MILAN — Both medal games at the 2026 Winter Olympics women’s hockey tournament came down to overtime.
Megan Keller lifted the U.S. women’s national team to its first gold medal since 2018 after her sudden-death, golden goal secured Team USA’s 2-1 comeback win over Canada on Feb. 19. Earlier in the day, Switzerland’s Alina Müller scored a game-winning goal over Sweden in the bronze-medal game.
‘When (Keller) got the puck, I was like, ‘I know where she’s going to score that,’ and she did,’ Müller said of Keller’s overtime goal in the gold-medal game, the most-watched women’s hockey game on record. ‘Pretty sick move for a defenseman. But yeah we’re going to have a lot of fun back in Boston.’
Both Keller and Muller are members of the Boston Fleet of the Professional Women’s Hockey League, whose fingerprints could be seen all over the 2026 Winter Olympics. Sixty-one PWHL players participated in the Games and 45 competed in the two medal games, showcasing the global talent in the league.
And you don’t have to wait four years to see Olympic stars return to the ice.
BUY: Team USA hockey book: “RED, WHITE & GOLD.”
The second half of the 2025-26 PWHL resumes Thursday with a matchup between the New York Sirens and Montréal Victoire, home to Marie‑Philip Poulin, who became the all-time leading goal scorer in Olympic women’s hockey (20) at the Milan Games.
The Seattle Torrent — which features Hilary Knight, Cayla Barnes, Hannah Bilka and Alex Carpenter from the U.S. women’s gold-medal winning team — will face off against the Toronto Sceptres on Saturday.
‘The Olympics are every four years, but the development, the rivalries and the world-class standard of play are being built daily in the PWHL,’ Jayna Hefford, PWHL Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations and Hockey Hall of Famer, said in a statement to USA TODAY Sports.
‘As we head into the second half of our third season and an exciting race for the Walter Cup, we hope fans were inspired by the games in Milan and will continue following these players in the PWHL to see this level of hockey every night.”
PWHL lifts women’s hockey
The PWHL didn’t exist ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Games. But in the two years since its launch in 2024, the league has created a competitive pipeline that has transformed the sport. The results were on display in Milan.
Forty-one PWHL players earned medals at the 2026 Winter Olympics, with all eight PWHL franchises being represented. Switzerland won its second bronze medal in Olympic history and the first since 2014. USA and Canada faced off in the gold-medal game for the seventh time in Olympic history, but parity across the world has grown.
‘This is just a new normal. … PWHL is definitely what’s best for women’s hockey,’ Canadian head coach Troy Ryan, who also coaches the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres, said after Canada’s 2-1 loss in the gold-medal game. ‘Largely because of the impact of the PWHL, you saw a lot of closer games. You saw international teams that have PWHL players in it showcase better than they previously did.”
The PWHL has provided viable salaries, health care, dedicated training facilities and staff, in addition to year-round competition and invaluable reps against the world’s elite. As Hefford puts it, ‘Iron sharpens iron, and the growth of the game comes from the best players in the world pushing one another over the course of a full season in the PWHL.’
USA defender Lee Stecklein, who plays for the two-time champion Minnesota Frost, is one player who has benefited from the league. The four-time Olympian credited the PWHL with lengthening her career and told USA TODAY Sports that she’s ‘grateful.’
‘Not only has it elevated all of women’s hockey I believe, but as a player it’s given me the chance to continue getting better I think with more games, more practices, more resources, all of that,’ Stecklein said. ‘Hopefully it’s just continuing to push the women’s game forward and I hope everyone saw that here, this tournament.’
Sweden’s captain Anna Kjellbin, who also plays on the Toronto Sceptres, hopes the limelight on PWHL players on the Olympic stage will inspire more girls to pick up a hockey stick, especially in her home country.
‘Obviously playing against and together with the best in the world, it definitely makes you develop your own hockey,’ Kjellbin told USA TODAY Sports following Sweden’s loss in the bronze-medal game. ‘I hope that for me as a Swede, that more Swedish girls will go over there.’
Record growth, viewership
Team USA’s overtime gold medal win over Canada marked the most-watched women’s hockey game on record, according to NBC. The broadcast averaged 5.3 million viewers between USA Network and Peacock and peaked at 7.7 million viewers in overtime.
‘Every year (women’s hockey) is getting more exciting, getting more physical, more athletic, faster game,’ Müller said. ‘The stadiums are filling up. Just a few years ago there would have been 100 people in the stands and it’s crazy to see.’
The PWHL is expected to get a boost from the 2026 Games as Olympians are set to return to their PWHL clubs. Hefford said fans can expect the same level of excitement and skill as the chase for the Walter Cup resumes.
‘The gold medal game showcased the elite level of women’s hockey that’s been elevated since the PWHL launched in 2024,’ said Hefford, a four-time Olympic gold medalist with the Canadian team. ‘The world has now seen the speed, skill and physicality of the sport on full display and a competitive balance that’s stronger than ever.’
Reach USA TODAY National Women’s Sports Reporter Cydney Henderson at chenderson@gannett.com and follow her on X at @CydHenderson.
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