Professional Women’s Hockey? In The Desert?

When we first shared our photos from the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association 2022-23 Secret® Cup Championship, that was held right here in the Coachella Valley Sunday, people puzzlingly echoed us back, “Professional Women’s Hockey? We didn’t know there was such a thing”!

HERE WE GO:

Champion Team Harvey’s, win in a come from behind victory 5-4 vs. runner ups Team Scotiabank, in a competive thriller… see more photos below:

THE ROAD TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP CALIFORNIA, HERE WE COME!

The Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) —in partnership with the Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, Seattle Kraken, Coachella Valley Firebirds and Oak View Group—announced details in LOS ANGELES, CA on Feb 7, 2023 surrounding its 2022-23 season championship weekend.

THE PRESS RELEASE FROM FEB 7TH:

– The Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association (PWHPA) today—in partnership with the Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, Seattle Kraken, Coachella Valley Firebirds and Oak View Group—announced details surrounding its 2022-23 season championship weekend. The event will be the final stop of the Secret® Dream Gap Tour and will take place in Irvine, El Segundo and Palm Desert, California from March 10-12. 

The event will see all four PWHPA teams compete for the 2023 Secret® Cup, with 1-4 seeding still to be determined based on the remaining regular season games. Updated standings can be found on pwhpa.com. 

“We’ve had a really great season so far—one that’s allowed players to play more games than ever— and we’re thrilled to finally announce the details surrounding our championship weekend in California,” said Jayna Hefford, PWHPA Operations Consultant. “To partner with four great organizations in the Kings, Ducks, Kraken and Firebirds has been great thus far, and we’re looking forward to hitting growing hockey markets in California. As we work our way through the remaining events, I know we’ll see even more competitive games as the teams work to take home the championship.”

THE MARCH 12, 2023 PWHPA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AT ACRISURE ARENA:

The event was the final stop of the Secret® Dream Gap Tour and took place in Irvine, El Segundo and Palm Desert, California from March 10-12. 

The event saw all four PWHPA teams compete for the 2023 Secret® Cup, with 1-4 seedings from the season competing in this final championship event!

The four PWHPA teams played in the semi-finals on March 10th in FivePoint Arena at Great Park Ice — the training facility of the Anaheim Ducks — in Irvine. The two losing teams played for final season placement on Saturday, March 11 in El Segundo at Toyota Sports Performance Center, the LA Kings’ Practice facility.

The winners of the semi-final games moved on to the championship game on Sunday, March 12 at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, home of the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

About the PWHPA

Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association’s (PWHPA) mission is to promote, advance and support a viable professional women’s ice hockey league in North America that showcases the greatest product of women’s professional ice hockey in the world.

The organization aims to provide a united voice to players advocating for the creation of a sustainable professional league. PWHPA is working to accomplish its mission by coordinating training needs and programming opportunities and collaborating with like-minded organizations to make hockey more inclusive for women and future generations. To learn more about PWHPA and the Secret® Dream Gap Tour, visit pwhpa.com.

BREAKING NEWS:

PWHPA to launch new women’s pro hockey league for 2023-24 season: Source

The players who make up the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association have been told that a new pro league will be ready for the 2023-24 season, a PWHPA source told The Athletic.

Players were given the news over the weekend while in California for the PWHPA Championship, which Team Harvey’s won 5-4 over Team Scotiabank on Sunday night. According to a source who was present at the meeting, Stan Kasten — the longtime baseball executive and president of the Los Angeles Dodgers — spoke with members of the PWHPA and confirmed a league for the 2023-24 season.

Kasten is also a part-owner of the Dodgers, and has a business portfolio with Mark Walter, the Dodgers’ controlling owner. Walter got involved with the PWHPA back in May when the group entered into a formal relationship with Billie Jean King Enterprises and The Mark Walter Group to explore the launch of a new professional women’s hockey league. That news was first reported by The Athletic.

Further details, such as where the teams will be located and when the season will start, are still to come. There is no timeline for an official announcement about the league, though the women’s world championships in April could provide a logical time in the women’s hockey calendar with all the best players gathered in Brampton, Ont.

Players have been expecting — or at least hoping for — this outcome for some time. The goal heading into this season of PWHPA showcases was for it to be their last.

“We’re really excited with the point that we’re at now,” PWHPA board member Brianne Jenner told The Athletic in October. “It is our hope that this is the last year where the PWHPA has to provide a competitive schedule. We’re really optimistic about what’s to come.”

Getting the green light from their investor group is a significant step forward for a group of elite hockey players who have been playing in exhibition games and traveling showcase events for four years. And it comes only two weeks after the news that the players in the PWHPA had organized a formal union and are negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with their investor group.