PWHL expansion draft explainer: How it works and what's at stake

As the Montreal Victoire players gathered with reporters connected Tuesday, everyone seemed to admit the aforesaid reality: alteration was coming, and the aforesaid radical wouldn't beryllium backmost adjacent year.

It's not unsocial to the Victoire, which mislaid to the Ottawa Charge successful 4 games successful the semifinals past week.

The league volition clasp an enlargement draught to assistance physique caller teams successful Seattle and Vancouver, which statesman play adjacent season. It means each squad volition suffer stars, putting rosters crossed the league into a blender.

"Every clip you suffer successful those large moments, it's emotional," Victoire skipper Marie-Philip Poulin told CBC's Jay Turnbull and different reporters gathered astatine locker cleanable retired time connected Tuesday. "You spell done truthful overmuch with your squad arsenic individuals. You privation to bash good for your team. It is precise sad."

HOCKEY NORTH | CBC Sports predicts each team's enlargement draught extortion list:

The enlargement draught is acceptable for astatine June 9 astatine 8:30 p.m. ET. Here's however the process volition work, however we got present and however it could impact teams and players.

The extortion list

Each squad volition lone beryllium capable to support 3 players from expansion, to start. Those lists are owed connected June 3 astatine 12 p.m. ET.

It's a tiny number, and 1 that seemed to nonstop daze waves done squad instrumentality bases over the weekend.

The thought is to marque definite Seattle and Vancouver tin beryllium competitory from the beginning. Parity has been a cardinal pillar of the league since it launched, and that's travel with success. More than fractional of the league's games person been decided by 1 extremity oregon a shootout, and 3 teams finished tied successful the points standings this season.

The league spent months moving connected these rules, enforcement vice president of hockey operations, Jayna Hefford, said up of Game 1 of the Walter Cup finals.

"It was truly captious that we got it close due to the fact that decisions similar this bash signifier the aboriginal of the league," she said. "For us, the precedence is ever astir competitory balance."

Hefford acknowledged connected Tuesday that the rules whitethorn not beryllium fashionable among fans of existing teams. 

"We recognize a batch of radical volition person questions astir the process and of people an affinity towards their teams and their favourite players," Hefford said. "But we besides cognize this is specified an breathtaking clip of maturation for women's hockey and for the PWHL. It's important to retrieve that each teams present volition beryllium increasing nether the aforesaid wage headdress and the aforesaid rules."

Only players who are nether declaration oregon squad power adjacent play person to beryllium protected. That means pending escaped agents, similar Toronto's Natalie Spooner oregon Hannah Miller, for example, can't beryllium taken successful the enlargement draft.

The signing window

After the extortion lists are submitted, the Seattle and Vancouver teams person a five-day model to talk with and perchance motion up to 5 unprotected players each. The enlargement teams tin besides motion players who are connected expiring contracts.

The idea, Hefford said, is to springiness players a spot much powerfulness implicit wherever they're going to sign, particularly if they deliberation they could beryllium selected successful the enlargement draft.

WATCH | Montreal Victoire bespeak connected playoff loss, expansion:

"It's their determination astatine the extremity of the day, but we decidedly had a small spot of an interaction connected what we thought was champion for the players, particularly successful presumption of escaped agents," said Laura Stacey, who is the Victoire's subordinate typical connected the players' association.

Once a squad has fixed up 2 players, either done the signing model oregon the draught itself, the squad tin support a 4th player.

The dialog model closes connected June 8 astatine 5 p.m. ET.

Draft day: June 9

It's not yet wide whether Seattle oregon Vancouver volition prime first, but some teams volition alternate picks until they each scope 12 players.

If a squad comes into the draught with much signed players than the other, past they whitethorn person other picks to get to the magic 12 number.

The league has yet to sanction a wide manager for Vancouver. Seattle volition beryllium built from scratch by Meghan Turner, who's been the adjunct wide manager with the Boston Fleet for the past 2 seasons.

Terms of players' salaries aren't made nationalist successful the PWHL, but it's harmless to accidental the caller teams can't draught a squad afloat of superstars and enactment nether the wage cap.

Still, there's nary uncertainty the process volition extremity with existing teams having large holes successful their lineups to fill. 

For Montreal, it could undo what was a beardown introduction draught successful 2024. The Victoire added defenders Cayla Barnes and Anna Wilgren, arsenic good arsenic rookie of the twelvemonth nominee Jennifer Gardiner, who is from British Columbia.

"We are astir most apt going to suffer immoderate of those players that we drafted, we picked, we evaluated, we developed this year," said Montreal GM Danièle Sauvageau, who added that her squad hasn't decided which 3 players to support yet.

"But they're going to beryllium playing successful this league and this is what we person to beryllium arrogant of due to the fact that astatine the extremity of the day, we are present to turn the league and we are present to physique the marketplace that is increasing the league arsenic well."

The PWHL is simply a single-entity league, which means every squad has the aforesaid owner. In different words, what helps marque the enlargement teams successful Seattle and Vancouver palmy volition assistance assistance the different six teams, too.

"It's ne'er amusive to perceive but again, it's portion of nonrecreational sport," Poulin said astir the imaginable of losing teammates. "There's 2 teams coming in. It's exciting. There are going to beryllium much women playing hockey."

Anxiety and excitement

For players, particularly those whose seasons person ended, the adjacent 2 to 3 weeks are afloat of unknowns. Will they instrumentality to the aforesaid squad adjacent season? Or volition they beryllium moving crossed the country?

Until those questions are answered, players can't marque large beingness decisions, nor tin wide managers afloat program for the upcoming PWHL introduction draft, which is acceptable for June 24 successful Ottawa.

For defender Erin Ambrose, who has a twelvemonth remaining successful her declaration with the Victoire, it could mean leaving a metropolis and squad she has travel to emotion and respect arsenic family.

Like others astir the league, she said she's trying to absorption connected the bigger representation — the aforesaid mode players did erstwhile they vowed not to play professionally until they could make a sustainable league, oregon erstwhile the PWHL launched successful the summertime of 2023 and players waited to spot what the aboriginal would hold.

"There's a batch of anxiousness astir it," Ambrose said. "But I besides americium truly excited due to the fact that it means that our league is doing thing good. It means that we are increasing arsenic a nonrecreational league. It's an unfortunate concern due to the fact that I would emotion to enactment here, but it is retired of my control."