Ten PWHL Breakout Candidates For The 2026-27 Season

The PWHL player pool has grown massively. There will be rookies like Caroline Harvey, Laila Edwards, Abbey Murphy, and Tessa Janecke, among others, set to make an impact. Veterans like Petra Nieminen, Emma Nuutinen, Andrea Brandli and Elisa Holopainen are set to step over from Europe to make their mark. 

But internally, there will be another Rebecca Leslie this season; a player who has worked and waited for her chance. After scoring only three goals and 12 points in her first 51 games in the PWHL, Rebecca Leslie last season stepped forward and scored 14 goals and 23 points for the Ottawa Charge. She was the breakout star of the season, and in 2026-27, there will be another. It could even be another player like Sam Cogan or Gabrielle David who are back in the league after sharpening their game in Europe. It could be a second year player stepping out of the shadows of others post-expansion, or it could be an aging veteran finding a new role.

Here's a look at ten players who could be the PWHL's breakout stars in 2026-27.

There were moments last season in New York where a bounce, or an inch in one direction off a post could have transformed her season. Cherkowski finished with nine points as a rookie after being one of the top offensive players in all of NCAA hockey the past three seasons. A big season could also land Cherkowski with Team Canada, and she'll get every possible chance to step into the conversation among the league's best as a top line player in San Jose. 

Hustler established herself as a physical presence in the league as a rookie. She played a heavy, bullish game that fit Minnesota's mold. In Minnesota, she hit 13 points in 30 games, but wasn't leaned upon offensively as a member of the Frost's high octane forward group. This year, Hamilton will look to the former St. Lawrence star to step forward and produce like she did in college, and like she's capable of doing.

Schafzahl was an aberration when she arrived in Seattle scoring nine points in 11 games for the Torrent after recording only six points in 19 games for the Boston Fleet before her trade. Schafzahl brought a more complete 200-foot game to Seattle and her habits off the puck translated to offense. Now with a refreshed lineup, Schafzahl will get a chance to be a top six forward in the PWHL, a role she hasn't fully held since scoring 21 goals and 45 points as a senior captain at Vermont back in 2022-23.

Rattray might be 33, but she's a player who throughout her career scored in abundance. She put up big numbers collegiately winning the Patty Kazmaier Award, and then was the CWHL MVP. At the 2022 Olympics she had nine points in seven games, and followed that up as one of the top scorers in the final season of the PWHPA's Dream Gap Tour. The problem for Rattray is, she's almost been used exclusively in tiny doses with Canada and Boston in the PWHL due to her acumen as a defensive forward, but given top line minutes like she'll be relied upon for in Toronto, Rattray could be this year's Rebecca Leslie and have a significant spike in output.

When the Boston Fleet traded up for Danielea Pejsova to take her with the 7th overall pick in the 2024 PWHL Draft, expectations were sky high for the defender. She came in injured, and then was never given a true opportunity on Boston's blueline in her rookie season. It was a mismanagement of an asset similar to Boston's treatment of Sophie Jaques in year one. After leaving Boston, Jaques thrived and is now a two-time nominee for PWHL Defender of the Year. Pejsova, a former World Championship Best Defender, could see a similar shift in her development path in San Jose. The opportunity is there for Daniela Pejsova to step into a significantly bigger role as a PWHL standout.

With a minor shuffle in Vancouver, and Izzy Daniel finally getting stability of being in the same market for another season, this could be her breakout campaign. Coach Cara Gardner Morey knows what Daniel can do from facing her as an opponent during her Patty Kazmaier run with Cornell. Daniel suffered like most young prospects in Toronto, and last year found herself up and down the lineup. This season, she looked poised for a bigger role and stability on the Goldeneyes' roster which could result in a major step forward.

Maureen Murphy came into the PWHL scoring 111 points in her final 70 NCAA games with Northeastern, and it earned her one of the league's coveted three-year $80,000 contracts. In her first season in the league, Murphy looked like she'd continue that trajectory recording 16 points in 24 games. But things didn't continue that way as the Montreal Victoire reworked their forward group adding new veterans, which in turn saw Murphy's role shrink. Now, she'll be relied upon heavily as a top six forward with PWHL Las Vegas, and the opportunity for her to rebound back to her first year numbers or beyond awaits.

Last season, Kayle Osborne parlayed her starting role with New York into a spot on Canada's Olympic roster. Murphy is a goalie who has been on Canada's radar in the past as well, and Seattle is banking on the top goalie picked in the 2025 Draft to step forward as a consistent and competitive starter in the league. Much of Seattle's success this season will rest on Murphy's play. She had moments of brilliance last season, and also looked pedestrian at times. But with the confidence of being chosen as the team's starter, and protected in expansion, Murphy looks poised for more.

When Toronto lost Daryl Watts, Jesse Compher, Emma Maltais, Blayre Turnbull, Maggie Connors and others, the immediate question was who could possible replace the lost offense? Kiara Zanon needs to be an answer, and she has the offensive potential to do just that. Some believed Zanon had first round potential in 2025, and the 16th overall pick in the draft certainly flashed her puck possession skills and offensive acumen in the NCAA with Penn State and Ohio State. Last season none of of Toronto's rookies progressed the way the team needed, but that wasn't on the players alone. If new head coach Pascal Rheaume can achieve anything in his first season, success could be defined by his ability to get more from the Sceptres' young returnees like Kiara Zanon.

Buried behind the top players with the Walter Cup champion Montreal Victoire, Mlynkova still found ways to contribute offensively. She can dazzle with the puck, and plays the game with skill and speed. In San Jose, she'll get every chance to be an offensive leader, and the team will need her to achieve that status to have any hope of getting themselves into the playoff mix. Mlynkova has done is as a World Championship All-Star for Czechia, she's done it in the NCAA, and at times she did it in Montreal. Now it's about putting all of those micro-success stories into something bigger, and stepping into the spotlight in California.