Sarah Fillier and Allyson Simpson were the first two players to make public statements and posts announcing their PWHL draft declaration on a public forum, but they won't be the last. Welcome to the PWHL's public draft declaration era.
We've seen it for years in other sports, top athletes making public declarations regarding their intentions for entering respective drafts. This year, it was NCAA superstar Caitlin Clark who announced on February 29 that this would be her final NCAA season, and that she was officially declaring for the WNBA draft.
It's now time for the PWHL Draft declaration era.
The trend was kicked off for the first time ever by Sarah Fillier, The Hockey News' top ranked prospect for the 2024 PWHL Draft.
She posted a letter to social media on April 18 clearly stating that she was "excited to officially announce I will be declaring for the 2024 PWHL Draft."
"I can't wait for the next chapter of my hockey career as a professional and to build upon what I learned at Princeton," she continued.
As with any trend, there needs to be a first, but it was followed soon thereafter by Colgate defender Allyson Simpson, The Hockey News' 12th ranked prospect in the most recent draft list.
"I am excited to announce my declaration for the 2024 PWHL draft," she wrote on Instagram. "I can't wait to see what this next step brings."
While they were the first, they certainly won't be the last. The announcements are of particular interest to fans who need to wait until after the May 1 draft declaration deadline to learn of all the eligible players for the 2024 Draft.
Welcome to the PWHL's Draft Declaration Era.