Free agency and the draft have shifted power among the PWHL's original six teams. Here's a look at how the dynamic has already changed.
It’s only been 24 days since PWHL Minnesota raised the Walter Cup.
It capped a very successful season for the league, and the playoff series illustrated that parity among the teams, even the two that didn’t qualify for the playoffs, was significant. The semi-finals were both closely fought matchups, with Toronto-Minnesota going the full five games, and Boston-Montreal reaching multiple overtime periods in all three contests.
However, after the draft and free agency this month, there have been enough moves made that you could ask, has the balance of power shifted already? The fact that the final pitted the #3 and #4 teams against each other shows that swings in momentum and confidence were important factors for success. In particular, PWHL Boston made a sharp trajectory upward at the end of the season and carried the charge all the way into the finals. Thought of early on as one of the favorites to win it all, Boston struggled for much of the year but found its game just in time.
Since the draft order was based on regular season finish, Boston and Minnesota both benefited while Montreal and Toronto had to wait for the fifth and sixth picks in each round. This allowed Boston to grab Hannah Bilka and Minnesota to select Claire Thompson. However, Montreal’s addition of Cayla Barnes is still a great consolation prize and some might argue she has more upside than Thompson. Montreal also made some wily moves by selecting Abby Boreen and Amanda Kessel, whom they could flip into other players or prospects, or keep and benefit from their experience. They also signed Lina Ljungblom from last year’s draft. It looks like they are determined to improve the roster that came agonizingly close to making the final.
Toronto, meanwhile, after winning the regular season race, settled for the sixth overall pick and drafted Julia Gosling. Overall, the unofficial ”best“ team made some solid additions and shored up their depth at the draft. In particular, Megan Carter will be a very nice addition on defense.
Free agency is where things started to get interesting. First, teams re-signed their own free agents, and there were no huge surprises, but Ottawa locked up Aneta Tejralová, Zoe Boyd, and Natalie Snodgrass.
Boston rounded up five of their core players to return next year, as did Toronto with Hannah Miller and Allie Monroe, then Minnesota quietly re-signed Michela Cava, Liz Schepers, and Denisa Křížová.
And the biggest moves on the opening day of free agency itself were made by PWHL Toronto as they grabbed Emma Woods from New York, and the free agent prize, Daryl Watts, who moved from Ottawa.
This has observers penciling in potential lineups for next season, and noticing some gaping holes in rosters, such as Ottawa’s, and the possible backslide of Minnesota with all of the upheaval surrounding GM Natalie Darwitz’s departure. They had two players retire (Sophia Kunin and Brittyn Fleming), and it remains to be seen if their locker room is showing any signs of disarray. Also, the drafting of Britta Curl has many speculating that there is trouble already in the champions' camp.
PWHL New York, meanwhile, has made some very positive changes. First, hiring coach Greg Fargo, formerly of Colgate University, who looks like he will bring an even temperament and an attitude of working with the players to find the right place style.
Adding Sarah Fillier as the first overall pick cannot be underestimated, and she will immediately make a significant impact on their scoring. They re-signed Corinne Schroeder and Abby Levy. The consensus is that they should be much more competitive this season with Noora Tulus up front and Maja Nylén Persson, a crafty addition on the blue line.
Who took a step forward and who took a step back?
It’s obvious that Toronto's forward ranks with Izzy Daniel, Gosling, and Daryl Watts have gotten extremely dangerous. However, the status of Natalie Spooner's return is uncertain so perhaps they won't be clearly head and shoulders above the other five teams.
Boston had a sneaky good draft with the additions of Bilka and Daniela Pejšová, and if coach Courtney Kessel can continue to press the right buttons, their roster is very dangerous. Meanwhile, Ottawa has to deal with the retirement of Becca Gilmore and the loss of Watts, and they need their draft picks to step up and play important minutes, especially Danielle Serdachny who now carries more responsibility on offense.
Of course, we don’t know which undrafted players will be invited to camps, and which further deals might happen in the coming weeks, but with the depth charts filling out, it appears as though if you’re not moving forward, you’re moving back. Expect Toronto, Montreal, and Boston, to be strong favorites with New York possibly a dark horse to enter the playoff picture. Ottawa and Minnesota for different reasons look like they might have been passed by.
As we get closer to the start of next season, other factors will come into play besides the moves made so far by each team. But for now, it looks like the parity of the league is shifting, and we might start to see the strong get stronger, with others struggling to catch up.