PWHL Continues Momentum from First 2 Years into Busy Offseason

By Scott Lowe – MYHockeyRankings.com

It took a while, but it looks like the National Hockey League finally figured out how to make its 2025 Playoffs a little more exciting after the Professional Women’s Hockey League showed the way.

Usually one of the most exciting postseason tournaments in all of sports, the 2025 NHL Playoffs seemed to be lacking something this year. That led to some grumbling among hockey fans and media heading into the Stanley Cup Final between Edmonton and Florida.

But after conference playoffs that featured less drama, more wide victory margins and fewer overtimes than usual, it looks like the NHL took note of how the PWHL did it and decided to follow suit.

About two weeks ago, the PWHL crowned its second champion, which was the same as the first champion. The Minnesota Frost lifted the Walter Cup for the second year in a row May 26 after a thrilling four-game championship series that featured six overtimes and four final scores of 2-1.

Out of 12 postseason matchups, the PWHL Playoffs gifted hockey fans six contests that required extra time, a four-overtime semifinal thriller, a three-OT classic in the Finals and an astounding 10 games that were decided by a single goal. The final seven games of the Walter Cup Playoffs were one-goal contests.

It's almost as if the NHL finally cried “uncle,” and fell into line as the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final have produced three overtimes and a pair of instant classics that have many observers asking if this has been the most exciting start to a Cup Final in league history.

While the dichotomy of the two league’s postseasons that existed up until the final round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs might have caught casual hockey fans off guard, nothing the PWHL does at this point should surprise anyone.

After a wildly successful inaugural 2024 campaign that exceeded all expectations, early in the 2024-25 PWHL season it seemed like this year’s theme was going to be, “What can the league do for an encore?”

Well, the answers came quickly.

Ater a well-calculated and busy offseason that kept the league in the news, the PWHL opened play Nov. 30 after adding 48 world-class rookies, including 34 from the North American college ranks. There were 159 total rostered players as the season got underway, including 22 international players – eight more than in Season 1.

Toronto welcomed 8,089 fans to its new Coca-Cola Coliseum home in the season opener as the Sceptres knocked off the Boston Fleet, 3-1. Through the first week of Season 2, with each team playing twice, the PWHL attracted nearly 42,000 fans for an average of 6,970 per contest. Each team except the New York Sirens hosted a home opener during the initial week of play, and even the three midweek games drew an average of better than 5,200 per contest. The following week’s games saw crowds of better than 11,000, 7,500 and 4,000.

That trend continued throughout the season with no signs of slowing down.

Average per-game attendance ended up 27 percent higher than in Season 1, and through two seasons more than 1.2 million fans have viewed PWHL games in person. Fans from every state in the United States and every Canadian province attended PWHL contests during the 2024-25 campaign. The league’s 2024-25 total attendance was 737,455 in 102 regular and postseason games, an increase of 52.5 percent from the previous year’s total of 483,530 in 85 contests.  

More bodies in seats, of course, translated to more revenue generated through ticket sales and other avenues.

Sales of PWHL licensed merchandise doubled thanks in part to the offseason unveiling of team names and logos to go along with new uniforms. And the introduction of a new merchandise collection to support Unity Games as well collections created in partnership with Barbie, Peace Collective and lululemon, led to more the production of new merchandise options that contributed to the 100-percent revenue increase.

Social- and digital-media engagement also saw a major increase across all platforms. PWHL league and team social-media account engagement increased by 68 percent, while viewers from 106 different nations tuned into watch PWHL games live in 2024-25, up from 88 during the inaugural campaign. The PWHL website generated more than 20-million views from fans in more than 150 countries around the world.

Another unique way that the PWHL stayed in the news in between its first two seasons was by announcing that it intended to expand by one or two franchises for the 2025-26 campaign. That was followed up by the announcement of the “Takeover Tour, which would feature nine neutral-site games played in professional sports markets around North America.

Not only would the tour serve as a dress rehearsal for the numerous North American cities that had expressed an interest in being part of the PWHL’s imminent expansion, but also it would provide the league’s players with opportunities to play in front of large crowds and new fans at major-league sports venues.

The tour was wildly successful, drawing a total of 123,601 spectators, with a sold-out crowd of 19,038 filling Vancouver’s Rogers Arena Jan. 8 to see Montreal defeat Toronto, 4-2. That was the fourth-highest single-game attendance in league history. In addition, a United States women’s hockey attendance record was set when the “Takeover Tour” stopped at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena March 16. New York’s 4-1 victory against Minnesota was witnessed by 14,288 fans that night.

That showing in Vancouver, paired with the crowd of 12,608 that turned out to see Montreal beat Boston, 3-2, in a shootout Jan. 5 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, played a large part in the PWHL’s final decision on expansion cities for 2025-26.

On April 23, the PWHL announced that Vancouver would be home to its first expansion franchise. The team’s home games will be played at Pacific Coliseum, and it will train nearby at PNE Agrodome. The team’s primary colors will be Pacific blue and cream.

One week later, the league announced that the second expansion franchise would be awarded to Seattle, with the club playing home games at Climate Pledge Arena, training at the Kraken Community Iceplex and sporting emerald green and cream as its primary colors. Seattle and Vancouver are natural geographic rivals and scheduling/travel partners. Their addition will expose the PWHL to three North American time zones on a regular basis.

“The growth across our business, from attendance to merchandise sales to partnerships, continues to redefine what’s possible for our game and our league,” Amy Scheer, PWHL Executive Vice President of Business Operations, said in a season wrap up on the league’s website. “With games played in 25 venues since the PWHL’s inception, we’ve expanded access to see the best women’s hockey players in the world live, bringing the action into an ever-growing number of communities across North America.”

Added Jayna Hefford, PWHL Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations: “We’ve seen incredible on-ice performances from the best women’s hockey players in the world, and we’re just getting started. The growth and energy around the league are undeniable, and the future of women’s hockey has never been brighter.”

 

Success On and Off the Ice

Those weren’t the only notable accomplishments enjoyed by the PWHL during the 2024-25 season. Here is a look at some others:

 

• The PWHL grew its corporate partnership portfolio by 50 percent in Year 2, adding partners such as Ally, Bravado, EA Sports, Factor Meals, Intact Insurance, Midea and SharkNinja.

• PWHL teams and players were featured in the poplar EA Sports NHL 25 video game. 

• Unity Games celebrating Black History Month, Women’s Empowerment Month, Pride, Indigenous Heritage, Mental Health Awareness and Community Hockey Heroes were held.

• The league hosted its inaugural fantasy camp in January in Toronto,

• A girls hockey tournament called the PWHL Breakthrough Cup was held in Minnesota in April featuring teams of various ages and skill levels. 

• The league unveiled its “Ready, Set, Skate” program in hopes of providing a memorable first hockey experience for young players and driving participation in hockey by girls at the grassroots level.

• PWHL Media House was introduced to provide original content highlighting women’s hockey and players from all generations.

• Since the announcements of Vancouver and Seattle as the next PWHL markets, more than 10,000 combined season-ticket deposits have been received.

 

No Rest for the Weary

That brings us to the PWHLs second offseason. After following the lead of the NFL and conducting a masterclass on staying at the top of the sports news ticker throughout the summer and fall of 2024, the league already is back at it again.

Barely a week after the unforgettable Walter Cup Finals, existing teams were asked to submit their lists of the three players they would be protecting from the expansion process. Once those lists were announced, the new franchises entered a five-day exclusive signing window during which they could ink up to five unprotected players.

With each of the original-six franchises only allowed to protect three players, many superstar-level veterans became available. That turned the signing window into a signing frenzy as some of the sport’s biggest names chose to relocate.

Vancouver signed defender Claire Thompson, the third overall draft pick by Minnesota a year ago and a PWHL Defender of the Year finalist, and defender Sophie Jaques, another Minnesota defender who was a key component of the Frost’s two Walter Cup titles.

The team also added Canadian Olympic heroes Sarah Nurse and Emerance Maschmeyer from Toronto and Ottawa, respectively. Nurse, a highly skilled power forward, is one of women’s hockey’s most visible stars, and Maschmeyer was putting up MVP-type numbers as Ottawa’s starter before suffering an injury in March. Her replacement Gwyneth Philips led the Charge to the Walter Cup Finals and was named Playoff MVP.

Vancouver also signed British Columbia-native Jennifer Gardiner, a forward who spent most of her first PWHL season on Montreal’s top line. She was second among all rookies with 18 points.

Seattle didn’t hold back with its signings either, adding future Hall of Famer and international superstar Hilary Knight, who captained both Team USA and Boston’s PWHL club. Canadian 2024 World Championship hero Danielle Serdachny, the second overall pick by Ottawa in 2024 Draft. also signed with Seattle as did defender Cayla Barnes, the fifth pick by Montreal last year.

Longtime Team USA star forward Alex Carpenter and her New York teammate Corinne Schroeder, a goalie who has posted the league’s third-best save percentage over the past two seasons, also signed with Seattle.

 

PWHL Expansion Draft

That brings us to today, Monday, June 9, and the PWHL Expansion Draft. The  draft begins at 8:30 p.m. ET, and can be viewed live at thepwhl.com and on the league’s YouTube channel

Any team that lost one of its unprotected players during the signing window was allowed to protect a fourth player. Seattle and Vancouver will alternate selections until each team has 12 players. The order of the draft will be announced live before it begins.

Here is the final list of protected and exposed players heading into Monday night’s draft:

 

Boston Protected

Aerin Frankel (G), Megan Keller (D), Alina Müller (F)

 

Boston Exposed

Sydney Bard (D), Hannah Bilka (F), Hannah Brandt (F), Emily Brown (D), Hadley Hartmetz (D), Shay Maloney (F), Ilona Markova (F), Daniela Pejšová (D), Jamie Lee Rattray (F), Sophie Shirley (F) 

 

 

Minnesota Protected

Kendall Coyne Schofield (F), Taylor Heise (F), Lee Stecklein (D), Britta Curl-Salemme (F)

 

Minnesota Exposed

Mae Batherson (D), Nicole Hensley (G), Klára Hymlárová (F), Katy Knoll (F), Denisa Křížová (F), Brooke McQuigge (F), Kelly Pannek (F), Dominique Petrie (F), Grace Zumwinkle (F)

 

 

Montreal Protected

Ann-Renée Desbiens (G), Marie-Philip Poulin (F), Laura Stacey (F), Erin Ambrose (D)

 

Montreal Exposed

Abby Boreen (F), Amanda Boulier (D), Dara Greig (F), Amanda Kessel (F), Lina Ljungblom (F), Maureen Murphy (F), Kristin O’Neill (F), Anna Wilgren (D)

 

 

New York Protected

Sarah Fillier (F), Ella Shelton (D), Micah Zandee-Hart (D), Maja Nylén Persson (D),

 

New York Exposed

Lauren Bernard (D), Jaime Bourbonnais (D), Jessie Eldridge (F), Emmy Fecteau (F), Elle Hartje (F), Paetyn Levis (F), Kayle Osborne (G), Abby Roque (F), Gabby Rosenthal (F), Allyson Simpson (D), Noora Tulus (F)

 

 

Ottawa Protected

Emily Clark (F), Gwyneth Philips (G), Ronja Savolainen (D), Gabbie Hughes (F),

 

Ottawa Exposed

Ashton Bell (D), Brianne Jenner (F), Jocelyne Larocque (D), Stephanie Markowski (D), Mannon McMahon (F), Anna Meixner (F), Kateřina Mrázová (F), Aneta Tejralová (D), Madeline Wethington (D)

 

 

Toronto Protected

Renata Fast (D), Blayre Turnbull (F), Daryl Watts (F)

 

Toronto Exposed

Kristen Campbell (G), Megan Carter (D), Izzy Daniel (F), Julia Gosling (F), Savannah Harmon (D), Raygan Kirk (G), Anna Kjellbin (D), Emma Maltais (F), Allie Munroe (D), Noemi Neubauerová (F), Anneke Rankila (F), Emma Woods (F)