It's been a long offseason in the PWHL, but many players are ramping up preparations for the season shifting from offseason vacations and training into on-ice sessions. With national teams working toward the 2026 Olympics, as well as U Sports, NCAA, and European leagues playing games, the PWHL is still in neutral, but things are about to begin moving.
PWHL Schedule Not Imminently Expected
Earlier in September, sources confirmed the PWHL informed teams that training camps would open November 7 in the middle of the first leg of the Rivalry Series, while the season is slated to begin the weekend of November 21-23.
Earlier this summer, league sources stated that team staff had been told to expect the regular season schedule sometime in September. Now however, league staff believe the schedule is near, but not imminent.
According to one league source this week, it's now expected that the league will be releasing their 2025-26 regular season on or around October 1.
The Dates That We Do Know
While November 7 for the open of training camps, and the weekend of November 21-23 are the PWHL specific dates that were reported, there are other dates that can be gleaned from the international calendar.
It's likely that the PWHL will have another week break in December for the second leg of the Rivalry Series. Based on the fact the December Women's Euro Hockey Tour is scheduled for December 8-14, it's likely the Rivalry Series will fall within those dates as well, and that this will be a potential break in the PWHL schedule.
The other known gap in the 2025-26 PWHL schedule will come from February 6-22 for the 2026 Olympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy.