It’s been a long, but fun-filled five months for the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). With so many new storylines and important events happening before the 2026-27 season even starts, here’s a quick recap of everything that went down this summer!
Where’s Walter?
After becoming the first Canadian team to win the PWHL’s coveted Walter Cup, the Montreal Victoire had planned to spend the summer travelling around their players’ hometowns and show off the cup. Unfortunately, the league’s shipping company had different plans — the Walter Cup went missing not just once, but twice in the midst of the Victoire’s victory lap.
The Walter Cup was first reported missing on Aug. 21, 2026. It was supposed to be in Lethbridge, Alta, spending the day with Victoire forward Dara Greig, but failed to show up. Without going into detail, the PWHL released a statement saying the trophy “did not arrive as expected at its latest stop,” adding that the league was “working closely with the shipping company to locate it.”
Allegedly, a container did arrive, just not one with the Walter Cup inside. Four days later, the trophy was found and reunited with the team. Greig had to postpone her day with the trophy, rescheduling it to almost a month later, on Sept. 23, 2026.
With all that excitement behind them, the Victoire continued to celebrate their hard-earned trophy. However, just two weeks later, the team found themselves in quite a familiar situation, as the trophy failed to show up again.
This time, the Walter Cup was supposed to spend the day with forward Shiann Darkangelo at a celebratory event in Brighton, Michigan. The PWHL did not put out a statement this time, and fans were notified of the trophy’s disappearance through an Instagram post from Darkangelo.
According to The Athletic, the PWHL used the same shipping company to send the Walter Cup to Michigan as it did to Lethbridge.
Fortunately, the actual trophy is not missing in action. The trophy that the players get to spend the day with is merely a replica; the actual one sits in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
Four New Teams Announced
After expanding from six teams to eight last season, introducing the Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes, the PWHL is adding four more teams for the 2026-27 season.
The highly coveted expansion process, which has brought teams to some great, hockey-oriented cities, continues to excite PWHL fans across North America. This year, the league is adding teams in Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas and San Jose, California.
With the league now having 12 teams, the PWHL also felt it was a fitting time to add two conferences: Eastern and Western.
Boston, Hamilton, Montreal, New York, Ottawa and Toronto will all play in the Eastern Conference, while Detroit, Las Vegas, Minnesota, San Jose, Seattle and Vancouver will play in the Western Conference.
Each team will play 30 regular-season games, including 18 within its conference, and 12 inter-conference games.
The PWHL playoffs will also be expanding at the conclusion of the 2026-27 season. The new format features eight teams and three rounds, up from four teams and two rounds last year.
All-Star Game
With 12 total teams and brand new conferences, there’s no better time than now for the PWHL to introduce its first-ever All-Star Game!
The All-Star Game will take place at Scotiabank Arena on March 7, 2027, featuring a four-team, three-on-three round robin tournament.
The four teams in the All-Star Game will be PWHL Canada, PWHL International, PWHL USA, and the PWHL Rookies.
All-Star starters will be chosen through a combination of fan, player and media voting, while the reserve players will be selected by league hockey operations. Each team will have a 10-player roster, consisting of six forwards, three defenders and one goaltender.
2027 will mark the league’s first independently hosted All-Star event, the first being a three-on-three showcase as part of 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend.
Hockey Night in Canada’s Revival
If you were heartbroken by the news that Hockey Night in Canada is no more, this is perhaps the biggest news of the summer: Hockey Night in Canada is back!
After a 12-year licensing agreement between CBC and Sportsnet expired, the public broadcaster and Rogers Communications (which owns Sportsnet) were unable to reach a new deal.
CBC had been televising Saturday night NHL games since 1952, so, obviously, Canadians were pretty upset.
Fortunately, CBC retained the Hockey Night trademark and is pivoting the brand towards the PWHL.
Hockey Night’s reimagined debut will take place on Dec. 5, 2026 — when the Walter-Cup champion Victoire hosts Hamilton at 7 p.m. ET.
CBC will then air 25 other PWHL games during the season, featuring seven primetime Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts. Keeping with Hockey Night tradition, each broadcast will feature a Canadian-based team.
Beyond the broadcast, CBC/Radio-Canada has also secured exclusive audio broadcast rights for all Victoire games in Canada during the 2026-27 season.
For a full broadcast schedule, click here.
With the PWHL breaking records each year, setting unprecedented attendance numbers and smashing national viewership reports, it’s no surprise that more fans than ever are hungry for some hockey. After this summer, that amount has increased exponentially!
The PWHL regular season kicks off on Dec. 5 2026, when the Torrent take on the Goldeneyes at 3 p.m. ET.