During the PWHL Seattle media tour, I had the chance to sit down with veteran defender Emily Brown and the first PWHL Seattle draft pick, Jenna Buglioni, to get to know them better. Brown spent the 2024-25 season with the Boston Fleet before being selected in the 2025 Expansion Draft, while Buglioni is making her professional debut this fall.
Question: What are you most looking forward to about coming to Seattle, with a brand new team and market as far as women's hockey goes?
Brown: Hilary (Knight) and I both got a taste with playing for Boston last year, and being here for the Takeover Tour game. The energy that the fans bring, and I'm looking forward to having those fans be on our side as the home team. Playing in front of them was amazing as a neutral site game, so just to be able to interact with them more in a community sense and having the energy in the arena.
Buglioni: Playing in Climate Pledge [Arena] it's top of the line, you're not really going to get anything better than that. I think the excitement of being there with the fans and how we can engage with them -- starting from a clean slate, having our leaders and staff be able to build the culture and environment that we want, as well as an identity for ourselves. It will be really fun to put our own tastes on our team.
Question: What do you feel like you're going to bring to the team as far as playing goes?
Brown: I take a lot of pride in the defensive side of the game, just being defensively sound and solid back there, as well as bringing a physical presence, and meshing and blending with the talented roster that we have. Obviously, the women's hockey world is small, so I know all of these players and have nothing but respect for them, to be able to be on the same side and team as them, I'm looking forward to that.
Buglioni: I'm excited to come in and be a sponge and learn anything I can. It's my first year playing professional hockey. I think I'm a very consistent player, and I'm an energy bug, so that's what I'm going to bring to our roster -- spunk, hard nose, getting through the gritty areas of the ice. Just learning whatever I can and be whatever role I need to be to help our team be successful.
Question: Outside of hockey, what are you looking forward to as far as being in Seattle?
Brown: Everything. I'm a big outdoorsy person, and everyone I've talked to says "you're gonna love Seattle!" You've got the water, so many hikes just a stones throw away. I'm really excited to explore the community and get outside on some off days and experience everything that the Pacific Northwest has to offer.
Buglioni: I'm originally form the PNW so I'm excited to be close to home and share the city with my family. I'm very outdoorsy, I love to hike, so that. And then just being in the coffee scene here, I've heard it's amazing. I'm excited to make a checklist and go around and try all of the places that they have to offer in the city.
Question: If there was one thing that you could pick about yourself for the fans to know, what would it be?
Brown: I'm a spitfire. I'm only five-three but I play like I'm six-feet, so that's probably my big thing.
Buglioni: I love to bring a little bit of energy, stir the pot a little bit out there and a physical presence. Just helping to get the gals going however we can.
Question: With Sydney Bard on the Vancouver team now, what is going to be the hardest part of playing against her?
Brown: I love Syd Bard; she's one of my really good friends. You love to have her on your team and hate to play against her. I have nothing but respect for her and I'm excited to see how she does in Vancouver. She has the same kind of energy (as I do) where she stirs the pot. She's physical out there and she plays big. I don't want to get in a corner with her, but if I have to I have to. Her energy and the physical presence she brings really separate her as a player.
Question: Who was your hockey idol growing up?
Brown: I grew up watching (University of Minnesota) Gopher women's hockey, so all of those girls. You have Winny Brodt, Krissy Wendell, I grew up fro a young age watching. They were the top of the game at the time, so growing up, I always loved going to watch them and wanted to be just like them.
Buglioni: Growing up in Vancouver, I was really big into Hockey Canada. I loved watching Hailey Wickenheiser play, Caroline Ouellette, (Marie-Philip) Poulin, watching Hilary Knight on the other side. Those people that have just pioneered women's hockey and have brought it to a place where it's sustainable and can be a dream for young girls, has been incredible to watch. Not just how their games have evolved, but how hockey as a whole has just skyrocketed.
Question: What are you looking forward to about being drafted to, and getting to play for an expansion team?
Buglioni: Being the first ever draft pick was a little bit of a "pinch-me" moment, just that it's real; I'm going to be a professional athlete. Just being able to have a clean slate, and that there's so much to learn. I've talked to Coach Steve quite a bit, and his identity for what he wants the team to look like, along with Meghan, I think aligns really well with how I like to play and how I see my style of hockey. I really want to start my professional career on a good foot and do whatever I can to help the team be successful. Wherever I am in the lineup, however many minutes that is, whether it's a lot or none at all, anything I can bring and my personality in the locker room is going to be big for me. I'm excited for that because I hope to have a very long professional career and it's just getting started right now.
Question: What are your hobbies outside of hockey?
Brown: I love camping, canoeing, fishing, really anything outdoors. I do hot yoga whenever I can, so that's a little bit of a different vibe. I really like going on walks as well.
Buglioni: I love to play pickleball, obviously hiking... I love to cook and bake, not so much the cleaning up part of it, but I love to do the cooking and baking, the creativeness in that aspect.
Question: Who is your current favorite music artist? And what is your 'on repeat' song right now?
Brown: I love folk and indie music, so Mt. Joy, Noah Kahan, Caamp, anything in there. And I don't know if I have a current song on repeat.
Bulgioni: My all time favorite artist is Keith Urban, I just love his music, he's just so good on the guitar. On repeat is probably Revolving Door by Tate McRae.
Question: What is your favorite thing you've done so far in Seattle, you've had a busy couple of days, but what takes the cake?
Brown: The (Seattle) Storm game was really awesome, as well as tossing the fish in Pike Place Market.
Bulgioni: My one big request that I really wanted to do, was toss the fish, so I was very excited that we got to do that.
Brown: I think the coolest part for me is just walking around in our PWHL shirts and talking to people, seeing how excited they are for us to be here. I think that speaks to the community here and how excited they are for women's hockey and another women's sports team. That's been really cool to have those touch points with people in the community.
Question: What do you know about Seattle sports fans already?
Bulgioni: Passionate.
Brown: Passionate. Excited. We were talking this morning about the [Seattle] Mariners fans and how much they love the team, even if they haven't always had success, they're like diehard. I feel like it speaks a lot to the people, it isn't just bandwagon fans, it's people that want to enjoy the sports and the product that's being put out. As well as the communiy relationship that can be built with the players, with the organizations that are here.