What to know for the PWHL's 2nd season
New looks and an interesting rule are among the changes
This is an excerpt from The Buzzer, which is CBC Sports' daily email newsletter. Stay up to speed on what's happening in sports by subscribing here.
It's a big week for the Professional Women's Hockey League. Final roster cuts are due today, and the league's second season launches Saturday with a doubleheader in Toronto and Montreal.
Here's a look at what's new around the PWHL:
Fresh looks
The most obvious change for the 2024-25 season is that all six teams now have nicknames, logos and distinctive uniforms. The league came together so quickly last year that there was no time to outfit the players in anything but bland, cookie-cutter jerseys that didn't match the excitement around the new venture.
A full re-brand finally dropped in September as the franchises were rechristened the Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montreal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge and Toronto Sceptres, giving each club is own unique identity (though that Sceptres logo does look familiar).
More games, bigger venues
The regular season is expanding from 24 to 30 games per team, and half the clubs are moving into larger arenas.
The Sceptres will play in Toronto's 8,000-seat Coca-Cola Coliseum after outgrowing the 2,500-capacity Mattamy Athletic Centre, while the Victoire are making the 10,000-seat Place Bell in Laval Que., their primary home after playing some games at the much smaller Verdun Auditorium in Montreal. The Sirens are moving to the New Jersey Devils' arena after splitting their home games between three different arenas.
No. 1 overall draft pick Sarah Fillier should help New York fill some seats after potting 30 goals in 29 games in her final college season at Princeton. The 24-year-old forward was the MVP of the 2023 women's hockey world championship and has won three world titles and an Olympic gold with the Canadian national team. She could be an instant MVP candidate.
WATCH | CBC Sports makes early PWHL season predictions:
Expansion plans
The PWHL is looking to add up to two teams as soon as next season, and it says more than 25 proposals have already come in. All six current franchises and the league itself are controlled by Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter's investment group, and it's unclear when (or if) independent ownership of teams will be welcomed. "For now, our marching orders are to go and explore what expansion could look like," PWHL executive Amy Scheer told the CBC's Karissa Donkin. "I don't know what the future holds."
Fair enough, but the crystal ball says Vancouver, Edmonton, Quebec City, Buffalo, Seattle, Denver, St. Louis, Detroit and Raleigh, N.C., could be in the running to get a team. Those nine cities will each host a neutral-site game in their NHL-size arenas after the PWHL sold out the Montreal Canadiens' and Toronto Maple Leafs' buildings for special dates last season. Here's the latest on expansion.
"No escape"
The NHL has made various tweaks over the years to juice scoring, including forcing (sometimes tired) players to remain on the ice when their team is called for icing. The PWHL has that rule too, and now it's taking the concept a step further by requiring players to stay out when their team is whistled for a penalty.
The motivation behind the so-called "no-escape" rule (great name, by the way) is that teams combined for just 4.8 goals per game last season. It was 6.2 in the NHL, where the power-play conversion rate was much higher. Here's more on the no-escape and other rule changes.
MVP MIA
Six months later, Spooner is still out. The Sceptres placed the 34-year-old forward on long-term injured reserve earlier this month, and general manager Gina Kingsbury said there's "no timeline" for Spooner's return.
Toronto cushioned the loss of Spooner by signing free-agent forward Daryl Watts. The former Boston College and University of Wisconsin star had 10 goals in 24 games for Ottawa last season.
International breaks
As much as the PWHL has changed the landscape over the last year or so, the international game remains a big part of women's hockey. Everyone is looking forward to another Canada-U.S. showdown at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and the archrivals will likely square off in the world-title game again this April in the Czech Republic.
The PWHL will take a break from April 3-25 to allow its best players to compete in the worlds, and there's a shorter pause around the final two games of the Canada-U.S. Rivalry Series in early February in Atlantic Canada. Canada leads the five-game series 2-1 after taking the last two games in the U.S. earlier this month.
How to watch
All 90 regular-season games will be available to Canadian viewers, including 17 Saturday afternoon games from CBC Sports. TSN or Amazon's Prime Video will carry the rest.
CBC Sports' coverage begins with the season opener between Toronto and Boston on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET on the CBC TV network, CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem.
For more on the PWHL, read Karissa Donkin's burning questions for all six teams and watch this video with her predictions for the season.
