A family affair: Haley Winn’s journey to the gold
Photo courtesy Jenn G/Wikimedia Commons
As we have seen over the past two weeks, the 2026 Winter Olympic Games have delivered no shortage of memorable storylines. For New Yorkers, one in particular is hitting close to home. Haley Winn, a Rochester native and defender for the U.S. women’s ice hockey team, is making headlines on the Olympic stage.
The homegrown Webster native has quickly become one of the standout players on the undefeated women’s team, who will be taking on Canada for the seventh time in the gold medal game. Winn has been an integral part of the dominant American team in the Games so far, having recorded multiple shots on goal, two assists, and scored her first Olympic goal against Switzerland.
When she is not competing in the Olympics, Winn plays professionally for the Boston Fleet in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). She was selected second overall in the 2025 PWHL Draft, further solidifying her reputation as one of the game’s brightest young defenders.
Through the first half of the 2025-26 season, Winn led all skaters in average time-on-ice per game—a statistic that speaks volumes about the trust her coaches put in her. Before the PWHL, Winn was a standout player at Clarkson University, where she earned Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Player of the Year and Defender of the Year honors during her final year.
Winn often credits her massive on-ice success to her family, most notably, her three older brothers. While Haley is going for the gold, Casey, Ryan, and Tommy Winn have caught the attention of the world via Ryan’s TikTok account. Her three brothers have been supporting their sister in Milan through matching outfits, the more ridiculous the better. So far, they have sported American flag jumpsuits, jean shorts, cowboy boots, and bald eagle masks.
The Winn siblings did a segment with Today to discuss their now-famous tradition. Ryan explained, “It's kind of been a little bit of an evolution, it started back in 2024 Worlds I believe…We did an outfit together … and then we just kinda built on it from there. This is a great opportunity for us to get together and support our little sister.”
What started as a simple show of support has grown into a viral symbol of sibling pride, even gaining the attention of Snoop Dogg! The brothers said that Haley has always been surrounded by them and hockey, saying, “Starting right there in Rochester, New York on our backyard rink. Our dad used to build us, just being there every winter before she could even walk.”
The ties back to New York do not just stop at Clarkson; two of her three brothers played collegiate hockey in New York. Casey Winn played at SUNY Brockport, where he was a New York State Champion player in 2014 and is a two-time Tier Two National Champion. On the other hand, Tommy Winn played hockey at our very own SUNY Geneseo and graduated in 2025. So, the hockey blood runs strong.
Haley Winn spoke on her brothers’ collegiate hockey careers, saying, “All three of my brothers played collegiately and loved it, and I just wanted to follow in their footsteps and obviously fell in love with it…It was easy to kind of keep working for it every day because I enjoyed it so much.”
On hockey’s biggest stage, as the gold medal game approaches, Haley Winn’s path has already come full circle. The kid who once skated on a rink built by her dad is now representing her country with her hometown watching closely. For Western New York, that is what makes this Olympic run so special.