gosling (TOR), Brianne Jenner (OTT), Emma Maltais (TOR), Sarah Nurse (TOR), Kristin O’Neill (MTL), Marie-Philip Poulin (MTL), Jamie Lee Rattray (BOS), Danielle Serdachny (OTT), Laura Stacey (MTL), Blayre Turnbull (TOR), Daryl Watts (TOR).
Defenders: Erin Ambrose (MTL), Ashton Bell (OTT), Renata Fast (TOR), Sophie Jaques (MIN), Jocelyne Larocque (OTT), Ella Shelton (NY), Claire Thompson (MIN), Micah Zandee-Hart (NY).
Goaltenders: Ann-Renée Desbiens (MTL), Emerance Maschmeyer (OTT), Corinne Schroeder (NY).
Staff: General Manager Gina Kingsbury (TOR), Head Coach Troy Ryan (TOR), Assistant Coach Kori Cheverie (MTL), Assistant Coach Caroline Ouellette (MTL), Goaltending Consultant Brad Kirkwood (TOR), Strength and Conditioning Coach Vicki Bendus (MTL), Equipment Manager Alana Goulden (TOR).
Team USA:
Forwards: Hannah Bilka (BOS), Jesse Compher (TOR), Kendall Coyne Schofield (MIN), Britta Curl-Salemme (MIN), Izzy Daniel (TOR), Clair DeGeorge (MTL), Taylor Heise (MIN), Gabbie Hughes (OTT), Hilary Knight (BOS), Mannon McMahon (OTT), Maureen Murphy (MTL), Kelly Pannek (MIN).
Defenders: Sydney Bard (BOS), Cayla Barnes (MTL), Savannah Harmon (TOR), Megan Keller (BOS), Allyson Simpson (NY), Anna Wilgren (MTL).
Goaltenders: Aerin Frankel (BOS), Nicole Hensley (MIN), Gwyneth Philips (OTT).
Staff: Assistant Coach Josh Sciba (NY), Head Scout Haley Skarupa (MIN), Athletic Trainer Katie Homan (MIN), Equipment Manager Sis Paulsen (MIN).
Alex Carpenter (NY), Gabby Rosenthal (NY), Hayley Scamurra (TOR), Grace Zumwinkle (MIN) were all originally named to the U.S. roster but will not compete.
Canada leads the United States 2-1 in the five-game series and has emerged victorious in each of the last two seven-game series, 4-3.
OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS
Three countries will earn their way into the 2026 Olympic Games in Milano Cortina through a trio of qualifying tournaments taking place this week, with eight PWHL players in action. In Sweden, the host nation will be represented by Anna Kjellbin (MTL), Lina Ljungblom (MTL), Maja Nylén Persson (NY) and Emma Söderberg (BOS) competing against Denmark, Netherlands and Norway. In Japan, France will be represented by Chloé Aurard (NY) competing against China, Poland and Japan. Germany will host the third event with Sandra Abstreiter (MTL) competing against Austria’s Anna Meixner (OTT) and Theresa Schafzahl (BOS), along with Hungary and Slovakia.
WOMEN’S EURO HOCKEY TOUR
Czechia, Finland and Switzerland have already earned their place in the 2026 Olympics and will compete in a three-game event as part of the Women’s Euro Hockey Tour. The games will be played in Liberec, Czechia, and will feature 11 PWHL players. Representing the host nation are Klárá Hymlárová (MIN), Denisa Křīžovā (MIN), Kateřina Mrázová (OTT), Noemi Neubauerová (TOR), Daniela Pejšová (BOS), Klára Peslarová (BOS), Aneta Tejralová (OTT) and Tereza Vanišová (OTT), led by head coach Carla MacLeod (OTT). Finland’s roster includes Ronja Savolainen (OTT) and Noora Tulus (NY), and Switzerland features Alina Müller (BOS). Dominika Lásková (MTL) has also travelled overseas to join her Czech teammates for the event.