Incoming PWHL teams Seattle and Vancouver are one step closer to their 2025/26 season debuts, as Monday's first-ever expansion draft capped a busy trade window to bring each new franchise's roster to 12 players.
Seasoned veterans and young prospects alike found themselves on the move last week, with notable names like former Boston Fleet captain Hilary Knight and New York Sirens vet Alex Carpenter bound for Seattle while Toronto Sceptres standout Sarah Nurse will head to Vancouver.
Each of the six founding PWHL teams could only protect three players ahead of the league's aggressive expansion process, with most front offices opting to prioritize speed and parity.
Team Canada's 2022 Olympic gold medalist Ashton Bell of the 2025 Walter Cup runners-up Ottawa Charge went first in Monday's PWHL expansion draft, with brought each original team's roster losses up to four total players.
Five of last year's six first-round entry draft picks are now en route to either Seattle or Vancouver, with only No. 1 overall selectee Sarah Fillier remaining with her original New York team.
"Selfishly, I'm very excited," Seattle GM Meghan Turner said after Monday's final selection. "I think it's a great roster that we've built so far."
Both Seattle and Vancouver will see their rosters nearly double to the league's 23-athlete tally later this month, when the expansion teams will join the founding six teams in snagging talent from the PWHL's June 24th entry draft.
The PWHL's expansion process incentivizes new teams to hit the ice ready to compete, though its impact on the league's existing clubs will likely not be clear until the puck drops on the 2025/26 season.
The puck has officially dropped on the PWHL expansion process, with existing teams releasing protected players lists as incoming 2025/26 franchises Seattle and Vancouver begin to build rosters.
The teams' exclusive signing window opened Wednesday morning and runs through Sunday, with the 2025 Expansion Draft set for Monday evening.
Both Seattle and Vancouver can sign up to five players each from the league's unprotected and free agency pool this week.
Regardless of how many athletes the franchises choose to sign, the expansion process requires that the new teams grow their rosters to 12 total players by the end of Monday's draft, before completing their 23-athlete lineups alongside the other six teams during the June 24th PWHL entry draft.
The six founding PWHL clubs could only list three protected players for this week's signing window and next week's expansion draft, forcing some difficult roster decisions.
The Boston Fleet did not opt to add captain Hilary Knight to the protected players list — despite the 35-year-old leading the league in scoring this season — with New York's Alex Carpenter and Toronto's Sarah Nurse also headlining the unprotected list.
With growth front-of-mind, the PWHL Players Association also announced that its members voted late last week to publicly disclose their salaries — a move expected to aid negotiations during this week's signing window.
"This will be a tool for players as they consider opportunities across the league," PWHLPA executive director Malaika Underwood told The Athletic.
The new-look New York Sirens continue to impress in the early stages of the 2024/25 PWHL season, most recently notching a big 4-2 win over Toronto in the the team home opener on Wednesday.
All four of New York's goals came in the second period — the most in a single period all season — and all were the first goals of the season by each scorer.
Finland international Noora Tulus opened the game's scoring with her first PWHL goal, with teammates Emmy Fecteau, Micah Zandee-Hart, and Jaime Bourbonnais following suit. Both Fecteau's goal and team captain Zandee-Hart's were the first of their PWHL careers.
Sirens rookie Sarah Fillier and teammate Alex Carpenter both assisted on Tulus's game-opening goal, with each booking a point in their fourth straight contest. Fillier remains in the PWHL's lead with two goals and five assists for a total of seven points, while Carpenter is just behind with six points — though her three goals make her the league's scoring leader.
As for the Sceptres, forwards Hannah Miller and former Siren Emma Woods each made a dent in the scoresheet with goals of their own in the third period, but it wasn't quite enough as Toronto failed to complete the comeback.
Last-place Toronto has now allowed their opponents to breach the scoresheet first in each of their 2024/25 matchups, ultimately losing their last three games in regulation.
New York Sirens to face Minnesota Frost in top matchup
New York's shifting fortune highlights the second-season league's rapidly growing parity. With only one loss through their first four games, the Sirens sit in second place to stake an early season claim on "most improved" after finishing last in the PWHL's inaugural season.
Just above New York on the league's table are the Minnesota Frost. The reigning Walter Cup champions are holding strong as the team to beat, but New York has already proved that it's possible after handing Minnesota an overtime 4-3 season-opening loss on December 1st.
The Sirens' will officially take aim at the top of the PWHL table on Sunday, when New York will try to gift Minnesota a second season loss in the league's pre-Christmas closer. This time, the Sirens will have the crowd on their side as the Frost visit New York's home ice.
How to watch New York Sirens vs. Minnesota Frost in PWHL action
The puck is set to drop on New York vs. Minnesota at 12 PM ET on Sunday, with live streaming coverage on YouTube.