Fleet’s Jillian Dempsey retires after 12 pro seasons
A player who epitomized the women’s game in New England is hanging up her skates.
On Tuesday, it was announced that former Boston Fleet forward Jillian Dempsey announced her retirement from pro hockey after 12 seasons.
Thank you, Demps 💚
Our hometown hero through and through. You’ve given everything to Boston and this city is better for it. Thank you for being a constant role model for our community and for always bringing a smile to the rink.
A career spent giving back to the city that… pic.twitter.com/lH82HY6axc
“It is bittersweet to retire from playing the game I love,” Dempsey wrote via Cook Stark Management Hockey’s Instagram page. “I feel overwhelming gratitude for the incredible journey. Thank you to everyone who has supported me and been in my corner. You know who you are.”
Dempsey spent just about all of her hockey life in the Boston area. The Winthrop, Massachusetts native got onto college teams’ radars from her efforts at The Rivers School. That led to her playing four years at Harvard University, where she became a prolific scorer, becoming a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award during her senior season in 2012-13.
After, Dempsey turned pro with the Boston Blades of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. There, she won Rookie of the Year honors in 2014, before helping Boston win the Clarkson Cup the following season.
In 2015, Dempsey joined the Premier Hockey Federation (then known as the National Women’s Hockey League), staying home to play for the Boston Pride. Over the next eight seasons, six of which were with Dempsey as captain, the Pride became the class of the league. The team won three regular-season championships, winning the Isobel Cup three times (2016, 2021, 2022) as well. A two-time Denna Laing Award winner for perseverance and dedication to the game, Dempsey was named league MVP in 2019-20 after leading the NWHL with 40 points.
After the PHF was absorbed by the PWHL, Dempsey was on the move for the first time. Montreal drafted her in the 11th round of the inaugural PWHL Draft in 2023. She appeared in 24 games in year one, scoring a goal and four points. The following season, Dempsey returned to Boston, joining the Fleet as a reserve player. However, after Hannah Bilka went down with an injury last February, Dempsey signed a 10-day contract and ended up playing the team’s final nine regular-season contests, registering two assists along the way.
In 52 games in the CWHL, Dempsey scored 23 goals and 25 assists for 48 points. In 142 PHF appearances, she notched 70 goals and 76 assists for 146 points, including another 15 points in 16 playoff games. In her 36 PWHL games, Dempsey potted a goal and six points.
Dempsey also saw the limelight on the international stage back in the day. She helped the United States win gold at the 2009 IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship, and silver at the 2012 IIHF Women’s World Championship.