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"I've only heard really great things about [ L a s Ve g a s a s a h o c ke y t ow n ] , a n d s o I feel it's a good fit on a lot of different lev- els," said Scamurra, who has a history of s u p p o r t i n g t h e g r ow t h o f g i r l s h o c ke y both in her home state and everywhere she's played. "I feel very passionate about these young girls getting experiences they deserve in hockey." This summer, Scamurra and her partner, Nick Stoop, returned home to western New York to host a clinic for the Buffalo Lady Shamrocks, where 77 girls each wore a specially-made USA replica jersey with a Scamurra nameplate and the number 16 on the back. " To s e e t h e s e g i r l s g et t h i s k i n d o f a weekend where they had custom jerseys made was really special. The fact that he surprised me with the front logo and hav- ing it look just like the USA jerseys and then having my name and number on the back, it just hit me. I had tears in my eyes," Scamurra said of the tribute created by Shamrocks' founder Tom Barnett, the 2025 Wm. Thayer Tutt Award winner as USA Hockey's top volunteer. Scamurra's experience with Las Vegas has been as fleeting as a hand of blackjack against a hot dealer. She was a member of the U.S. Women's National Team that c o m p et e d t h e r e i n 2 0 2 2 a s p a r t o f t h e yearly Rivalry Series and returned this past July to celebrate with her U.S. Women's O l y m p i c Te a m s q u a d d u r i n g a s p e c i a l weekend party. With the PWHL expansion news and draft still fresh on their minds, fans gave Scamurra a warm Las Vegas welcome and a taste of what the new season has in store. "Every person I ran into knew about the hockey team, was excited about it. I met people who said they had already gotten season tickets and wanted to take pictures with me," she said. "The amount of support that I received in July, even before the season started, was really incredible, and it got me even more excited to be officially in Vegas and on the team." It was a fitting end to what was a historic season for the two-time Olympian. Long valued for her defensive play and leader- ship in the locker room, Scamurra kicked off the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan, Italy, by scoring a pair of goals in a 5-1 win over Czechia. Two weeks later, she was standing at center ice at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena with a gold medal hanging around her neck and tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. Coupling her Olympic gold medal with a Walter Cup championship, Scamurra accomplished a rare feat among American h o c k e y p l a y e r s , c a p t u r i n g b o t h t h e Olympic and professional titles in the same season. She joined Ken Morrow, a member of the 1980 Miracle on Ice U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team who also won the Stanley Cup with the New York Islanders, and Jaccob Slavin, a member of the 2026 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team that also took home g old and later won the Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes. Being a member of such a unique club has been hard for Scamurra to wrap her mind around. "When you realize how few players have done it and that I'm in that category, it's pretty surreal to be a part of history in that way," she said. "I'm just so grateful to have been on two incredible championship teams in one season. It was unbelievable. It was just such an incredible experience, and I learned so much from it. I'm just really happy and grateful for the teammates I got to share it with on both teams." P PHOTOS BY Robert Zolnowski "To see these girls get this kind of a weekend where they had custom jerseys made was really special." - HAYLEY SCAMURRA 46 // NOV/DEC 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM Hayley Scamurra hosted a hockey clinic for the Buffalo Lady Shamrocks this past summer.