Professional Women's Hockey League Expands to Vancouver

Strategic Insights -

The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) has taken its first step in a bigger plan to grow the league, announcing an expansion franchise for Vancouver. The new team will play out of the Pacific Coliseum starting in the 2025-26 season and will have its colours as Pacific blue and cream. The team will also practice at the PNE Agrodome, which will receive locker room and facility upgrades. The PWHL stated its intention to add up to two teams in 2025-26 earlier in the year and has not commented on any other potential markets.

Key Takeaways:

  • The PWHL has announced an expansion franchise for Vancouver, adding a seventh team to the league, which started in 2023 with six teams in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, New York, Boston, and Minnesota.
  • The expansion team will operate as PWHL Vancouver until a permanent name is announced and will play out of the Pacific Coliseum starting in the 2025-26 season.
  • The team's colours are described as Pacific blue and cream, and the team will practice at the PNE Agrodome, which will receive locker room and facility upgrades.
  • The PWHL stated its intention to add up to two teams in 2025-26 earlier in the year and is hopeful that a second team will be announced at some point this year.
  • The process for an expansion team began eight months before the plan came into fruition, with the PWHL speaking to Vancouver for over four months of that time.
  • The new team will be without a regional rival, with the Minnesota Frost being the closest competition in the Central time zone.

Statistics:

  • The PWHL has grown from six teams in 2023 to seven teams in 2025.
  • The expansion team will play out of the Pacific Coliseum starting in the 2025-26 season.
  • The team's colours are Pacific blue and cream.
  • The PNE Agrodome will receive locker room and facility upgrades to accommodate the new team.
  • The PWHL has hosted a game at Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena on Jan. 5 with an attendance of 12,608.

Sources:

  • The Canadian Press
  • Rich Lam/The Canadian Press (for the photo)