Liz Schepers is hooked.
She knew from the moment she lifted the Walter Cup over her head for the first time in 2024 that the feeling was a high she’d be chasing for the rest of her career.
“It’s addicting,” she said. “You want it every year. You never want to watch other teams celebrate.”
The forward joined the Fleet from Minnesota as a free agent last offseason and brought with her the experience of winning the first two Walter Cup championships in PWHL history — and scoring the winning goal in each decisive game. Now, she’s looking to become the first player to win three straight as the Fleet have started their quest for the Cup against the Ottawa Charge in the semifinals.
Boston took the first step toward that goal on Thursday night, winning Game 1, 2-1, at the Tsongas Center. As the Fleet move through the playoffs, they’ll rely on Schepers’s expertise to be a steadying presence in the locker room.
“Liz came to Boston because she wanted to prove that she could do more,” assistant coach Stefanie McKeough said. “She’s built for these moments and hopefully can provide some of that experience to the other players.”
Of the Fleet’s 26 roster players, eight were part of the team that lost Game 5 of the inaugural Walter Cup Final to Schepers and the Frost: Sophie Shirley, Alina Müller, Hannah Brandt, Loren Gabel, Jamie Lee Rattray, Susanna Tapani, Megan Keller, and Aerin Frankel.
McKeough was behind the bench that first season and said the feeling of losing is not easily forgotten — but it’s one she and the remaining players can use as fuel.
“I can definitely say it’s not out of my mind,” McKeough said. “And I imagine the feelings that you’re left with after that probably sit even harder with the players.”
Also lingering is the feeling of watching the playoffs from the outside, which she and the Fleet did last season after the Frost eliminated them with an 8-1 drubbing on the final day of the regular season.
“You never take being in a Final or a playoff for granted because it is addicting,” McKeough said. “Last year was a lesson in that for me.”
In addition to the eight players remaining from Boston’s first playoff run, four have playoff experience with other teams: Schepers, Laura Kluge (Toronto, 2025), Zoe Boyd (Ottawa, 2025), and Rylind MacKinnon (Toronto, 2025) — though neither Boyd (torn ACL) nor Kluge (concussion) played Thursday as they deal with injuries.
So for the majority of Boston’s roster, playoff hockey is a new experience, which led to frenetic energy and a bevy of uncharacteristic penalties in the first two periods of Game 1.
Goals from two playoff veterans helped the Fleet settle in late in the game. Müller scored with 2:04 remaining in the middle frame to tie the game at 1, Rattray gave Boston the lead 91 seconds later, and the Fleet looked composed in the final period as they kept Ottawa off the board.
“Everybody just wants to get it done so bad and be that person to score the goal or make the big play,” Fleet coach Kris Sparre said.
During practice at the beginning of the week, Sparre could sense some nerves from his players. There’s no way to prepare younger players for the heightened emotions that come with the playoffs, he said, other than by letting them experience it.
The Charge, in the playoffs for the second straight year, felt the nerves, too. Jocelyne Larocque, who scored Ottawa’s goal on Thursday night, said it felt like some of the players were gripping their sticks too tightly.
“Players have to go through that side of the game, the grind of playoffs,” Sparre said after Game 1.
The Fleet’s playoff debutantes also can lean on Schepers, who has more postseason experience than anyone on the roster. She reminded them this week that there’s a reason the Fleet became the first team this season to clinch a playoff spot.
“Our regular season was so strong that we should feel confident going into playoffs,” the forward said. “We haven’t accomplished anything yet, but we’ve earned the right to feel good about the way we play, and I’m just reinforcing that with all our players.”
Emma Healy can be reached at emma.healy@globe.com or on X @ByEmmaHealy.