Lydia Murray

Boston, Maine

Journalist at Freelance

Featured in: Favicon

theicegarden.com Favicon

sportswtbu.com Favicon

bu.edu

sites.bu.edu

Articles

2025 PWHL Expansion Draft: Top Players Available at Each Position

5 days ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

The initial PWHL expansion lists have been announced, and now PWHL Seattle and Vancouver get to salivate over the number of bona fide stars teams had to leave exposed. With so much talent available, I decided to take a look at the the top three players available at each position. For the purposes of this exercise, only players eligible for protection were considered, so no pending unrestricted free agents. ForwardsAlex Carpenter (New York Sirens).
PWHL Expansion Draft Player Protection List Announced

5 days ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

It’s officially time for the PWHL to expand. The league announced each of the original six teams' initial protection lists via a press release shortly after today's noon ET deadline. As a reminder, each team got to protect three players ahead of the draft. They will each be able to protect one more after they have relinquished two of their players to the expansion clubs.
2024-25 PWHL Season Recap: Boston Fleet

1 week ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

The Walter Cup has been handed to the Minnesota Frost for the second straight year, which means the PWHL is now in offseason mode. However, before we fully turn the page on the 2024-25, it’s time to reflect on how each team performed. The Boston Fleet had a rollercoaster of a season with a bitterly disappointing end, with the highs powered by MVP-caliber performances from the team's stars and the lows primarily caused by a paltry offense. Record9-6-5-10, 44 points (fifth place).
New PWHL General Managers Discuss New Roles, Team-Building Philosophies

1 week ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

With the expansion draft rapidly approaching, the PWHL hosted a virtual press conference featuring Seattle General Manager Meghan Turner, Vancouver General Manager Cara Gardner Morey, and PWHL Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Jayna Hefford to share some insights on the hiring process and the new general managers' philosophies ahead of the June 9 draft. Seattle’s Meghan TurnerOur fearless leader has arrived! 🗣️We are excited to welcome Meghan Turner to Seattle as General Manager.
PWHL Expansion Draft Predictions: Boston Fleet

1 week ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

With the 2024-25 PWHL season now in the rearview mirror, all eyes have turned toward the June 9 expansion draft, which will see every team lose four players as Seattle and Vancouver build out 12-player rosters. The Boston Fleet have an agonizing choice to make with their initial three protected players. They are all but guaranteed to lose two of their best forwards, but things get a little murkier beyond that. Initial ProtectionsAerin Frankel (G). This one is an absolute no-brainer.
Taylor Heise Sends Minnesota Frost Back to Walter Cup Final

3 weeks ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

For the second straight year, the fourth-seeded Minnesota Frost are headed to the Walter Cup Final. Led by their veterans in regulation, they overcame a 2-0 deficit to get Game 4 against the Toronto Sceptres to overtime, where Taylor Heise picked the perfect time to score her first of the series, sending the clinching goal through a screen and past Carly Jackson. “It’s really hard to end a team’s season, especially one that’s been doing so well,” Heise said when asked about her goal postgame.
Defenders Lead Offensive Charge as Minnesota Evens Series With 5-3 Win Over Toronto

4 weeks ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

Just like Game 1 was the Rookie Show, Game 2 of the 2025 PWHL semifinal series between the Toronto Sceptres and Minnesota Frost was the Defender Show. Defenders scored six of the eight combined goals as the Frost took down the Sceptres, 5-3, to even the series. Lee Stecklein headlined the show, continuing her magical run since returning from the Worlds stage. She factored into each of her team’s second-period goals via two goals and an assist in 27:11 TOI.
2025 PWHL Semifinals: Rookies Take Center Stage in Game One Between Sceptres and Frost

1 month ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

The PWHL playoffs got off to an electric start last night, with the Toronto Sceptres earning a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Frost. While the stars and veterans are often the ones shining brightest early in playoff series, it was the bottom-six rookies who took center stage in this game. Fourth-line center Julia Gosling led the charge for Toronto, scoring twice in under two minutes in the second period to give the Sceptres a 3-0 lead.
2024-25 PWHL Power Rankings: Week 20 (05/02-05/06)

1 month ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

Welcome to the final 2024-25 installment of The Ice Garden’s weekly power rankings! Remember: if you think your team is ranked too low, it’s definitely, totally, 100% because we hate them. The PWHL regular season wrapped up with a bang this weekend, with every team in action and three teams still fighting to secure playoff spots. In the end, the Ottawa Charge and Minnesota Frost took care of business to join the Montréal Victoire and the Toronto Sceptres for this year’s playoffs.
2025 PWHL Semifinals Preview: Toronto Sceptres vs Minnesota Frost

1 month ago | theicegarden.com | Lydia Murray

The PWHL playoffs kick off Wednesday night, with the Toronto Sceptres and Minnesota Frost taking the ice in a rematch of last year's semifinals. Last time around, the #4 Frost reverse-swept the #1 Sceptres en route to the Walter Cup. This year, the #2 Sceptres seek revenge against the still-#4 Frost. ScheduleThe next chapter starts Wednesday.