According to sources, Brian Burke will serve as a leader for the professional women's hockey league's players' union.

Brian Burke will take a leadership role for the Professional Women's Hockey League Players' Association (PWHLPA) sources tell The Hockey News. He'll be a guiding voice for the union for multiple seasons sources confirm.

The union, which ratified a collective bargaining agreement with new ownership in July, was previously guided by Hockey Hall of Famer Jayna Hefford, along with the PWHPA board which included Canadian and American national team veterans such as Hilary Knight, Brianne Jenner, Sarah Nurse, and Kendall Coyne-Schofield.

Burke most recently served as the president of hockey operations of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins from 2021 to 2023 when the team fired him following the Penguins missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2005-2006. 

He'll now play a guiding role in working alongside the professional women's hockey players' union for the new professional league advocating for their rights and working alongside league ownership to move the league forward. Burke's hiring could also be a step toward additional NHL involvement with the new league.

Burke has served in many roles across his more than 35 years in professional and international hockey including as general manager for the NHL's Vancouver Canucks, Hartford Whalers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Anaheim Ducks, who he guided to a Stanley Cup title in 2007.

Burke also won Olympic silver as the general manager of Team USA's men's national team in 2010, and worked as president of hockey operations with the Calgary Flames prior to joining Pittsburgh.

At the league level, Burke worked alongside NHL commissioner Gary Bettman for six seasons as the NHL's Director of Hockey Operations.

Away from the ice, Brian Burke also worked as an analyst for Sportsnet and has long been an advocate and ally for the LGBTQ+ community.

Progress toward the new pro women's league took a massive leap forward following the acquisition of the PHF by the Mark Walter Group and Billie Jean King Enterprises to solidify a singular league moving forward.

The new league is scheduled to begin play in January 2024 with formal announcements expected in the coming weeks related to franchise locations, player distribution, and other league logistics.