Fleet’s Kris Sparre leaving to coach PWHL expansion team in Hamilton, Ontario

Sport admin May 27, 2026 0 Comments

Fleet’s Kris Sparre leaving to coach PWHL expansion team in Hamilton, Ontario

Kris Sparre, who was named a finalist for PWHL Coach of the Year in his first season with the Fleet, will leave Boston to become the head coach of the PWHL’s expansion team in Hamilton, Ontario.

Sparre spent one season with the Fleet and guided the team to a record 62 points in the regular season, tied for first in the league. His contract with Boston ran through the 2026-27 season.

Sparre and his wife recently welcomed a second child, which may have been a factor in his decision to coach closer to his hometown of Burlington, Ontario, about 15 minutes away from Hamilton.

“While we had hoped to continue building with Kris in Boston, we respect and support his decision to be closer to his young family,” Fleet general manager Danielle Marmer said in a statement. “Opportunities to lead a team in your hometown are rare, and we wish Kris and his family all the best as they begin this new chapter in Hamilton.”

Sparre will coach under recently appointed Hamilton GM Meghan Duggan, a three-time US Olympian and Danvers native.

The Fleet will now face a coaching search for the second consecutive year, following Courtney Kessel’s departure last June to take the helm at Princeton. Marmer said in the statement that the Fleet are “committed to hiring a head coach who not only shares our values but will continue to elevate our team on and off the ice.”

“While transitions are never easy, they also create an opportunity to grow and expand on what’s been built over the past three seasons. As the Fleet, we have always championed a team-first culture and remain dedicated to building a team this city can be proud of.”

The Fleet took a step forward under Sparre, earning 18 more points than they did in 2024-25. They allowed 45 goals, the second fewest in the league, and became the first team this season to clinch a playoff spot.

Players spoke highly of the first-year coach, attributing their success this season to the culture Sparre built and his insistence that everyone — from the top-line forwards to the third-string goaltender — had an equal hand in the team’s success.

“It was a very special group where everybody had a really important puzzle piece,” said veteran forward Jill Saulnier. “That’s rare in sports . . . It’s hard to get yourself in a place where everybody feels valued.”

Prior to joining the Fleet last summer, Sparre had never been a head coach and had never coached women. He joined the Fleet after a three-year stint as an assistant coach with the San Diego Gulls, the Anaheim Ducks’ AHL affiliate.

With a roster shakeup once again looming because of upcoming expansion, Marmer said earlier this month she was looking forward to leaning on her relationship with Sparre through that process.

“The more time you have with somebody … I know what he’s looking for and what he needs,” Marmer said during the team’s breakup day. “He knows what my expectations are, and I think that it’s going to be a seamless transition … It gives me a lot of hope in this expansion process.”

Fleet captain Megan Keller agreed, saying earlier this month that having consistent leadership would be “huge” for the team entering another round of expansion.

“The culture and the structure that we’ve been able to build as a group — and knowing now who we want to bring in to fit in and play the way that we want to play and be a part of this culture — is huge,” Keller said. “That standard is set.”

Instead, the Fleet now face similar uncertainty to last offseason, when the league expanded by two teams.

Hamilton is one of four expansion teams joining the league for next season along with Las Vegas, San Jose, and Detroit. Of that group, only San Jose has announced its coach: former Toronto Sceptres coach Troy Ryan, who will serve as coach and general manager.

This year’s expansion roster-building process — which will not include a traditional expansion draft but rather multiple signing windows — will begin June 2 and conclude on June 18. The PWHL entry draft is scheduled for June 17 in Detroit, and free agency opens on June 19.