When six potential names for PWHL franchises surfaced in the US Trademark Database...it took almost no time for fans, media, and onlookers to react with near consensus, and it was not good for the PWHL.

There are iconic sports names and logos that will forever pass the test of time. In women's hockey, we can find many of these. 

From the former CWHL, there were the Toronto Furies, Calgary Inferno, Markham Thunder, and Les Canadiennes de Montreal. In the PHF, the Metropolitan Riveters name and logo remains one of the best in all of sport, and few could argue with the appeal of the names and logos of the Boston Pride, Connecticut Whale, and Buffalo Beauts. And we can't forget women's hockey's longest standing franchise, the historic Minnesota Whitecaps.

When the new PWHL's potential team names slipped into the public realm via the USPTO, however, fans reacted almost instantly, and with near consensus, and it was certainly not the response the PWHL would hope to see.

The proposed names of the Toronto Torch, Minnesota Superior, Montreal Echo, Boston Wicked, Ottawa Alert, and New York Sound were met with wide spanning criticism from fans, media, and onlookers.

The names are certainly unique. No other North American professional sports team in any league shares the names. Another aspect that immediately stands out is that the names are all singular, straying from common hockey practice, instead choosing to more closely follow a methodology popular in the WNBA with names like the Sun, Storm, Sky, Dream, Liberty, Mercury, and Fever.

Many fans instantly compared the new names to those gone from the PHF, which was acquired earlier this year by the Mark Walter Group. The names and logos of all former teams were also acquired by the Mark Walter Group, as sources have confirmed; but as former Boston Pride owner Miles Arnone stated in an exclusive interview with The Hockey News, the Mark Walter Group and PWHL advisory board leader Stan Kasten did not like the existing PHF branding for various reasons.

"Stan particularly, but in general they, didn’t like any of our branding or logos, except maybe the Riveters," Arnone said. "The Pride logo and branding he described as being 'too controversial.' He didn’t like the double entendre that Pride represented. If they do in fact shelve the Pride brand, which Mark Walter Group now owns, I think that’s short-sighted. A large proportion of the Boston Pride’s fans, and women’s hockey fans overall are members of the LGBTQ+ community..."

With those names off the table, the PWHL set about choosing new names. When those new PWHL names came out online, the critique was fierce. Here's a few of the fan responses:

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Media soon picked up on the response, with Yahoo Sports writer Jacob Stoller stating in an article on the backlash, "The trademarked names were met with mostly negative reviews among hockey fans."

Other media members, like SDPN Sports Executive Producer Drew Livingstone didn't mince words either, as he stated "I dislike every single one of these. The jerseys better be sick."

Only one name appears to have a historic tie, but even here, the PWHL chose to dispel the history of the Ottawa Alerts, a famed team that played in the city from 1915 until the late 1930s, and instead chose the singular "Alert." Ottawa itself has a history of re-using historic names. When the NHL expanded to Ottawa in 1992, they returned to use the same Ottawa Senators name, plural, not singular, that was a cornerstone of the city from 1883 to 1934, a span during which they won 11 Stanley Cups. The Ottawa Alerts were themselves a championship team, but were not recognized the same way the Ottawa Senators have been in preserving their name.

In other names, geographic connection can be found. The New York Sound is almost certainly a name that represents the Long Island Sound, which is lined by the Connecticut and New York coasts. Considering the team is called New York, but located in Connecticut, the name ties the two together. There was also the Minnesota Superior, recognizing Minnesota's border with Lake Superior. This name however, was also critiqued considering Wisconsin and Michigan are the primary state bordering Lake Superior, including being home to the city of Superior, Wisconsin. As @Tilacore wrote, "But it sounds like it’s a Minnesota team in Superior Wisconsin. I love using Lake Superior but that is just lazy and bad. All of those names are terrible."

The team name that took the most heat, and was instantly turned into memes and jokes online was the Boston Wicked. The name itself is unique in sport as "wicked" is an adjective and names themselves, including team names, are nouns. Also, saying the word "wicked" is common slang in Boston. Just ask Morgan O'Mally when he states, "My boy's wicked smart" when referring to Will Hunting in the Oscar winning film Good Will Hunting. In this way, as one fan pointed out, "wicked" is neither an adjective or noun, but in Boston it's used as an adverb. 

"boston wicked is deeply cringe. when will people learn that “wicked” in boston slang is an ADVERB. it is not a noun or an adjective. please," wrote one fan. Or as @arsonandhockey, a designer who has worked with multiple NHL and PHF teams wrote, "As a real Bostonian who uses wicked in daily conversation that’s not how it works."

Fans were unsure of the reference, whether it was related to the common Boston saying, or if it was a reference to the Broadway musical "Wicked" since Boston's team is also tied to the color green. 

Regardless of which is true, if either, the internet was not kind to the Boston Wicked. As Locked On Bruins host Ian McLaren posted, "Boston Wicked would be the worst team name in sports history."

Meg Linehan, senior writer at The Athletic agreed writing "I know team names are hard or whatever but… Boston Wicked makes me want to actively fight whoever came up with it. Why would you do this. Why."

While the names were met with clear distaste from sports fans, many hope this is only the first round of trademarked names. In recent hockey history, teams like the now coined Seattle Kraken and Vegas Golden Knights have trademarked multiple names before finalizing a decision. For example, the Seattle Kraken had also trademarked 13 additional names like the Seattle Sockeyes and Seattle Seals prior to making their final selection. It's a point that was not lost on fans.

Whether these are the final names or not is yet to be seen. It was originally told to PWHL franchises they would be announcing official names November 9.