For Lily Anderson ’27, the questions young girls often ask about their future in ice hockey—like whether they’ll ever see someone like themselves playing professionally—are no longer just wishful thinking. With the launch of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) in 2023, female athletes like Anderson now have a clear path to aspire to higher levels in the sport they love.
Anderson was surrounded by ice hockey growing up in St. Paul, Minn., a state known as the unofficial epicenter for hockey in the U.S. and the “land of 10,000 lakes.” Those lakes become makeshift rinks every winter, and hockey players like Anderson take to the ice for a few frozen and invigorating months of outdoor play.
When she was eight, Anderson started playing organized ice hockey in a girls’ league, and by 10, she had switched to a boys’ league.
“Growing up and having the experience of playing on teams with both genders and different skills helped me learn different parts of the game,” she reflected.
However, the transition wasn’t without its challenges. Some parents were outraged by her presence on the boys’ team, claiming “I was taking spots from their sons,” she said.
This early lesson about gender roles and discrimination taught Anderson how to deal with the challenges of being on a team that didn’t think she belonged, even if she was one of its best players.
Fast forward to today, and the landscape of ice hockey has transformed. With the establishment of the PWHL, women ice hockey players have more opportunities than ever—and forget the boys.
According to USA Hockey, participation in girls’ ice hockey has increased by 65% over the past 15 seasons. The PWHL’s inaugural season alone shattered attendance records for women’s ice hockey, including an April 20, 2023, game between PWHL Montréal and PWHL Toronto at Montréal’s Bell Centre that drew 21,105 fans—the highest attendance for a women’s ice hockey game globally.
“It’s so exciting that young girls now have the PWHL to look up to,” said Anderson, a marketing/communication and advertising major and forward on Endicott’s women’s ice hockey team. “They’re not saying, ‘I want to play in the NHL,’ they’re saying, ‘I want to play in the PWHL.’ Growing up, I struggled with thinking, ‘Okay, I can play in high school and college, but after that, there’s nothing.’ Now, these girls have a real goal to aspire to.”
In the summer of 2024, Anderson returned home to Minnesota to intern with the Minnesota Frost, the PWHL team that captured the inaugural Walter Cup—equivalent to the Stanley Cup—in May 2024 (the team was then known as the PWHL Minnesota). The experience was both groundbreaking and deeply personal for Anderson.
“I grew up either being coached by or watching some of the players to being right there and helping them,” said Anderson.
Her internship provided hands-on experience in media relations and game-day operations. Hours before puck drop, Anderson distributed credentials, greeted media personnel, and assisted the communications director by providing rosters and media guides.
During the games, she ensured smooth operations and fan engagement. “I organized activities like getting participants onto the Zamboni or managing intermission games,” Anderson said. She also guided fans to and from the arena level to participate in activities and ensured everything ran seamlessly.
After the games, Anderson helped coordinate post-game press conferences, escorting players from the locker rooms to the media room and even stepping in to assist with running the press conferences when needed.
But the excitement of working in professional women’s ice hockey came with challenges. Anderson faced the harsh reality of online trolls who dismissed the league and criticized it as “just a women’s sport,” and claimed that “no one wants to watch [women’s sports].”
But her job was to help flip the narrative and say, “‘Look at all these women who are playing the sport, who are Olympians, who are also mothers, who are doing all these things.’”
Anderson continued: “It’s challenging to get a league up and starting when so many people in the world don’t believe that women can be equal or better than men can be. They think women can’t play professional sports, but we’re proving them wrong daily.”
With the Endicott hockey season underway, Anderson is back on the ice and skating into her future.
“The sport is growing and shows no signs of slowing down,” she said. “While my playing days might end in a few years, I hope to see hockey grow and stay involved in the industry, even off the ice.”
Watch the women’s ice hockey team face off in the Conference of New England semifinals on Saturday, March 1, at 3 p.m. in the Raymond J. Bourque Arena.