Predicting The PWHL's Award Winners

The PWHL announced 10 awards they'd be honoring players and coaches with this season. Two of those, the league's leading scorer and top goal scorer have already been decided with PWHL Toronto's Natalie Spooner securing both with her 20 goal, 27 point season. Spooner may take other awards before it's all said and done.

Here's a look at The Hockey News' picks for each of the PWHL's annual awards.

The league defining Natalie Spooner as the 23rd best player available in the PWHL Draft, after 36 pros had already signed, was a massive benefit to PWHL Toronto, but it was what Spooner did after that moment that changed the fate of PWHL Toronto. Spooner walked in and dominated. She took over shifts and games becoming the most potent scorer in the league. No player broke games open this season like Spooner. She had more powerplay goals this season than PWHL Minnesota and PWHL Boston. The only player with an individual impact that was even close to Spooner's was PWHL Montreal's Marie-Philip Poulin, who could have won the scoring race had she not missed three games. The duo were the only players in the league to finish with more than a point per game.
Runner Up: Marie Philip-Poulin | Third Place: Alex Carpenter

It's hard to argue with Spooner, particularly as her forward impact spans on both sides of the puck. She scores, she plays physical, she gets to the net, and she back checks. As the season progressed, a player like Daryl Watts really started to click in her game as well, but it was too late to catch Spooner. Will the league divide up the awards? They could, and Marie-Philip Poulin could take this crown, but if Spooner is the MVP and a forward, she's also the Best Forward.
Runner Up: Marie-Philip Poulin | Third Place: Daryl Watts

It's Erin Ambrose and it's not even close. Ambrose finished second in defensive scoring with 18 points in 24 games, good for 11th overall in the league. The real difference between Ambrose and her peers is the rest of her game. She was poised with the puck, blocked shots, played in every situation, finished as a plus on the season and did so without the benefit of another elite defender by her side. If anything, Ambrose elevated and mentored the rest of Montreal's defensive group raising all of their games to a point where they outperformed expectations.
Runner Up: Megan Keller | Third Place: Renata Fast

This was probably the most difficult award to hand out. Corinne Schroeder certainly put out a valiant effort in New York. She was left hung out to dry on many occasions. The vast majority of goals against her were point blank from the slot. This was the main difference when it came to deciding this award. Kristen Campbell started the year extremely rocky and found consistency later, but her consistency was also aided by Toronto's ability to cut down on those high danger attempts. When teams did get inside on Campbell, she got in trouble. Either one of these netminders could earn the nod, but based on season long consistency and the quality of shots being faced, Schroeder takes the cake with a .930 save percentage, tops of any starting goalie in the league, and a 2.40 GAA.
Runner Up: Kristen Campbell | Third Place: Aerin Frankel

Maltais finished tied for the rookie scoring lead with Grace Zumwinkle, and tied for the league lead in assists with Alex Carpenter. Maltais' season was so good, primarily when it comes to driving pressure and play for Toronto, that she could have easily been considered for best forward. Her impact extends far beyond the score sheet. Zumwinkle was Minnesota's leading scorer and deserves recognition for that, particularly on a team with players like Taylor Heise and Kendall Coyne Schofield. She has emerged as one of the best power forwards in the league. Looking at other rookies, Alina Muller was Boston's offensive leader all season long, and defender Ashton Bell was crucial to PWHL Ottawa's blueline. 
Runner Up: Grace Zumwinkle | Third Place: Ashton Bell

After a rough start to the season, Troy Ryan made internal adjustments and found ways to build from the inside out guiding PWHL Toronto to a regular season title. He was definitely gifted with one of the strongest lineups out there through the second overall pick and the inexplicable league assessment that Natalie Spooner was a fourth round pick, but it still had to click, and Ryan made it click. Looking beyond Troy Ryan, Kori Cheverie got her team to the finish line dealing with injuries and still finding ways to win. Another name who deserves consideration is Courtney Kessel. Boston's start was abysmal, but their finish saw them make up more ground than any other team to not just grab a playoff spot, but finish third. Few could take anything away from Carla MacLeod in Ottawa either, aside from the fact the team didn't get it done in the end.
Runner Up: Kori Cheverie | Third Place: Courtney Kessel

Community Leadership Award - Gabbie Hughes
Gabbie Hughes has been an outspoken advocate for mental health through her work with Sophie's Squad. She carried that on from University, where she was award a Hockey Humanitarian Award in 2023, to this season helping coordinate an even in Minnesota, despite playing for Ottawa, to support Sophie's Squad, "a non-profit organization that aims to improve the mental health of athletes from youth to college."
Runner Up: Jamie Lee Rattray (Sport A Rainbow / Pride)