PWHL Hamilton continues to build out its inaugural roster for its highly anticipated 2026/27 season debut. And on Thursday, the expansion team scored some big PWHL news when it secured veteran defender Zoe Boyd to a two-year contract running through the 2027/28 campaign.

Boyd arrives as the first Phase 3 addition for the club during the expansion team player distribution process. She marks the sixth player to officially join the incoming Ontario squad.

Zoe Boyd's PWHL Experience Boosts Hamilton Defense

The 25-year-old has split her pro career between Ottawa and Boston. Last season, she appeared in 12 games for the Boston Fleet before an upper-body injury ended her year early. Now fully healthy, she adds reliable defensive depth to the Hamilton backline.

The news also brings built-in chemistry.

Boyd will rejoin former Boston teammate Alina Müller, along with ex-Ottawa players Emily Clark and Brianne Jenner. That familiarity could help the expansion team hit the ice running.

Off the ice, Boyd hosts the popular women's sports and culture podcast No Straight Answers with Zoe Boyd.

PWHL Hamilton GM Meghan Duggan continues to piece together a competitive core from scratch, with the Phase 3 signing deadline set for Friday afternoon and more big-name roster moves expected.

Maggie Connors is heading west, as the PWHL San Jose expansion club signed the forward to a two-year contract extending through the 2027/28 season.

Connors becomes the seventh player San Jose has locked in as the team builds toward its debut at the SAP Center this fall. The news also continues a busy stretch for the new addition while the PWHL expansion team distribution process picks up steam.

PWHL News Reunites Maggie Connors with Troy Ryan

The 25-year-old spent the last three PWHL seasons with the Toronto Sceptres, where she carved out a role as a dependable top-six forward. In 84 career regular-season games, she never missed a single match.

She recorded 13 points with Toronto, but her value runs deeper than the scoresheet. Connors is at her best in the defensive zone.

The move also brings a familiar face back into the picture. She will reunite with incoming PWHL San Jose GM and head coach Troy Ryan, who coached her throughout her entire professional career in Toronto.

Connors joins a growing San Jose core that already includes goalie Corinne Schroeder and forward Kristin O'Neill.

TIME is giving women’s sports its due, as the magazine highlighted top athletes and leaders in this week’s TIME 100 Most Influential People in Sports.

Olympic game-changers, WNBA superstars, soccer greats, coaching icons, and front office giants all made the cut, as multi-team owner Michele Kang, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley, and Liberty owner Clara Wu Tsai joined athletes like A’ja Wilson, Alex Morgan, and Alysa Liu.

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“The inaugural TIME100 Sports list recognizes individuals who are not only excelling in their fields, but also shaping culture, expanding opportunity, and influencing the world far beyond competition,” said TIME CEO Jessica Sibley said in a statement.

TIME took special interest in the Winter Olympics, after the stars of Milan Cortina broke into the public consciousness this past February.

US and Canada hockey rivals Hilary Knight and Marie-Philip Poulin headlined the selection, while skiers Lindsey Vonn, Eileen Gu, and Mikaela Shiffrin, and Paralympian Oksana Masters joined Liu in the spotlight.

The WNBA also got the TIME treatment, as Wilson shared the honors with Caitlin Clark, Nneka Ogwumike, and Aces head coach Becky Hammon.

PWHL stars are on the move, as the league’s four-team expansion process continues to reshape the pro women’s hockey landscape.

Expansion sides Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose each landed five foundational signings. The teams completed Phase 2 ahead of today’s preliminary open signing period.

Noteworthy additions include 2026 Olympic gold medalists Hayley Scamurra (Las Vegas) and Cayla Barnes (Detroit), alongside Canadian silver medalists Emily Clark (Hamilton) and Kristin O’Neill (San Jose).

In a dramatic twist, USA Hockey captain Hilary Knight is departing Seattle. She is reportedly set to join Detroit by way of a Las Vegas sign-and-trade deal.

After the Torrent opted not to protect her, Knight agreed to a foundational contract with Las Vegas. She’s subsequently expected to be traded to Detroit in exchange for a first-round draft pick.

All 12 teams can start negotiating with players on expiring contracts at 12 PM ET today, as each looks to fill three additional roster slots before Friday’s Phase 3 deadline.

PWHL expansion is in motion, as the league’s eight existing teams locked in players this week before Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose start their roster builds.

Phase 1 of the six-part process saw clubs shield players already under contract for 2026/27, while they had until Wednesday afternoon to sign three free agents each.

A new three-day signing window opens Friday, when the four incoming teams can select five players from the remaining pool — but no more than three from any one existing team.

Veterans headlined the protected list, as Montréal’s Marie-Philip Poulin, Minnesota’s Taylor Heise, New York’s Sarah Fillier, Vancouver’s Sarah Nurse, and Seattle’s Alex Carpenter all inked new deals.

But not everyone’s safe, with Seattle’s Olympic gold medalists Hilary Knight and Hannah Bilka, Minnesota captain Kendall Coyne Schofield, and Montréal’s Walter Cup hero Abby Roque left unprotected.

Five more phases are still to come, as the pro women’s hockey league’s aggressive growth strategy becomes a reality.

The PWHL is making plans, detailing its new roster-building process as Detroit, Hamilton, San Jose, and Las Vegas prepare to join the league next season.

Moving away from prior expansion drafts, the process now spans six transaction phases instead of solely relying on strict signing periods or the June 17th college draft to distribute talent.

“Our priorities were clear: to give players a meaningful voice throughout the process while maintaining competitive balance across the league for all 12 teams,” EVP of Hockey Operations Jayna Hefford said in a league statement.

“Expansion is a major milestone for our league, our players, and our fans.”

The expansion period officially opens June 1st. Existing teams able to protect three players via Phase 1’s two-day negotiation window. However, PWHL expansion teams in Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose are allowed to sign unprotected players under contract.

If any incoming team can’t complete its roster through the exclusive signing windows, a draft process could be introduced down the line.

PWHL Expansion Process: Key Dates for all Teams  

The PWHL continues to make women’s sports history, as the players association voted to publicly disclose their salaries in an effort to promote transparency.

“This decision reflects our belief that greater salary transparency gives players clearer information and stronger context in individual negotiations, while also supporting a more transparent and credible marketplace for the league overall,” said PWHLPA executive director Malaika Underwood.

Only 10 PWHL players made more than $100,000 last season, led by Ottawa’s Emily Clark at $126,090 and New York’s Sarah Fillier at $125,000.

Reigning Walter Cup winner Montréal averaged just under $58,000 per player, with captain Marie-Philip Poulin and other top-paid stars opting to take pay cuts to maximize team depth.

Many players earned closer to the league low of $37,131.50, with 17 players on minimum contracts while others hovered around $40,000.

The US women’s hockey team is getting a parade, as Las Vegas greenlit rapper Flavor Flav’s SHE Weekend celebrating athletes in women’s sports.

The Las Vegas Strip parade kicks off July 16th, starting at the Bellagio Hotel and ending at Toshiba Plaza, with invites out to some of women’s sport’s biggest names.

“I just want to say thank you for giving me the opportunity,” Flav told Clark County officials. “I am a girl dad and I am a big supporter of women’s sports.”

The idea for the weekend dates to Flav reaching out to Team USA, looking to honor the hockey team’s gold medal win after they declined a White House visit.

“If the USA Women’s Hockey team wants a real celebration and invite,,, I’ll host them in Las Vegas,” he tweeted in February.

“I’m sure I can get a hotel and airline to help me out here and celebrate these women for real for real.”

The Montréal Victoire sealed the deal last night, lifting its first-ever Walter Cup trophy with Wednesday’s 4-0 win over the Ottawa Charge.

The 3-1 series came down to the wire, as Montréal scored three times in Game 4’s final 10 minutes to put the title out of the Charge’s reach.

“I tried to live through every moment,” said Montréal Head Coach Kori Cheverie. 

“There were highs, there were lows, and we were able to kind of get through all of those adversity moments as a team. Whatever team we had on the ice was a team we were able to win with, so it’s been absolutely amazing with this group.” 

Montréal’s Marie-Philip “Captain Clutch” Poulin won Playoff MVP. She racked up a record-tying eight postseason points after falling just short of Olympic gold with Canada earlier this year.

“It’s been a tough year, I’m not going to lie, since February,” she said after the win.

“It was ups and downs, coming back to this group, just fighting through. It hasn’t been easy — injuries, sickness, a lot of things — but we stuck together. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy in this building when we showed up today, but we remained patient with our game.”

The Ottawa Charge kept its championship dreams alive on Monday night, defeating Montréal Victoire 2-1 in Game 3 of the PWHL Walter Cup Finals.

Facing elimination, Ottawa rallied with two late third-period goals to stave off a sweep in the best-of-five championship series. Although Montréal still holds a 2-1 series lead, Ottawa’s dramatic comeback now forces a pivotal Game 4.

A playoff-record crowd of 16,894 fans watched the battle unfold. Both teams played scoreless hockey through the first two periods, as goaltenders Gwyneth Philips and Ann-Renée Desbiens protected their nets.

Montréal broke the ice nearly halfway through the third period as Hayley Scamurra capitalized on a rebound off the back boards to give the Victoire a 1-0 lead. That goal put Montréal just minutes away from capturing the 2026 Walter Cup trophy.

But Ottawa refused to fold under pressure.

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Late Goals Save Ottawa Charge in 2026 Walter Cup Finals Win

With five and a half minutes remaining in regulation, Charge rookie Peyton Hemp scooped up a loose puck. She subsequently slipped it past a sprawling Desbiens to tie the game with her first-ever playoff goal.

That momentum shift spurred Ottawa native Rebecca Leslie to fire a shot through heavy traffic — with just 56 seconds left on the clock.

The puck found the back of the net, triggering chaos in the arena. Officials reviewed the play for a potential hand pass, but the goal stood.

"We're not done yet," Leslie told press. "We've just had a no quit attitude all year, and this group is really special. I'm speechless. It's just such an honor to play for this city. We have the best fans in the league."

Where to Watch Montréal vs Ottawa in PWHL Finals Game 4

The Victoire still lead the PWHL finals series 2-1, meaning the Charge needs another win to keep its quest for the 2026 Walter Cup on track.

Game 4 kicks off on Wednesday at 7 PM ET, live on ION.