PWHL Coaching Rankings: Who Tops The PWHL Coaching Ranks, And Which Coach Has The Most To Prove?

With the expansion of the PWHL this offseason into Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose, the league is now a 12-team loop. With the expansion of the league, new coaches were bound to arrive. But this season, the PWHL needed more than four coaches after last year's expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver both parted ways with their inaugural bench bosses. 

It means half the PWHL's coaching pool has been replaced. Among the new hires are promising young coaches, and some more experienced faces joining the league's six returning head coaches. 

The Hockey News' Cee Benwell, Ian Kennedy, and Chris Sinclair each rated the league's coaches, and using a combined score, ranked the league's coaching pool from top to bottom. Here's the results, with reasoning from one of the three analysts, with reigning PWHL Coach of the Year Kris Sparre holding top spot, and new Toronto Sceptres head coach Pascal Rheaume entering the season with the most to prove. 

Sparre is a strong communicator with a track record of success dating back to his time with the Niagara IceDogs of the OHL and players buy in. The team's winning percentage increased 20% (.489 to .689), points increased by 18 points (44 to 62) goals against dropped (76 to 45), and overall +/- improved in his one season in Boston. Already having a strong roster in Hamilton also helps. - C. Sinclair

MacLeod oozes positivity, and builds an environment where failure is not the end, but a moment to learn and grow. That growth mindset has kept Ottawa moving during difficult stretches, and has led them to two Walter Cup finals. She improved her ability to adapt in game during each season, and the emergence of role players into top six contributors shows she can squeeze the most of of her roster. - I. Kennedy

Klee got off to a very rocky start, but the situation in Minnesota has settled, and he has two Walter Cups to show for it. Klee managed a goalie tandem, and put his players in roles where they thrived and contributed in various ways. Perhaps the biggest feather in his cap is how he's been able to integrate and develop Minnesota's draft picks into contributors. - I. Kennedy

The Victoire have never been a stranger to regular season success, but bench management and reluctance to adapt hampered the team's postseason success...until last year. Cheverie showed growth and so did the team. More goals for, less goals against, a power play that improved by almost four percent. Winning championship showed growth and confidence as head coach.  - C. Sinclair

Winning is what Morey knows best. As Head Coach at Princeton from 2017-25, she set a program record with 26 wins in a single season and became the second-winningest coach in program history. She also knows how to recruit and develop talent at the collegiate level (Sarah Fillier and Claire Thompson) which will be an asset. Experience with the national program and a passion for coaching will all but certainly ensure player buy in. - C. Sinclair

Already a successful head coach with 12 years of experience at Colgate, Fargo shifted seamlessly into a difficult situation with New York after they finished last in season one. His familiarity with Colgate alums like Allyson Simpson, Olivia Zafuto, and Kayle Osborne (as well as 2025 #1 draft pick Kristýna Kaltounková) helped settle a team that needed direction, and Fargo's optimism and patience stabilized the team quickly. The Sirens haven't yet made the playoffs, but the outlook around them continues to be smooth sailing with Fargo at the helm. - C. Benwell

PWHL experience after two seasons with the New York Sirens, and ten seasons of NCAA women's hockey head coaching experience make Sciba an ideal candidate. He was paramount in Team USA's special team success over the last year, including winning Olympic gold. Sciba could skyrocket up this list with a successful season behind Detroit's bench. - I. Kennedy

One of the PWHL’s most accomplished — and polarizing — coaches, Ryan won Coach of the Year in season one and guided Toronto to first- and second-place finishes in his two seasons behind the bench. Ryan is fiercely loyal to trusted veterans, sometimes at the expense of opportunities and development for younger players. His results are difficult to argue with although he might have run out of goodwill with many along the way.- C. Benwell

Long time 'AAA' coach spent the last four seasons as head coach and GM of the NAHL's Rochester Jr. Americans. In Rochester, he also worked as a skills coach with many top collegiate and professional players, including one of his star defenders Haley Winn. His main knock was a lack of professional coaching experience, or women's teams at any level. - I. Kennedy

While successful at the U SPORTS level, including three playoff berths and two appearances at the U SPORTS National Championship with the University of Saskatchewan, Bumstead has limited experience as a head coach beyond Canada's female deaf hockey team. A familiarity with the program after serving as the team's assistant last season could prove to be an asset, as well as her experience serving in development roles in the WHL and NHL. - C. Sinclair

Weiss has risen quickly through the coaching ranks, most recently becoming just the second woman to serve as a full-time AHL assistant with the Colorado Eagles. She has experience in both the men’s and women’s games, including with USA Hockey, and a strong player-development background. But Las Vegas will be her first professional head coaching job so she has plenty still to prove.  C. Benwell

Rhéaume brings more than 14 years of coaching experience, most recently as an assistant with the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders, but arrives in Toronto with no experience in women’s hockey and little apparent familiarity with its player pool. He also has limited head-coaching experience (and very little success), with two seasons behind the bench of the QMJHL’s Val-d’Or Foreurs. Taking over from longtime women’s hockey coach Troy Ryan, Rhéaume faces a steep learning curve. - C. Benwell