When 35-year-old Michelle Karvinen heard her name called in the 2025 PWHL Draft, sandwiched between 23-year-olds Kendall Cooper and Jenna Buglioni, the PWHL's unique eligibility rules were on display.

When the league was founded as a six-team league, the league devised their draft eligibility, forcing all players, no matter their age or experience, to declare for the PWHL Draft in order to better maintain parity and competitive balance.

Now however, with the league moving to a 12-team format, it's time for the PWHL's draft eligibility rules to change as well, not only for competitive balance, but also to ensure the PWHL can continue to attract the best available talent from across the globe.

With the NCAA set to implement new eligibility rules, that will fundamentally cap NCAA women's hockey participation at 24-years-old, and the disappearance of Olympic centralization, the time is right for the PWHL's Draft eligibility to evolve as well.

Currently, every player who wishes to enter the PWHL must declare for the draft. It's a rule that has dissuaded older players from returning to the league as they are unable to choose markets and coaches that better suit their career, family, and play. It's a rule that kept players like Melodie Daoust and Amanda Kessel out of the PWHL, both who would likely still be playing if it weren't for the requirement to declare for the draft, despite both players being in their 30s.

In the NHL, the draft rules are clear. 

Players must be at least 18 by September 15 of the Draft year, North American players cannot be older than 20, and international players cannot be older than 21. Players remain eligible as long as they remain under those age criteria, and as soon as North American players pass the 20-year-old limit, and international players 21, they become unrestricted free agents eligible to sign with any team. The majority of top players competing in the NHL are drafted, but not all, a list that includes current NHLers like Sergei Bobrovsky, Artemi Panarin, Logan Thompson, Jonathan Marchessault, and Mats Zuccarello.

In the PWHL, players lose NCAA eligibility for declaring, unlike the NHL, which is a discriminatory rule against women the NCAA must change. It keeps NCAA players from declaring until they've finished their senior seasons in the NCAA. There are no restrictions for European players, which is where the biggest issue rests for the PWHL.

More talented European players would undoubtedly head to the PWHL, as would North American players competing overseas, if they had choice over their market, coach, and competitive future. This year's PWHL Draft included veterans like Andrea Brändli (29), Erica Reider (29), and Petra Nieminen (27) who all fell above collegiate limits.

To open the door to more players, the PWHL should look at implementing new draft eligibility rules. It could be as simple as players coming from the NCAA and U SPORTS must declare during or immediately following their collegiate career, and remain eligible in following draft as well. It would mean that NCAA and U SPORTS athletes would be PWHL eligible exiting their collegiate careers. If unselected, they could sign prior with any team prior to the PWHL's roster freeze date in the following season, or they would be automatically re-entered into their second PWHL Draft. Following that draft, they would be unrestricted free agents for the rest of their career. This season, such a rule would have kept players like Neena Brick and Jenna Goodwin, who were chosen in the draft, eligible following their collegiate and first pro seasons.

If a player chose not to declare following their senior season, the league could make a rule allowing them to declare the following season, with the same stipulations as their former collegiate counterparts. For players coming from Canada and the USA, a limit on this would need to be created however, such as making all players unrestricted players eligible to sign in the PWHL following their second post-collegiate season. This would have made Brändli and Reider unrestricted free agents not eligible for the draft.

For European players, the league could do something similar, where all European players are required to declare for the PWHL draft prior to their 25th birthday if they have no competed in North America. At 25 however, they could become unrestricted free agents. It would have kept players like Tereza Pistekova, Viivi Vainikka, Saskia Maurer, and Elisa Holopainen who were selected this year as draft picks, but made Nieminen a free agent.

It's perhaps the issue that made players like Laura Fortino and Brette Pettet, who were both highly capable of contributing in the PWHL, pull their names from the Draft list in the days leading up to the 2026 selection in Detroit.

By opening this door, the PWHL could be in for an influx of talent to the league in the coming seasons from Europe making players like Rahel Enzler, Hanna Thuvik, Sofie Lundin, Jennina Nylund, Lisa Johansson, Emilia Vesa, Klára Seroiszková, Ida Kuoppala, Kennedy Bobyck, Maddie Leidt, Lara Stalder, Linnea Andersson, Felizia Wikner Zienkiewicz, Estelle Duvin, Michela Pejzlova, Lindsay Agnew, Julia Liikala, Clara Rozier, and Ena Nystrom, among others, free agents. It would also keep younger prospects like Sara Cajanova, Lara Christen, Sanni Rantala, Alina Marti, and Ebba Svensson Traff draft eligible alongside their peers.

Draft eligibility age limits for players coming from the NCAA, U SPORTS, and European leagues, whether they're from North America or overseas, would not only benefit the PWHL by removing a barrier to access for veteran players, but it would also benefit the development and competitive level of European leagues by creating an incentive to remain in Europe longer to develop, or to go to Europe for a season or two following college.

However you look at it, the PWHL's mandate to have all declare for the draft is no longer valid, and moving forward, will become a hinderance for the league in capturing late bloomers and European players, as well as veteran North Americans who grew their game in Europe.