The United States women’s hockey team put on an impressive performance at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games last week in Milan. They made strides in history. Laila Edwards made history as the first Black American woman to clinch Olympic gold. 7.7 million watched the gold medal game, making it the most watched women’s hockey game, and goalie Aerin Frankel let in two goals through six games earning the highest save percentage.
Laila Edwards is a standout college hockey player. She’s in her senior year at the University of Wisconsin and has played as a member of the United States Women’s National Ice Hockey Team. She was the youngest player ever to 
receive tournament MVP in 2024, in 2023 she was the first black women to play for the US women’s senior national team, but by far her biggest accomplishment was in 2026 becoming the first black women to receive a gold medal in ice hockey.
Aerin Frankel plays for the Boston Fleet of the PWHL as their goaltender and is a member of the US women’s national team, as well as the starting goalie for this years Olympic team. She became the first US goal tender to start 5 consecutive games at the Olympics and was the first American goaltender to record a shutout against Canada at the Olympics. 
As a result of the impressive Olympic performance women’s hockey ticket interest surged 50%. The professional women’s hockey league (PWHL), has three times as many searches following the US victory. Billie Jean King the founder of the PWHL commented on the stride’s women’s hockey is making this month and relates it back to the “locker room talk” following the men’s team win. She explains, “Let’s not lose sight of what a monumental moment this is for hockey, women’s sports, and our country. And let’s make sure that men and women support each other.”
