Pwhl

[J.OT13]

Historic week for the launch of the PWHL, with the inaugural game at historic Maple Leaf Gardens on January 1st, and the record attendance for professional women's hockey in Ottawa on January 2nd, with 8,318 fans at the old Civic Centre.

https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/pwhl/pwhl-toronto-new-york-season-opener-recap-jan-1-1.7072109

https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/pwhl/pwhl-ottawa-montreal-recap-jan-2-1.7073080

[WhipperSnapper]

Personally, I'm more entertained by AHL or OHL hockey than womens. It's like the Barbie movie. I respect it but, that ending just doesn't click.

Toronto is also playing in the tiny Mattamy Centre so the ticket prices are probably jacked up.

[Coldrsx]

More high level hockey is good for the sport overall, kids dreams/ambitions and gets more people involved at all levels.

I may not watch a lot of this league, but all the power to it!

[J.OT13]

Personally, I'm more entertained by AHL or OHL hockey than womens. It's like the Barbie movie. I respect it but, that ending just doesn't click.

Toronto is also playing in the tiny Mattamy Centre so the ticket prices are probably jacked up.

Didn't realize Mattamy was MLG. That's somewhat disappointing.

[YOWetal]

Personally, I'm more entertained by AHL or OHL hockey than womens. It's like the Barbie movie. I respect it but, that ending just doesn't click.

Toronto is also playing in the tiny Mattamy Centre so the ticket prices are probably jacked up.

In terms of a family night out women's hockey probably more interesting to me than OHL or AHL. Yes the quality of the hockey is much lower but that doesn't always determine the entertainment value. Totally agree on the Barbie movie snoozefest.

[Djeffery]

Will be nice to see them finalize team names, logos and uniforms, although I hear that may not happen until next year. In looking at the league website, the generic merch they have on their shop seems to be selling well.

In Toronto I think they probably went to MLG because they weren't sure of demand, given Toronto's spotty history of supporting non-Leafs hockey. Given that the season is sold out (granted at less than 3,000 per game), we might see them move to the Coliseum next year. The New York team is splitting its home games with UBS (Islanders home arena) and a 10k building in Bridgeport Connecticut. Minnesota is playing in the Wild's arena. Montreal is splitting with Bell Place in Laval and the smaller Verdun arena. Boston is playing at UMass in Lowel.

Brian Burke is running the players association. He was on the Bob McCown Podcast with John Shannon back on Sept 4 as the league was just getting started. Pretty good interview, I recommend it.

[jonny24]

More high level hockey is good for the sport overall, kids dreams/ambitions and gets more people involved at all levels.

I may not watch a lot of this league, but all the power to it!

If any sport doesn't need "help" in this country it's hockey. :shrug:

[HomeInMyShoes]

Didn't realize Mattamy was MLG. That's somewhat disappointing.

I think it's pretty cool that they play at the historic site. I'm also looking forward to Toronto winning a championship before the Maple Leafs do.

I will be following.

[WhipperSnapper]

That's not entirely true. Hockey is incredibly expensive and increasingly out of reach for more and more Canadians (Torontonians).

[Djeffery]

That's not entirely true. Hockey is incredibly expensive and increasingly out of reach for more and more Canadians (Torontonians).

A buddy of mine coaches his daughter's hockey team and they are extremely excited about this new league. Ella Shelton, who scored the league's first goal, is from this area and is known to (and now idolized by) many of these younger girls playing youth hockey. They may not be able to have the same dreams of lifetime riches if they make the pros the same way their male counterparts do, but having this new league certainly gives them something else to shoot for. And hopefully it helps grow the female game outside North America because it does get a little tiresome when the women's world championship rolls around and it's Canada vs USA every year (except the once when Canada missed the final in 2019).

[svlt]

I don't disagree that I'd rather watch junior hockey or the AHL either.

For all the gushing and humming and hawing about gender equality, somehow female spectator sports plays a far and away second fiddle to men's sports. But good on the PWHL for launching, and I feel girls should have a chance to look up to someone and say "I could be them!". Kind of lame any attention paid to women's hockey at all in north america has just been reduced to them absolutely leveling other countries in the Olympics.