An Olympic year and a contract for Fillier: 4 PWHL storylines to watch this summer

When the Minnesota Frost lifted the Walter Cup conscionable 1 period ago, players crossed the league knew things were astir to change.

With the particulate present settled from the PWHL's enlargement draft, free-agent signing model and introduction draft, it's wide that there's been a massive, league-wide roster reset.

Seattle and Vancouver accumulated a wealthiness of endowment done the enlargement draft, and GMs of the existing six teams person been moving to capable the gaps.

With further enlargement connected the horizon, and tons of large contracts crossed the league expiring aft adjacent season, it feels similar teams person to prioritize the contiguous future. Long-term readying is adjacent to impossible.

"I deliberation if you inquire astir of the wide managers successful this league, this league has transitioned a small spot now," Ottawa Charge GM Mike Hirshfeld, who prioritized draft-eligible players with erstwhile pro experience, said connected draught night.

"It's truly focused connected winning present and players who tin measurement successful close away."

All of that led to an action-packed draught time successful Ottawa, wherever 3 blockbuster trades were announced.

WATCH | Biggest takeaways from the PWHL Draft connected Hockey North:

Defender Ella Shelton is simply a monolithic summation to Toronto's antiaircraft core, and gives the Sceptres 2 of the champion defenders successful the world.

Abby Roque, meanwhile, volition marque Montreal harder to play against, arsenic the Victoire look to construe regular-season occurrence to a Walter Cup.

The PWHL's signing model is present closed until July 8 astatine 9 a.m. With the off-season successful afloat swing, present are 4 storylines to ticker arsenic we look up to the PWHL's 3rd play adjacent fall.

Talent connected paper

There's nary question that Seattle and Vancouver look similar 2 of the strongest teams successful the league. Both stockpiled young talent. Vancouver has the deepest bluish enactment successful the league, and 2 reliable goaltenders. Seattle, meanwhile, has a apical six with accomplishment and size successful spades.

But however volition that construe connected the ice?

It's a occupation Seattle GM Meghan Turner knows well, having been the adjunct GM successful Boston earlier heading west.

"You tin look astatine thing connected insubstantial and past arsenic soon arsenic you enactment it connected the ice, you're like, oh, we benignant of request to alteration something," Turner said. "A batch of what I instrumentality distant from my clip successful Boston is not everything goes arsenic planned each the time. Injuries happen, things spell otherwise successful the play than however you mightiness person planned."

In the archetypal play of the PWHL, it took each squad clip to set to a marque caller league with a carnal playing style.

There are plentifulness of veterans connected Seattle and Vancouver, but it could inactive instrumentality immoderate clip for everything to gel.

How volition Ottawa capable retired its team?

Ottawa mislaid a batch of endowment successful escaped bureau and the enlargement draft. Tereza Vanišová and Shiann Darkangelo, successful particular, were important adds by Hirshfeld astatine the 2024 commercialized deadline, and helped the squad clinch its archetypal playoff berth.

But contempt the Charge's tally to the PWHL Finals, some left. Vanišová signed with Vancouver and Darkangelo picked Montreal.

Hirshfeld said the Charge made "compelling" offers to some players. Ultimately Vanišová wanted a caller accidental successful Vancouver and Darkangelo was attracted to the thought of getting to play and vie each time with Marie-Philip Poulin successful Montreal.

"People privation to play successful Ottawa," Hirshfeld said. "People judge successful this city. They emotion the fans successful this marketplace. Again, it conscionable came down to idiosyncratic situations and idiosyncratic decisions. Again, unluckily for us, we were 2nd a mates antithetic times successful escaped agency."

Asked if that could beryllium contagious, that players prime different markets implicit Ottawa, Hirshfeld admitted it's prompted "a batch of looking successful the mirror" astir what squad could person done differently.

"We've talked to agents," helium said. "We've talked to different players astir the league. We've talked to players connected our team. There's immoderate tweaks we're going to marque internally to assistance america heighten our estimation among players astir the league."

Ottawa has lone 12 of 23 players signed heading into the off-season break, and however helium fills retired the remainder of the roster volition beryllium thing to ticker heading into adjacent season.

Hirshfeld besides drafted 2 players retired of Russia, which hasn't competed connected the planetary signifier since 2022 owed to the penetration of Ukraine. Nonetheless, Anna Shokhina and Fanuza Kadirova came highly recommended by women's hockey fable Mel Davidson, who precocious joined the Charge arsenic a consultant.

Will Sarah Fillier motion agelong word successful New York?

The New York Sirens look dramatically antithetic from the squad that 2024 first-overall pick, Sarah Fillier, signed a one-year declaration with past year.

The Sirens mislaid top-six forwards Alex Carpenter and Jessie Eldridge to expansion, arsenic good arsenic starting goaltender, Corinne Schroeder. Then, Daoust flipped Shelton to Toronto connected draught night.

This squad is intelligibly built astir Fillier now. But arsenic of this writing, she doesn't person a declaration for adjacent season.

Teams clasp draught picks' rights for 2 seasons, which means Fillier can't motion with different squad unless New York trades her rights.

Given each the moves during the past month, determination should beryllium plentifulness of headdress abstraction to marque a large connection to Fillier.

Daoust besides did a bully occupation of rebuilding his guardant radical astatine the draft. Thanks to the Shelton trade, helium was capable to draught the apical 2 forwards available: sharp-shooting Kristýna Kaltounková and Casey O'Brien, who had 1 of the champion violative seasons of each clip astatine Wisconsin.

WATCH | Sirens select Kaltounková with 1st prime successful the 2025 Draft: 

"Definitely erstwhile you get these players joining Sarah Fillier, we consciousness that we're going to person immoderate large players connected the powerfulness play, but besides to make much astatine five-on-five," Daoust said.

Whether it volition beryllium capable to person Fillier to enactment successful New York agelong word remains to beryllium seen.

Just arsenic GMs are reasoning abbreviated term, players are doing the same. A batch of large contracts astir the league are acceptable to expire aft adjacent season, and much enlargement could beryllium connected the horizon.

Several players who signed with Seattle and Vancouver opted for shorter contracts, conscionable not knowing what the aboriginal holds.

An Olympic year

For the archetypal time, the PWHL volition person to navigate an Olympic interruption successful the mediate of the season.

The champion players successful the satellite volition caput to Italy to vie for Olympic gold, and it's going to beryllium dissimilar nary different Olympic tourney for women's hockey.

Instead, Canadian GM Gina Kingsbury and caput manager Troy Ryan volition beryllium relying much connected PWHL show arsenic they prime the squad looking to support Canada's golden medal from 2022.

With galore apt returnees from 2022, that whitethorn not impact squad chemistry arsenic overmuch this clip around. But it could beryllium a crippled changer successful the future.

Another factor: So galore big-name players switched teams this off-season. How volition that interaction their quality to marque an Olympic team? Will immoderate players get much accidental to shine? Could others get near behind?

Already, you tin spot however an Olympic break, combined with the further question that comes with having teams connected the westbound coast, is affecting roster decisions.

Several teams are leaning toward having a goaltending tandem alternatively of relying connected 1 goaltender to play large minutes during a engaged year.

Vancouver, wherever Team Canada goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer is the starter, is 1 example. The squad acquired Kristen Campbell from Toronto successful a commercialized connected draught night.

"We cognize that [Maschmeyer] would emotion a bully spouse that tin instrumentality immoderate minutes, particularly during an Olympic year," Vancouver GM Cara Gardner Morey said. "It's a agelong season, truthful we privation idiosyncratic that's tested and ready, and Kristen Campbell is surely that goalie."

The reasoning was akin successful Seattle, wherever the squad drafted goaltender Hannah Murphy successful the 2nd circular to squad up with Schroeder.

"Having 2 truly coagulated goaltenders is precise important successful this league," Turner said. "I deliberation we've seen it passim the past 2 years that it's important to person goalies that tin truly measurement successful and leap into the game."