As the PWHLPA recently voted to reveal player salaries to other players and agents, it might be a good thing to know how much some other employees of the league are making.
When the PWHL was in search of two general managers for expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver, they posted the positions on some online sites to find as many candidates as possible interested in the job.
And it worked.
The league confirmed that they received over 200 applicantion for the GM job in Vancouver and another 200 for the one in Seattle.
Therefore, with the job description, the annual salary the person would make was also divulged on those sites.
GMs Being Paid More Than Any Player
For both GM positions, the base salary was between $150,000 and $180,000 USD ($195,800 to $235,000 CAD), including participation in the company-sponsored benefit plan.
May we remind everyone that before the expansion draft, only 36 players out of the 138 players with standard contracts were making at least $80,000 USD per year (most probably 41 since), with the belief that the highest-paid player makes around $120,000 USD.
Between $150,000 and $180,000 is a base salary. One can only make an educated guess that someone with the experience of a Gina Kingsbury or a Danièle Sauvageau must earn more, protentially north of $200,000.
Which makes us ask a simple question: in what major sports league is a GM being paid more than the top player?
Only two examples could be found: the WNBA and the PWHL. Perhaps there’s a third one, the CFL, but reports vary on what the highest-paid player makes.
In the WNBA, it is believed that GMs are paid over half-a-million dollars, some over one million, while the highest-paid player makes roughly a quarter million dollars per year.
At the other end of the spectrum, like in the NHL, GMs are making anything between $1.5 and $5 million per year, while the highest-paid player makes $13 million and the average is around $3.63 million.
And it is the same for every major sports league in North America such as the NBA, NFL, MLS, and MLB. It's even true in the NWSL, where the most paid player makes two-to-three times what the highest paid GM makes.
Many PWHL Employees Also Make More Than Players
Other positions in the PWHL also are well paid.
For a Director, Team business operations (Marie-Christine Boucher’s title for those familiar with the Montreal Victoire) the league was offering between $150,000 to $180,000 CAD in Vancouver, $120,000 to $145,000 USD in Seattle.
This is still more than every player, but, perhaps, one.
A head athletic trainer position in Seattle could get between $90,000 and $95,000 USD, depending on his or her experience. Only a handful of players made more than that last season.
For a head equipment manager in Seattle, the PWHL was offering a salary between $70,000 and $80,000 USD and for a team services manager position in New York, the salary offered was $60,000 to $80,000 USD. Approximately 54 players (39% of the league) were making the minimum salary of $36,050 USD in 2024-25. First round draft picks made $50,000 USD.
In Seattle, the league was offering a salary between $60,000 and $65,000 USD per year for a video coordinator (the role Mikael Nahabedian has with the Montreal Victoire), while they are offering between $60,000 and $70,000 USD for a team video production manager position. Even the team's social media manager is set to make between $50,000 and $60,000 USD. The average salary in the league was $56,650 last season. Second round draft picks made $42,500 USD.
And one last example, for a massage therapist position in Boston, the league was offering $40,000 USD a year, more than what the minimum salary will be for players two years from now in season five. And let’s not forget the 18 players who made $15,450 on the reserve list last season.
A Bigger Piece of the Pie
The idea here is not to diminish the importance of a general manager, director of business operatons, a video producer, a team services manager, social media manager, head trainer, video coach, head equipment manager or a massage therapist. Finding qualified people for those positions is important in bringing the "P" in Professional Women’s Hockey League and they deserve to be paid accordingly.
But the fact they are making more than most players is wrong. The fact that the highest-paid employee in any given team is not a player is wrong.
There’s a reason the PWHLPA voted to disclose their salaries. The players are the stars, the reason why fans buy tickets and follow the league’s activities.
In return, they deserve to get a bigger piece of the pie.