The PWHL's on-ice talent is set to get a major boost next year through the incredible talent joining through the PHWL Draft says senior vice president of hockey operations Jayna Hefford.
The level of play in the PWHL this season was high.
It's about to get higher as the league prepares to welcome a stacked incoming draft class of NCAA stars, returning veterans, and pro stars from Europe.
"We have incredible talent on the ice every night now," said PWHL senior vice president of hockey operations Jayna Hefford, "but putting the best on the ice is about putting the best on the ice, and we know there's a number of incoming players."
One thing Hefford acknowledges, is that the challenge to make a team in the PWHL is about to get even stiffer, and that challenge will increase each year as the league continues to welcome more talent.
"It will get more challenging, good players will have a hard time making this league, but when you think about the product we're going to put on the ice, it's going to continue to get significantly better every single year as we welcome in new and younger players," she said.
Hefford acknowledged that at some point, when the league feels a saturation point of talent has been met, they'll look to expand, but they're not there yet. Instead, the league is excited to welcome a deep 2024 PWHL Draft class that will include players like Sarah Fillier, Amanda Kessel, Hannah Bilka, Cayla Barnes, Danielle Serdachny, Claire Thompson, Noora Tulus, Ronja Savolainen, Maja Nylen Persson, Julia Gosling, Daniela Pejsova, and many others who will immediately step in and make an impact on the league.
"Right now it's just exciting to look at all the new fresh talent that's going to step in," said Hefford.