The Seattle Torrent had the second overall pick in the 2026 PWHL Entry Draft with which they selected forward Abbey Murphy. The Illinois native attended the University of Minnesota where she became the all-time leader in goals scored with 143 and the second in points with 261. In her most recent season, she scored 40 goals and amassed 66 points. Murphy was a member of Team USA for the two most recent Olympic games earning a Silver Medal in 2022 in Beijing and a Gold Medal earlier this year in Milan Cortina. Prior to her Olympic showings, she also earned two gold and two silver medals in the IIHF Women’s World Championship competition. While the Torrent lost all but one of their Team USA Olympians in the off-season, Alex Carpenter signed a three-year agreement with the team. Murphy and Carpenter will reconnect this fall in Seattle. “Ready to be reunited with Carp. I've learned so much from her from the past couple years, being able to just be her teammate, have her as a leader on and off the ice. She leads with her actions, which I think is super neat,” Murphy said. “I gotta, hopefully, get a couple smiles out of Carp here moving forward and we'll see how that goes. It's a lot of speed on a line. Hopefully get to play with her, and, there's a lot of talent over there on the Torrent, so looking forward to getting started with all of them.” Murphy had her family with her on draft day as they are such a big part of her journey as well. “We've been waiting for this moment and having my friends and family, my two older brothers, my mom and dad here. They're my support system. They're the people who've been with me my entire journey, and just to be here with them is an incredible feeling,” said Murphy. “It gave me butterflies to hear my name called by Seattle and there's nothing more I'm looking forward to than getting out there and getting to work.” Abbey Murphy speaks with media about coming to Seattle. The mid-westerner is looking forward to seeing the Pacific Northwest in person and experiencing the loud Seattle fans. “Never been to Seattle. Heard wonderful things. The fan base, I heard it gets pretty rowdy over there which I'm pretty ecstatic about. I can't wait to bring my style of play over there and for them to get to know me as a hockey player but also a person,” Murphy said. “I look forward to that and getting in with the community and getting to know little kids and growing the game as much as I can over there which is fun and exciting so I can't wait.” What can fans expect from Murphy? A very skilled game, and a fast player. She has some highlight reel level goals and assists throughout her college career. She is also known for being a bit of a pest and accruing a lot of penalty minutes. She has no problem being physical despite her smaller size and definitely walks a fine line when it comes to penalties. She’s got an undeniable presence on the ice with moves like slap shotting on an empty net or taking to the center of the ice for a dab after a successful penalty shot. Arguably one of the best players in women’s hockey, Murphy will add serious scoring power to the team. Torrent General Manager, Meghan Turner, had spoken to media previously about the importance of thinking through how the culture will be around the rink every day, and using her scouting team to find key culture pieces before the season starts. Hopefully, Murphy can be a fit in that way as well. “She’s a fantastic individual, and we always look at the person first. It’s nonnegotiable for us. She’s a humble, hardworking person, she’s spoken so highly of by anyone who has ever known her, which is really cool, not everyone has that. So first of all, her character is great, and I’m really excited for the people in Seattle and the city to get to know her and give her a shot and see that she’s really great too and see what we saw in her," Turner said of Murphy. "She is also a generational hockey player. She’s going to change the way this league operates. Teams are going to have to game plan around her, and that’s a really special thing, there’s not many players like that. We knew how well she would work with Alex Carpenter up front, and Julia Gosling and some of the other forwards that we have there, and it felt like she was the winger that we needed and the piece that we needed to fit. We’re really, really excited about her play and her fitting into our group." As any player entering a professional league for the first time, it’s a time of celebration and reflection. So much work and time and effort go into reaching this elite level. “There's goods, bads, ups and downs. That's the best part about it. It builds a person. It builds character going through tough times and being able to strive through the good ones,” Murphy said. “Obviously winning a gold medal is great but there's been a lot of lows too that make you a better person, and you find ways around that facing adversity. One thing is having my support system is something that I've leaned on my entire life. My parents have given up so much for me, my brothers have as well. It's taken a lot and I've been so grateful for this journey and I wouldn't change a thing,”
