The PWHL Empowering Women and Girls in Sport

Written by: Ella Nielsen

The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) in North America is currently underway for its first official season, and the league has already started breaking unbelievable barriers. The season has sparked a groundbreaking chapter that marks a significant milestone in pursuing more professionalism and recognition for women in ice hockey. The PWHL comprises six franchises between Canada and the United States—Boston, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Montreal, New York City, Ottawa, and Toronto have become the "Original Six" for the PWHL. These teams were strategically chosen for their strong hockey culture and support for the women's game.

The PWHL is not the first women's professional hockey league. However, it is the most successful of previous attempts. The dissolution of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) in 2019 prompted the emergence of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), which, by 2024, has successfully transformed the dream of a unified, financially stable professional league into reality through collaboration with the Mark Walter Group and Billie Jean King Enterprises. The PWHL had its first game on January 1, 2024, which was a huge success with 2.9 million viewers worldwide and a sold-out arena. Recently, the PWHL Toronto's first game at Scotiabank Arena set a league and women's hockey attendance record with a sellout crowd of 19,285. 

As a girl who was more excited to learn how to skate than walk and has been playing hockey since my earliest memory, it makes my heart so full of joy as an adult that these women are finally being recognized and appreciated for their talent and hard work to break down barriers. Although the wages are not yet near NHL athletes, the league has made every conscious effort to pay athletes a fair wage in its first year and is expected to continue to rise as the league's success ensues. Previous women's hockey leagues struggled for years to pay athletes a fair wage, which I saw firsthand as one of my coaches played in the CWHL while coaching goalies and working a job in pharmaceutical technology to fuel her passion. Many girls, myself included, have been told to consider their career over sport, which can harm a young girl's self-esteem. Girls in hockey now have a profession behind their sport that they can work toward. Most women in the PWHL have degrees from universities/colleges where they played D1 hockey while getting their degrees. Not only are these women phenomenal athletes, but they are also highly educated, something that almost all NHL players lack. 

The launch of the Professional Women's Hockey League represents a triumph for women's ice hockey, marking a significant step toward gender equality in the world of sports. The PWHL has not only filled the void left by past leagues but has set a new standard for the future of women's hockey in North America and beyond. As fans, we are witnessing and celebrating this historic moment firsthand. I cannot wait to see how the PWHL inspires aspiring female athletes worldwide to achieve their dreams.