With the PWHL's roster freeze rapidly approaching, teams are anxiously waiting for expansion news to help set up their rosters for next season and beyond.
When leagues expand, those announcements typically come a season or two before new teams enter the league, not eight months. The PWHL however, is speeding toward a cliff in their timeline to announce expansion.
More specifically, it's not the need to announce markets, it's the need to announce if expansion will or won't occur, and a format for a PWHL expansion draft, the PWHL Entry Draft, and how many teams will enter. That way, general managers can plan for what's to come.
If the PWHL does not provide teams with that information, which as of now, they have not, it will hurt the six existing teams, and risk disrupting their rosters in a way that could be avoided.
What do PWHL teams need to know about expansion?
The biggest things teams need to know is how many players they'll be allowed to protect at each position, and how many contracted players at each position they'll need to expose.
Giving that information after the trade deadlines risks forcing a team to expose players that they may have been able to keep by making a trade now. The other benefit to teams in knowing is that they'll be able to better evaluate their own roster, and scout specific positional needs for the PWHL Draft.
Leading up to expansion years, NHL teams have often made trade decisions, and signing decisions informed by filling needs for expansion draft rules. Forcing the existing PWHL teams to go into expansion with no preparation has the chance to, perhaps not unravel, but certainly pull a thread on the roster building progress teams have done over the last two years.
What can we expect from an expansion draft?
The PWHL has shown a willingness to improvise and innovate as they go. But expansion is probably not the place to do that as the league will want to ensure they're giving the one, or two new franchises a chance to compete immediately, and also to keep the fan bases they've worked hard to grow happy in existing markets.
One thing that will almost certainly be included in expansion is the requirement for teams to expose a certain number of players who will be contracted through next season or beyond. As well, while it may not be forward facing for fans to see, there may be requirements for teams to expose, and select players making over a certain dollar value. Otherwise, there will be no way for new teams to reach the league's salary level without paying current depth players top salaries.
In the most recent two NHL expansion drafts, teams could choose to protect eight skaters and a goaltender, or seven forwards, three defensemen, and a goaltender. There were also stipulations surrounding who they had to leave exposed, a list that included at least two contracted forwards and one defenseman who had played a minimum number of games, and a contracted goaltender.
It's also likely that even if a PWHL expansion team selects a non-contracted player, that those expansion teams will own the rights of the selected player through the following season. There's a lot to do here...
What does the collective bargaining agreement say?
Nothing. The word expansion does not appear in the PWHL / PWHLPA collective bargaining agreement. It's an oversight that will need to be resolved immediately. Right now there is no verbiage in the CBA about expansion drafts, and what kind of compensation or contract rights teams and players can expect. It's likely the CBA's current relocation stipulations will apply for players selected in an expansion draft. Other leagues like the NWSL and WNBA all have information in their CBA's about expansion. The decisions that will impact the player pool will need to be made in days or weeks, not months or years, for expansion to occur for next season. The league continues to work out kinks or rethink facilities, schedules, and branding and the longer they wait to make plans for expansion, the more new teams will feel the impact.
Draft eligible players are waiting as well
Not only are current PWHL players, fans, coaches, and GMs waiting to hear about expansion so they can plan for their own (near) futures, but the league will soon start losing prospective players by delaying an expansion announcement and plans. Prospects like Abbey Murphy are more likely to declare for the PWHL Draft if the league expands. Without expansion, she and others might wait. The real difference will be for European players who will soon start negotiating contracts for next season in the SDHL and SWHL. Every day the PWHL allows to go by risks losing talented players who could otherwise declare.
No matter how you look at it the clock is ticking for the PWHL to announce expansion. Regardless, expansion will be a success, but without rules prior to the trade deadline, teams risk greater disruption to their rosters, and the risk of losing potential players.
The PWHL trade deadline is March 2, with the PWHL Draft declaration period opening March 1.
Will the PWHL get it done in time?