With another preseason underway, the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) is officially entering an expansion era, and hopefully the first of many. The PWHL was launched in 2023, and has garnered widespread attention thanks to competitive play and sold-out arenas of fans coming to watch the likes of centre Marie-Philip “Captain Clutch” Poulin of the Montreal Victoire, the Minnesota Frost forward Taylor Heise and Ottawa Charge forward Emily Clark. The league has picked up momentum fast. 

From January to March this year, the PWHL hosted a “Takeover Tour” in multiple cities across the US and Canada. During the tour, the PWHL played games and met with fans to gauge interest in potential expansion cities.

Arguably the most enthusiastic was Vancouver, which boasted the largest crowd of the tour at Rogers Arena –– 19,038 fans. Vancouver is a natural fit in many ways for the PWHL, especially considering its strong grassroots in the women’s hockey community. Notable PWHL players in the league, like New York Sirens captain Micah Zandee-Hart and Toronto Sceptres power forward Hannah Miller, are both Metro Vancouver natives.  

The women’s hockey scene is strong in the NHL Vancouver team as well; two of the three assistant general managers of the Vancouver Canucks –– Cammi Granato and Émilie Castonguay –– are women, making it the most gender-progressive front office in the NHL. 

The organization has also brought in women coaches to its prospect development camps, signalling broader change across professional hockey in British Columbia. The PWHL Vancouver team will play at the Pacific Coliseum, and will sport Pacific blue and cream as their team colours. 

Just south of the border, another Pacific Northwest city is set to be the second expansion team in the PWHL, Seattle. While no current PWHL players hail from Seattle, the city’s growing hockey culture presents enormous potential. 

The Seattle Kraken joined the NHL in 2021 and made history by naming Jessica Campbell as the first full-time woman assistant coach in league history. She has made waves by drawing up strategic game-winning plays that have led her team to success under high-pressure situations. 

The PWHL Seattle team will play at the recently built Climate Pledge Arena, home to the Kraken and Seattle Storm of the WNBA, and will don emerald green and cream as their team colours. With its world-class facilities and an increasingly enthusiastic fanbase, Seattle shows a lot of promise for growing the women’s game.

How exactly did the expansion draft work? 

The rules allow each existing team to protect three players from being selected by Vancouver or Seattle. This immediately caused rumblings when the Boston Fleet and Ottawa Charge elected not to protect their captains. This left Hilary Knight –– former captain of the Fleet and top scorer of the PWHL this season –– exposed. Seattle did not hesitate to sign her right away during free agency, which consisted of an exclusive signing window that ran from June 4–8.

During this timeframe, either expansion team could sign up to three free agents each before the expansion draft. Any remaining players who were still unclaimed by June 8 were then eligible for the expansion draft on June 9. In terms of protection, if one original franchise lost two players to free agency, they could then announce a fourth protected player before the expansion draft. 

The Varsity’s analysis of the initial expansion rosters ahead of the PWHL draft can provide insight into Vancouver and Seattle’s approaches to building their team structures.

 

PWHL Vancouver 

Vancouver General Manager Cara Gardner Morey wasted no time in signing defenders Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques of the Minnesota Frost during the exclusive free agency signing period. Management also used their first overall expansion pick during the draft on defender Ashton Bell, shortly followed by Sydney Bard, further emphasizing their blue-line dominance. 

To complete the back end, they signed Canadian Olympic gold medalist goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer, giving them solid defensive depth. To complement this structure, they brought on strong supporting forwards –– Sarah Nurse, Denisa Křížová, Izzy Daniel, Abby Boreen, Brooke McQuigge, and Gabby Rosenthal. Will this defence-first approach be what Vancouver needs in order to succeed during their inaugural season? 

PWHL Seattle

In contrast, Seattle has built their team around veteran offensive power. Head of management Meghan Turner completed her first signing with Hilary Knight, captain of the US Women’s National Team. Alex Carpenter, an MVP finalist along with Knight, was also signed, as well as league leader in shutouts, Corinne Schroeder. 

During the expansion draft, Seattle opted to add scoring depth with Hannah Bilka, Jessie Eldridge, and Julia Gosling. The defensive group set to support the attack features Anna Wilgren, Megan Carter, Emily Brown, and Aneta Tejralová. Fans will be eager to see where this group with scoring depth and star talent will lead them. 

Ultimately, both the Vancouver and Seattle rosters are currently well balanced with 12 players at their core, while also reflecting diverging structures: defence versus offence. With the PWHL expanding out towards the west, this opens up the league to spread love for the game, as well as future teams in North America. 

PWHL expansion timeline 

This expansion isn’t the only way that the PWHL is looking to grow the sport. With eight teams in the league, the PWHL will aim to deepen its reach across North America and into European markets. More teams mean more roster spots, more televised games, and more cities for fans to rally behind. It also signals to young athletes that there is a sustainable and prestigious path in women’s professional hockey. 

One example of this is the recent announcement from the PWHL Players’ Association (PWHLPA) –– player salaries will be made public starting with the expansion season. This is a groundbreaking move in women’s sports. Salary transparency not only promotes fairness and accountability, but it also normalizes professional hockey as a viable career path for women. Furthermore, fans will be able to follow trades, cap space and free agent signings with contract negotiations the same way they do among NHL teams, thus building a robust sports media culture around the league.

In the span of just two seasons, the PWHL has evolved from a promising initiative into a sustainable professional league with global aspirations. With Seattle and Vancouver, the league is expanding their team count, and more importantly, its opportunities for players and excitement for the sport.