The PWHL Draft is upon us, but behind the scenes, conversations, strategizing, and the rumor mill continue to spin. Here's what's happening this week.
The PWHL Draft is only hours away, but the wheels are still spinning working on plans for their rosters.
Here's what we're hearing leading up to the draft.
Muller Won't Stay On The Board Long
Multiple PWHL general managers stated the believe Alina Muller will be chosen in the first round, and it's possible that following the anticipated first overall pick of Taylor Heise to Minnesota, that Toronto could jump at Muller with the second pick. Muller is arguably one of the top 5-10 players in the world, and with 18 players already signed, that means she's primed to be picked early. It's hard to look beyond Gina Kingsbury and Troy Ryan's ties to Canadian national team players, but it's also hard to look beyond Muller's skill, and the fact she'll be a cornerstone in the league for years. Could she go second overall to Toronto? It's a very real possibility. If not, Boston will be there with a grin waiting at third overall.
Will MacLeod Have A Czech Effect In Ottawa?
There was plenty of excitement surrounding the hiring of Carla MacLeod as Ottawa's new head coach. The announcement came only days after she was re-upped by Czechia to serve as the nation's women's hockey coach through the 2026 Olympics. MacLeod was a proponent of her Czech players crossing the pond to play in the PHF, and it's likely she'll want her top players in this league. There's no guarantee Ottawa will be able to draft the Czech contingent that declared, a list of seven national team members including Denisa Krizova, Aneta Tejralova, Dominika Laskova, Katerina Mrazova, Tereza Vanisova, Alena Mills, and Blanka Skodova, but it would also be surprising if a few of those players don't end up in Ottawa either through the draft, or free agency after the draft. If any of these players skip through the draft, MacLeod knows what they can do in big game moments, and she's already got them playing the 200-foot physical style she preaches.
Compassionate Waivers Spark Mixed Response
It appears almost every team in the PWHPA will be selecting players assigned to them via the compassionate consideration exemptions that the league ruled on last week. Most of those players, the league will tell teams what round they need to select that player in, while others, who the league did not assign a round of selection to, will need to tryout for the team in November. What was really interesting about this process is, there were multiple teams in the PWHL unhappy with how the process played out. In multiple circumstances, teams did not intend to select the player(s) they were assigned. In other circumstances, GMs were thrilled to learn they'd been assigned a certain player they hoped to draft, ensuring they'd be a member of their team.
Draft Does Not Equal Sign
The x-factor in this discussion is that teams have no requirement to sign the players they draft. The draft guarantees a players' rights belong to that team for a two-year period, but players are not obligated to accept a contract, nor are teams obligated to offer one. The main reason this would likely happen is if the team and player cannot agree to terms on a contract, but that's not the only factor involved. As one general manager told The Hockey News, they don't intent to sign many, if any, of their draft picks until training camp opens in November. The GM stated they want to see the players competing head to head to decide who deserves what kind of contract offer. This could be a tactic used in multiple markets as some GMs and coaches have far less familiarity with the player pool than others.
Age Will Absolutely Be A Factor
Multiple GMs confirmed to The Hockey News that drafting a group of younger players will be a core consideration for their franchise. The belief is, free agency allowed teams to get a start on building a veteran core, but that building a roster that will not only compete this year, but throughout the first three years where a group of players will be competing on guaranteed contracts, youth will be crucial to support these aging veterans. How this factors into the draft is yet to be seen. Teams could opt to focus their early rounds on youth like Heise, Muller, Sophie Jaques, and Emma Soderberg, or they could grab another national team veteran and turn to young players they believe they can develop in the latter half of the draft. Either way, age will absolutely be a factor teams will be considering heavily.