LOWELL, MA – The Boston Fleet scored four unanswered goals in the third period to earn a critical 4-0 win over the New York Sirens Saturday afternoon before a sold-out crowd of 6,120 fans at the Tsongas Center.
Boston’s three points in the regulation win kept its chances of securing first place in the PWHL standings alive, along with the opportunity to choose their playoff opponent — pending the outcome of Montréal’s matchup later today, needing a win against Seattle to overtake Boston. Jessie Eldridge put the Fleet on the board first at 2:53 of the third period, tipping the puck in for the deflection of Megan Keller’s one-timer. Ella Huber made it 2-0 nearly five minutes later, breaking free from a pair of defenders, before transferring the puck from skate-to-stick to find the back of the net. Haley Winn snapped home a one-timer through an open lane at 13:43 before Jill Saulnier capped the Fleet’s offensive flurry with an empty net, shorthanded ‘jailbreak’ goal just over a minute later. Aerin Frankel’s 30-save performance made for her eighth shutout and 19th win of the season, both single-season records, while rookie Callie Shanahan turned away 20 of 23 shots in the loss.
Boston is set to play Game 1 of the 2026 PWHL Walter Cup Playoffs at the Tsongas Center on Thursday, April 30 at 7 p.m. ET. If the Fleet secure the number one seed, they will select their first-round playoff opponent between Minnesota or the winner of the Ottawa/Toronto game. If Montréal finishes as the top seed, Boston will face the remaining team after the Victoire make their selection. New York has finished its 2025-26 regular season, missing the playoffs for the third time in as many seasons.
QUOTES
Boston Head Coach Kris Sparre on the Fleet’s win today and the regular season as a whole: “We want to be playing our best hockey going into the playoffs, that’s been our goal. There were certainly some components of that game that I really liked. Not so much the first period, but in the third I thought we found our rhythm. I met with the group postgame and reflected on the journey so far. Seven months ago, we had a whole set of prospects that made the team, bunch of (new signings), whole new coaching staff for the most part, and we had something to prove right from the start. Our players took ownership of everything we put in front of them and took charge. It started with our leadership group and our ability to stay connected in everything that we do.”
Fleet Captain Megan Keller on Boston’s chemistry and success this regular season: “From start to finish I feel like this is one of the tightest groups that we’ve ever had. Up and down the lineup, it always takes everybody every single night to win. Off the ice, we’re such a special group and you feel it in the locker room, and I think that’s what ultimately helps us on the ice. And obviously, Aerin Frankel. Reflecting back on this entire year, what we’ve built thus far is special, but we know our job is not done yet. Ultimately, we want to win the Walter Cup.”
New York Head Coach Greg Fargo on his reflection of the season, his thoughts on the team, and not making playoffs three seasons in a row: “Yeah, it’s a lot to take in. I mean, the game just ended, so that’s what the next few days are for, and the offseason. We’ll reflect a lot here over the next couple days, dissect everything because that’s what we do. Go through a process where we get to connect with everybody before they leave town and have some more meetings as a staff and figure it out. I think with it having been my second year coaching the team, I’m really—off the top—proud of the group and the growth of this organization. I think we’ve taken a lot of steps forward. You could see, being outside the playoff stings for sure. That’s where we want to be. That’s where we set our goals to be at the start of the year. But at the same time, you’ve got to appreciate the growth of this group. We’ve got a young team with a young core, and I just think we were able to make some really positive steps this year. There are some parts of our game that we really like. Obviously, we’ve got to find ways to score. And I think the game today was a really good indication of our season. You know, we were playing well. We had the other team on the ropes and couldn’t find a way to get that first one or a second one, so you let a team hang around that’s as good as Boston, and they’re going to make you pay. But, yeah, a lot of growth, a lot of good things to reflect upon and grow from. But really proud of our group and how we moved the needle forward this season.”
Sirens forward Anna Bargman on playing in the final game of the season, just 15 miles from her hometown of Boxford, MA: “Definitely feels a little bit full circle, just to have so many people reach out wanting to come to the game. You know, the game has grown a lot over the last three seasons, and even from the first game of this season to the last game. So, definitely felt good to be here with [almost] like [a] home crowd. But again, you get out there in every arena, it kind of feels the same. You kind of tune it out a bit, but definitely really fun to be here.”
NOTABLES
Boston wins the season series 11-1 in points, outscoring New York 11-3, including a 4-3 shootout result and three shutout victories. The Fleet’s 11-game winning streak in the series (8-3-0-0) is the longest in PWHL history by one team against another. The last time New York beat Boston was in the PWHL’s inaugural season, a 3-2 win on March 25, 2024.
The Fleet became the second team in PWHL history to record 60 points in a season, setting a new benchmark with 62 points at game’s end, six wins and 18 points more than last season’s team totals.
Boston finished their home schedule with 30 points in 13 games in Massachusetts with a record of 9-1-1-2, excluding the two Takeover Tour games in Detroit (regulation loss) and Halifax (shootout loss) where they served as the home team. The 13 games included eight at the Tsongas Center (6-1-1-0), four at Agganis Arena (3-0-0-1) and one at TD Garden (0-0-0-1). Boston is the first team in PWHL history to earn 30 points in games played both in and outside of their state or province. Last season, the Fleet won eight games and earned 23 points in 13 true home games.
New York finished their road schedule with 15 points in 17 games, posting a 4-1-1-11 record, which includes two regulation wins in Takeover Tour games played in Dallas and Washington D.C. They only earned nine points in 12 games played in opposing team markets. Last season, they won seven games and had 23 points in 15 games in opposing team markets.
The Sirens were held to one or fewer goals in each of their last six road games. They finished the season with five shutout losses after being shut out just once last season (to Boston).
Boston’s single shot on goal in the first period was the fewest-ever in an opening frame in PWHL history and the fewest in any period by a team this season. Only two teams have ever recorded zero shots on goal in a period: Boston in the third period of a 3-2 overtime loss to Montréal on Mar. 1, 2025, and Ottawa in the final frame of a 6-3 loss to New York on Mar. 25, 2025.
The Fleet scored four or more goals seven times this season, including five times after the Olympic break. Today was the first time they scored four goals in a period this season.
The Sirens played consecutive games that remained scoreless through two periods, bringing their total to three such games this season. The Fleet have played in four such games, the most of any team in 2025-26, with just one win in those matchups before today (Mar. 10 against Vancouver).
Aerin Frankel extended her league record to eight shutouts on the season, three of which have come against the Sirens, and 10 for her career. The Boston netminder now has six games with 30+ saves this season, third-most behind Gwyneth Philips (10) and Raygan Kirk (8), and reached 1,675 career saves with today’s performance. She improved her shutout streak over New York to 130:35 in her league-leading 19th win in 26 starts this season.
Megan Keller extended her point streak to three games with a pair of assists, becoming just the second defender in PWHL history to reach 50 career points, joining Vancouver’s Sophie Jaques. The Fleet captain also became the third defender in PWHL history to record 22 points in a season, following Jaques and Toronto’s Renata Fast in 2024-25, with her 15 assists tied for second at game’s end among blue liners.
Jessie Eldridge extended her point streak to four-straight games (4G, 3A), recording an assist and becoming the fourth PWHL player all time to reach 30 career goals. She is just the eighth player in PWHL history to surpass 60 points for their career. The forward has contributed to nine of Boston’s last 15 goals, either tallying the marker or an assist. Eldridge finishes the regular season with 23 points (14G, 9A), one shy of the career-best mark she set in 2024-25 with the Sirens.
Haley Winn tallied her first career power-play goal for her 19th point of the season, second-most among league rearguards behind Keller. She is just the fifth rookie in league history to reach that output, and first rookie defender. The Rochester, NY native extended her lead among rookie blue liners with her fifth goal in 30 games this season, two more than the next best at game’s end. She currently leads all rookie defenders in scoring, one point ahead of Nicole Gosling (MTL) and Kendall Cooper (MN), who each have games later today.
Ella Huber added her fourth goal and sixth point of the season in 30 games. Half of her points have come in games against New York, including two game-winners on Dec. 17 and Mar. 5. She finishes the regular season third on the team in rookie scoring.
Jill Saulnier’s first career shorthanded ‘jailbreak’ goal set a new career high as her sixth point of the season, surpassing her five (2G, 3A) during 2024-25. The Fleet veteran snapped a four-game pointless streak with her first since an assist in Boston’s 5-1 win over Vancouver on Apr. 7.
Liz Schepers’ two assists end the season series with four points (2G, 2A), good for almost half of her total output this season of nine (5G, 4A). She finishes the regular season with a career high in points and goals, while her four assists match her total for 2024-25 as a member of Minnesota. The two-time Walter Cup champion surpassed 150 faceoff wins today, going 7-of-12 from the circle.
Hadley Hartmetz earned her first career point against the Sirens with her seventh assist of the season, ending a six-game pointless drought. The second-year defender last hit the scoresheet with a pair of helpers in a 4-0 win against Toronto on Mar. 27.
Callie Shanahan made her fourth appearance and third start of the season. She made 20 saves on 23 shots on goal in her second loss, after earning her first career win in her last appearance with a career-high 22 saves in a 4-3 overtime win over Minnesota on Apr. 1. The former Boston University Terrier finished her rookie campaign with the second-most games played among newcomers in net, behind Seattle’s Hannah Murphy, who had 12 appearances.
Casey O’Brien and Susanna Tapani each won 8-of-14 faceoffs, the most draws taken in the game for their respective teams. O’Brien finished the season with 496 faceoffs taken, the most among any rookie by more than 300, and the fifth-most wins at 266.
Alina Müller’s six faceoff wins moved her past 250 (253) this season on exactly 400 attempts, while her 63.3% efficiency will be no worse than second with the completion of today’s games.
Jamie Lee Rattray led all skaters today with five shots on goal, bringing her season total to 41 to surpass her 40 from 2024-25. The Fleet alternate captain played in her 84th career game with the team, along with Keller and forward Hannah Brandt.
Laura Kluge missed her fourth-straight game for Boston, and fifth of the season, listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
THREE STARS
1. Aerin Frankel (BOS) 30/30 SV
2. Jessie Eldridge (BOS) 1G, 1A
3. Ella Huber (BOS) 1G
STANDINGS
Boston: 62 PTS (16-5-4-5) – 1st Place
New York: 36 PTS (9-3-3-15) – 6th Place
UPCOMING SCHEDULES
Boston: Thursday, April 30 vs. TBD at 7 p.m. ET