Sydney Morrow, a two-time All-American with the University of Minnesota, is heading to the PWHL next season with the Seattle Torrent. Seattle picked the blueliner 14th overall at the 2026 PWHL Draft
Draft Night and Family Support
Second round Torrent draft pick Sydney Morrow comes from ahockey family, but the chance for her to play professional hockey only became areality recently. “Growing up, I never envisioned a scenario like that formyself. Obviously, there was no women’s draft until the PWHL was created,”Morrow said. “I grew up not thinking that this would ever happen to me. Then,all of a sudden, for all of us, so many people put in the work to give usthis opportunity. It was like, ‘Wow, I get to go live this dream at whatseems like the perfect time.'”
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Morrow’s family supported her dreams no matter what they were,and her dad was especially instrumental. “Growing up, one of the best thingsthat my dad did, he always coached me, but he never treated my brother’sdreams of being in the NHL as more than my dreams of playing in theOlympics or playing in college,” Morrow said. “He always treated us exactly thesame. I was definitely lucky to have that experience and that energysurrounding me as a kid and completely equal treatment of the boys’ dreamsversus my dreams.”
Hearing her name called and being selected by the Torrentmade something abstract into something much more real. “Once I found out I wasgoing to Seattle, it’s also just an amazing feeling to be like, ‘Now I cansee myself in this place, with this team, I have this opportunity,'” Morrowsaid. “It was kind of like taking it from an idea, I’ll be in the PWHLnext year, to now I’m going to Seattle and training to be on the SeattleTorrent. It kind of just became more of a reality, which was super exciting.”
Draft night is something that Morrow is very familiar with,but she got to experience it all for herself. “I would watch the NHL draftand things like that. It seems super nerve-wracking on TV, but somehoweverybody is able to be calm and smiling and nobody looks too nervous. Forme that entire day was just a whirlwind. It felt like from the moment Iwoke up in the morning to when I went to bed, there was not a free second.”
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Morrow’s family has already been looking for Torrent gear torep the defender. “The most special part of draft night was the fact thatmy whole family was there, so it felt like everybody was there to supportme. My siblings also play, so they’re super busy. Everybody being able tobe there and come to Detroit from Connecticut meant so much to me,” Morrowsaid. “From the moment when my name was called, getting to celebrate withall of my family members, in that moment, and then telling me they wereproud of me and excited for me. That was one of the most memorable partsof it.”
Preparing for the Pros
Sydney Morrow Describes the Details of Her Game
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Going from college to professional level play can be a big adjustment,but Morrow is ready for the challenge. “I think the biggest thing going fromcollege to the pros is the pace jump. Everything is just a little bitfaster just because every player is just so good in the PWHL,” Morrowsaid. “One of the things for me is just understanding that everything I do hasto be like a half second quicker, just because of like the pace and thepressure.”
Morrow also has a strategy for looking for areas of improvementfor her own game. “For example, working on puck retrievals in my own zone,”Morrow said. “As a defender, that just gets more difficult when you go tothe PWHL and also accounting for the increase in physicality in the PWHL.I would say that it’s not something that I’m nervous about, but more so justadapting to because it’s a little bit different than the college game. Comparingthe PWHL to college is kind of helping me understand what areas I need to continueto sharpen in my own game this summer.”
With training camp on the horizon, Morrow wants to come instrong and make an impact. “I want to come in with a really high compete leveland intensity. That’s something that I hope is noticed; willing to bephysical, willing to battle, compete. Obviously, that’s extra important as arookie just being around new teammates and wanting to show them how I playand how I’m coming into the season,” said Morrow. “Then building the trust withmy teammates of being able to find them and make plays with them, becreative, build that chemistry. That’s something that’s super important to meas I go into training camp and also just beginning to form thoserelationships with my teammates and coaches.”
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Getting to Know Morrow
Morrow has some perfect Seattle fall activities for her daysaway from the rink. “I definitely like to decompress. I like reading. Ilike baking and cooking,” Morrow said. “I like basic level crafts,because it’s kind of like a level one craft that I can successfully completelike bedazzling. I like pottery painting. Things like that, where I feel like Ican’t screw it up. Those kinds of things are super fun to do on an off day.”
She is also looking forward to exploring a new city and evenhas fellow draftee Emerson Jarvis to share in her interests. “One of the mostexciting things about Seattle for me is that it’s a new place. Idefinitely see myself exploring around the city, trying new coffee shops,restaurants. I love shopping, and I know that there’s definitely a lot ofshopping in Seattle. And, if I’m correct, I think there’s like a good amount ofthrifting too. I know Emerson Jarvis as well, she’s like the thrift queen.She’s so good at thrifting. Us two, I can definitely see doing that.”
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Morrow noticed the undeniable love the city of Seattle hasfor women’s sports. “I’m just really excited to experience the Seattle fanbase. Even from draft night it became really clear how passionate the fans arenot just about the Torrent, but all women’s sports,” Morrow said. “Ourrookie class got a video from Flau’jae [guard for the Seattle Storm] too, andwe were like ‘This is the coolest thing ever.'”
Despite the Torrent’s last place standing, the fans neverwavered. It’s a unique, dynamic, and welcoming fan base that has a reputationthat precedes it. “I think I’m super excited to get to Seattle and see everyoneand also become a part of the Seattle sports community and go watch othergames and be a fan of other teams. I think that’s really cool,” Morrow said. “Iknow Climate Pledge Arena, on our first night, it’s just going to be like soexplosive. I can’t wait. And I hope to be a part of the trinket exchange oneday.”
