Latest news with #expansiondraft
National Post
a day ago
- Business
- National Post
Some tough times for some big names in growing PWHL
Until this past week, the majority of the best players in women's hockey have been shielded from the dirtier side of the business side of professional sports and how that could impact their day-to-day lives. Article content An expansion process focused on maintaining league-wide parity ended that shielding once and for all. Article content Article content And kudos to the women — the likes of Hilary Knight, Sarah Nurse, Alex Carpenter and Emerance Maschmeyer to name just four — who handled this all with so much grace. Article content It can't have been easy for hockey players who all their lives have been told they are at the very elite level of their sport, to suddenly hear from the general managers of the teams they helped form that there were three other players they would rather protect going forward. Article content All four of the aforementioned players were foundational signings — the three players on each of the six original clubs that the teams would be build around — and two years later all four, one of them a captain, were left unprotected. Article content Then put the shoe on the other foot and imagine being the GM told they can protect just three players and having to weigh factors such as age, financial flexibility and long-term goals to say nothing of the personal relationships built over two years and some longer than that, and then having to approach a player who has probably never been cut from a team and tell them they would not be protected. Article content But that was the hand dealt both GMs and many of the league's biggest stars over the past few weeks. Article content Article content Soft — read wildly popular — landing spots in Seattle and Vancouver helped cushion the blow for the players, but that didn't stop it from being a roller coaster ride these past few weeks for some of the most highly respected women in the game. Article content Article content Nurse was as much the face of the Sceptres franchise as anyone on the team. She was one of three foundational signings along with defender Renata Fast and eventual team captain Blayre Turnbull. She was part of the marketing campaign that introduced the PWHL to Toronto. She was even part of the Player's Association Executive that helped negotiate the collective bargaining agreement this league will play under for another six seasons yet.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Sarah Nurse to sign with PWHL's Vancouver expansion franchise: source
Forward Sarah Nurse is expected to sign with PWHL Vancouver, a source briefed on the situation told The Athletic. The league's expansion rules allow players in Nurse's position — as well as unrestricted free agents — to negotiate with either of the new franchises in Seattle and Vancouver during a five-day signing window that opened on Wednesday morning. The Toronto Sceptres, where Nurse spent her first two seasons in the PWHL, protected No. 1 defender Renata Fast, captain Blayre Turnbull and forward Daryl Watts, leaving Nurse exposed to the expansion draft and signing window. This story will be updated.
CTV News
5 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Ottawa Charge to protect Clark, Philips, Savolainen in expansion draft
Ottawa Charge's Emily Clark (26) celebrates scoring on New York goaltender Corinne Schroeder (30) during third period PWHL hockey action in Ottawa, on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. The Ottawa Charge has selected the three players the team will protect in the upcoming Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) expansion draft. The PWHL is adding teams in Vancouver and Seattle this year. The Expansion Draft on June 9 will feature the two new teams selecting a minimum of seven players each until each has reached a 12-player roster. Each of the six inaugural teams will relinquish four players from their 2024-25 roster throughout the entire process, including players signed during the exclusive window and those selected in the expansion draft. The standard PWHL roster is 23 active players, the league says. The league released a list of players each of the six established teams will protect from being selected in the expansion draft, as well as in the upcoming exclusive signing window that begins Wednesday, when expansion teams will have five days to sign a maximum of five players. Any unprotected player or any player on an expiring contract is eligible to be signed. In Ottawa, forward Emily Clark, goalie Gwyneth Philips, and defender Ronja Savolainen will be protected. Clark had nine goals and 10 assists in the 2024-25 regular season and scored three goals and two assists in the playoffs. Phillips ended the regular season with a 0.919 save percentage, and eight wins, including two shutouts. She had a 0.952 save percentage and one shutout in the playoffs. Savolainen had two goals and nine assists in the regular season and a plus-minus stat of 11. Later this month, the PWHL Draft will take place in Ottawa. The event will be held at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino on June 24. The Ottawa Charge fell to the Minnesota Frost 3 games to 1 in the PWHL Final this year.
New York Times
5 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
In shocking move, Hilary Knight was exposed to PWHL expansion. Why?
After weeks of speculation, the PWHL expansion protection list has been released. And one of the best women's hockey players of all time is not on it. Hilary Knight, Team USA's most decorated women's hockey player, was not protected by the Boston Fleet ahead of Tuesday afternoon's deadline. As expected, Boston protected star goalie Aerin Frankel and No. 1 defender Megan Keller. But with the third protection slot, the Fleet opted to protect forward Alina Müller, leaving Knight, the team's captain, exposed to Seattle and Vancouver. Advertisement The league's two new franchises will have a five-day window, starting on Wednesday at 9 a.m. ET, during which they can sign up to five players — either free agents or unprotected players — before the June 9 PWHL expansion draft. Once the Fleet lose two players, either in the signing window or the draft, general manager Danielle Marmer can protect one more player. Until then, however, Knight is wholly available. Selecting her in expansion should be a no-brainer. Seattle could even try to sign the U.S. star as a cornerstone player as soon as Wednesday. Knight will turn 36 this summer and likely carries one of the league's larger cap hits — the PWHL does not currently disclose salaries — which could be a deterrent for Seattle or Vancouver. But she was also one of the best players in the PWHL's sophomore season. Knight led the league in scoring (29 points in 30 games) and only Montreal captain Marie-Philip Poulin scored more goals than Knight's 15. She was named a finalist for league MVP and Forward of the Year. Internationally, Knight won her record 10th gold medal at women's world championships and broke the all-time assist record at the tournament where she was already the all-time goals and points leader. Last week, Knight was named the USA Hockey women's player of the year. Off the ice, very few players have anything close to the cachet that Knight has, particularly in an American market. If she were signed or drafted by Seattle, she would undoubtedly help grow the fan base and market swiftly, much like her star counterparts in soccer (Megan Rapinoe) and basketball (Sue Bird) have done. Not to mention, she would bring veteran leadership to the locker room, which would surely be an important intangible for a new club. Given that Seattle general manager Meghan Turner was the assistant GM in Boston for two years, she will know exactly what Knight brings to a team and locker room. Advertisement While leaving Knight unprotected is a shocking move, Marmer had a difficult choice to make, with only three initial protection slots. Neither Knight nor the team have commented on the decision. The locks in Boston had long been assumed to be Frankel and Keller. Frankel is one of the best goalies in the PWHL and was Boston's MVP on most nights over the first two seasons. Keller is the team's best, most experienced, defender. That left one protection slot for Knight, Müller and 2024 first-round pick Hannah Bilka. Both Bilka (24) and Müller (27) are younger than Knight and could reasonably be expected to play for the Fleet long-term. Without knowing Knight's plans for her pro career, it's hard to speculate what she'll do at the end of her three-year contract in 2026. She did announce the 2026 Milan Olympics will be her last, signaling that the end to her legendary career could be coming. Knight said she still plans to play in the PWHL after Milan, but for how long remains to be seen. Realistically, if Marmer were to protect Knight, she'd run the risk of losing all three players in short order – Müller and Bilka to expansion, and Knight to retirement. Protecting Müller — even if it likely means losing Knight — ensures the team keeps at least one of its core forwards for more than a few years. There's also the salary cap to consider. With Knight's contract — one of Boston's $80,000 minimum salaries — on the books, the team could have a hard time replacing Müller and Bilka in free agency. Especially while competing for free agents with expansion teams that will get to hand-pick the best players with the best contracts. If Knight were to be selected, Boston could have more money to try to sign a top free agent or two. The entry draft could help Boston too, with potential top-line players in the first few rounds, but it's not a particularly deep incoming class in 2025. If Boston is going to attempt to replace the offense and talent it's losing in expansion, it will likely need to come from free agency. Advertisement The best case scenario for Boston is that Knight isn't selected in expansion, and the Fleet keep her and Müller as an elite top-line combo. While unlikely, it's possible. Perhaps Seattle and Vancouver decide to draft younger rosters. Or they speak with Knight during the signing window and find she vehemently doesn't want to leave Boston. Maybe Knight's contract will be too much for the team to take on with other star players — like Alex Carpenter and Sarah Nurse — also available for selection. Still, for what she brings both on and off the ice, Knight sits at the top of the 'available players' list. And now, for another few days, we wait to see where she ends up.
New York Times
5 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
PWHL releases expansion draft protected list: Hilary Knight, Sarah Nurse go unprotected
The list of players protected in the PWHL's expansion draft for Seattle and Vancouver was released on Tuesday. Each of the league's six existing teams were permitted to protect three players from being selected in the expansion draft, or signing during the pre-draft signing window. Only players signed through 2025-26, or whose rights remain with a team, could be protected. Pending free agents are exempt from selection. Seattle and Vancouver will have a five-day window, beginning on Wednesday, to sign a maximum of five players. An unprotected player or someone on an expiring deal is eligible to sign during this window. During the expansion draft (June 9) both new franchises must select at least seven players to reach a 12-player roster. If a team enters the draft with fewer signed players from the signing window, it will be granted additional selections to reach 12. Regardless, each of the PWHL's six existing teams will lose four players from their 2024-25 rosters in the process. Protected Marie-Philip Poulin (F) Laura Stacey (F) Ann-Renée Desbiens (G) Available Protected Renata Fast (D) Blayre Turnbull (F) Daryl Watts (F) Protected Emily Clark (F) Ronja Savolainen (D) Gwyneth Philips (G) Available Protected Taylor Heise (F) Kendall Coyne Schofield (F) Lee Stecklein (D) Available Protected Aerin Frankel (G) Megan Keller (D) Alina Müller (F) Available Protected Sarah Fillier (F) Ella Shelton (D) Micah Zandee-Hart (D) Available (Photo of Sarah Nurse: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
