The PWHL is getting bigger and going west.
Vancouver will be the Professional Women’s Hockey League’s first expansion team, beginning play next season. The still-to-be-named team will join the PWHL’s original six franchises in Boston, Minnesota, Montreal, New York, Ottawa and Toronto. It will play at the renovated Pacific Coliseum, the original home of the Vancouver Canucks and a venue during the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.
‘This is an incredibly exciting moment for Vancouver and for the future of professional women’s sports in our city,” Vancouver mayor Ken Sim said in the statement announcing the new team.
‘The passion for women’s hockey is growing, and today’s announcement shows that Vancouver is ready to lead that charge on the West Coast.”
The PWHL began play last year, and it quickly became obvious there was room for growth. It’s already passed the 1 million mark in total attendance, and has repeatedly set single-game records for women’s hockey in the United States. Its ‘Takeover Tour’ – games played in potential expansion cities – was wildly successful, drawing 123,601 fans to the nine games.
That included a sell-out crowd of 19,038 for a Jan. 8 game at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, which was the fourth-largest crowd in the PWHL’s history.
‘Vancouver is a vibrant city with a deep love for the game — as we saw firsthand during the PWHL Takeover Tour earlier this season,’ said Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s executive vice president of business operations. “Expanding to Vancouver reflects the growing momentum behind the league and the incredible passion of our fanbase since launching in January 2024.’
Details on an expansion draft, as well as how Vancouver will be included in the league’s June 24 draft, are still to be announced.
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