Rocky off-season for Boston Fleet but scored with Haley Winn

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Hayley Winn probably hasn't gotten the attention she deserves in the PWHL yet, but you know it's coming.

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Being selected second overall in this year's PWHL Draft was somewhat of a perfect storm if the goal was to fade into obscurity.

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The No. 1 pick, Kristina Kaltunkova of the New York Sirens, was always going to get the lion's share of attention just because she was the first overall pick.

Wynn, a Clarkson alumnus of the school's line-up of outstanding defensive backs, was clearly the best of a strong group of defensive backs in the draft. But sandwiched between the No. 1 overall pick and the league-altering deal at No. 3 in which the Toronto Sceptres traded that pick for veteran Ella Shelton, her spot seemed to be overlooked.

The news that Boston Navy had added another No. 1 defenseman to a roster that already had Megan Keller seemed to just fly under the radar.

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If the league hasn't already taken notice of Wynn, it will soon.

In her regular-season debut, a 2-0 loss to a strong Montreal Victoire team, all Wynn did was spend just under 26 minutes on the ice in a defensive display of strength while contributing six shots and a blocked shot in the game.

She didn't make it into the protocol, but you know that will happen too. Wynn has 130 points in 151 collegiate games, so she will contribute offensively. This is a given.

But it is the protocols, and this is a large number, that already implies the trust she has within the Fleet organization that is immediately evident at the very beginning of her professional career.

Such ice time is recorded by veterans such as Keller or Renata Fast in Toronto or Lee Stecklein in Minnesota.

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But for a new player in their first game to see such a load is almost unheard of.

The Scepters will get their first look at Wynn and the new-look Fleet on Saturday (2 p.m. at the Coca-Cola Coliseum) for their home opener.

With an elite goalie already in place in Aerin Frankel and a defensive corps that now includes two No. 1 defensemen and some offensive firepower in Alina Mueller and Suzanne Tapani, Boston is capable of causing trouble for any team.

Deciding to build a defense first when your biggest losses are on the offensive side suggests that the Fleet will be a team that plays a lot of low-scoring games – and it works in Boston, where they already boasted players like Keller and Frankel.

Or maybe Winn was too good to pass up.

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Wynn considers himself a shooting guard, but also takes great pride in the finishing part of his game.

Frankel was primarily responsible for Boston reaching the Walter Cup finals that first year, and while she admits she will miss teammates like Hilary Knight, who is now a member of the Seattle Torrent, she is excited to see how far this group can go this season.

“We still have a lot of our core intact and having a new head coach is a fresh start for everyone and we're all excited about it,” Frankel said, mentioning the bench change from Courtney Kessel to Chris Sparr.

“It’s going to be a different year, it’s going to look a lot different, but I don’t think our culture or our desire to win has changed at all.”

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Alina Müller, who – rightly or wrongly – will inherit many of the high-scoring expectations that Knight set for himself during his first two seasons, admits it was very difficult to lose her captain.

“It’s definitely going to be very strange,” Muller admitted of a season without the face of the franchise. “It's going to be a big change for sure. I'm really sad that I can't be around her every day anymore. I learned from her, I played with her, and I had two of the coolest years of my life because of her. I'm sure she'll be successful wherever she goes.”

Turning the page on Fleet's days with Knight at the helm won't be easy, but with newcomers like Wynn, Fleet has given itself plenty to look forward to in 2025-26.

“We created this culture together in Boston,” Mueller said. “Obviously Hilary was a leading force there and someone who did a lot behind the scenes that people will never hear about. However, culturally, we will have a smooth transition and build on what we already have.”

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