The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), in its second season, will kick off a nine-city slate of neutral site games at Climate Pledge Arena on Jan. 5.
From the league’s website: “All six PWHL teams will participate at least twice, with the Montréal Victoire and Ottawa Charge playing in four games, the Boston Fleet and Minnesota Frost appearing in three, and the New York Sirens and Toronto Sceptres appearing in two.”
Seattle was a natural destination, given the more than 13,000 fans who attended the December, 2022 women’s “Rivalry Series” game at CPA matching squads representing Team USA and Team Canada. PWHL Senior VP Amy Scheer calls the Takeover Tour “an exciting moment for our players and an important move for our business as we consider expansion.”
Forward Hilary Knight, who played for Team USA in that 2022 game at CPA, will return as captain of the Boston Fleet. The much-decorated 35-year-old from Sun Valley, Idaho was 2023 IIHF Female Player of the Year. (A rundown of her numerous accomplishments can be found here. Warning: give yourself plenty of time to read it all.) Boston will be opposed by the Montreal Victoire, including rookie forward Jennifer Gardiner from Surrey, BC, who won two NCAA championships at Ohio State.
Knight and Gardiner talked about the PWHL, playing in Seattle, and what would happen if they ran into certain Seattle Kraken during their visit, in this Kraken Reaction.