Professional Women’s Hockey League is Coming to Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH (PTTP) – In 2019, some of the top women’s hockey players in the world began
boycotting existing leagues that refused to compensate their players. About 200 players said they
wouldn’t play in any North American hockey league until they received “the resources
professional hockey demands and deserves,” according to The Athletic.

A few years later in 2022, Mark Walter, the owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, began to form
the plans for a new women’s hockey league that would look to change not just women’s sports,
but help trail blaze a new path in the sports world.

Fast forward to today, and the PWHL has taken over the nation by storm, increasingly attracting
new faces to the program. With that being said, the PWHL continues its triumphant growth
amongst North America with one of its next stops… Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The PWHL is looking for more exposure by playing in large NHL venues, with that coming in
the form of PPG Paints Arena, the home of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The PWHL Takeover
Weekend is set to take place March 16-17, where teams will play 3 games across NHL venues in
2 days.

The weekend is made of the partnership between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh
Penguins, who will play on the night of the 17th following the marquee matchup between PWHL
Montreal and PWHL Toronto.

While the league is currently made up of six teams from previous hockey leagues, Boston,
Minnesota, Montreal, New York, Ottawa, and Toronto, the PWHL is looking to expand bigger
than ever. Each team is made up of 23 players and each team participated in a 15-round draft that
took place in September of 2023. However, with the PWHL paving the way for female hockey
players, the league only expects to have to create an expansion, possibly starting in Pittsburgh.
Last month when the league kicked off its inaugural season, Penguins’ President of Business
Operations Kevin Acklin told The Athletic they are interested in bringing a team to Pittsburgh.

Credit: CBS Sports