Fleet Coach Urges PWHL To Review Hit That Injured Boston Star

LOWELL, Mass. — The Boston Fleet faced a less-than-ideal scenario Wednesday night when they were forced to play the final 20 minutes of their game against the Minnesota Frost down a forward.

That happened when the Fleet became shorthanded up front after Alina Müller exited the game late in the second period.

With two minutes left in the second, Müller was checked in the head by Minnesota’s Maggie Flaherty, who initially received a game misconduct and a corresponding five-minute major penalty — the default penalty awarded in the PWHL’s new rule for the 2024-25 season.

However, after review, the check was deemed accidental, and the penalty was downgraded to a minor. Fleet head coach Courtney Kessel got a rather peculiar reason for the change on the call and added a little context to the ruling.

“They said that it was Müller’s own stick that hit her in the head,” Kessel told reporters after Boston’s 2-1 loss to Minnesota. “You never want to see anyone get hit like that, and you don’t want to see anyone get hurt. Hopefully, it will be re-evaluated. Our hands are kind of tied at that point, but hopefully, it’s looked at, and we never want to see anyone get hurt.”

Following the game, the league released the following statement regarding the penalty on Flaherty:

“At 17:59 of the second period, Maggie Flaherty was assessed a penalty for an illegal check to the head. In accordance with PWHL Rule 48, all infractions that are called for illegal checks to the head shall be reviewed automatically by the on-ice officials with the PWHL Central Situation Room. Upon review, and at the discretion of the officials, the contact was determined to be accidental, and the infraction was reduced to a minor penalty.“

Kessel said Müller was still being evaluated and couldn’t provide any further update on the injury.

The Fleet will look to break their two-game skid when they host the New York Sirens on Sunday afternoon.