There are few things I love more than the Olympics. Okay, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but I do look forward to it every four years. Growing up, I loved the opportunity to watch sports that I had never seen before, like luge, skeleton, and synchronized swimming. I, like many other kids growing up in Canada, used to sit down with my parents every Saturday to watch the Men’s hockey (the NHL) during its playoffs. So, watching hockey during the Olympics never seemed appealing to me – I already saw that every single week. As a result, this was my first year following Olympic hockey. As a Canadian, I was obviously heartbroken to be beaten by the Americans, but what was worse to me was the men’s behaviour after winning the games. Publicly belittling and mocking the achievements of women is something that I thought was a thing of the past, but here we are. Luckily, the PWHL (Professional Women’s Hockey League), is in its third season, and can give you a wonderful alternative if you want to watch hockey and be able to support the players. Even better, the games are all available on YouTube for free! Although you are not able to watch the games live in Canada, the PWHL YouTube channel posts all of the games within a few days of them being played allowing for easy access. It is so much more fun to watch sports when you know who you are watching, so I have created this beginners guide to the PWHL. I will let you know which players to watch out for, and which teams are better than others (so far).
Toronto Sceptres
The Toronto Scepters is one of the inaugural six teams of the PWHL. They are coached by Troy Ryan, who is also the coach of the Canadian Women’s Olympic hockey team. They played in the first ever PWHL game and unfortunately lost to the New York Sirens. Blayne Turnbull is the captain of the Toronto Scepters, and was an assistant captain at the Olympics in Milan. They have made it to both of the previous playoffs, where they lost to Minnesota in the semi-finals both times. This year, they are in 6th place in the overall standings (out of 8 total teams).
Names to Know:
Emma Maltais: A two-time Olympic medalist, Maltais is an integral part of the Scepters team. She is a powerful forward, and was recently voted the best trash-talker in the PWHL anonymous player votes.
Renata Fast: Fast was one of the first three players signed to the team back in 2023. She is an assistant captain, and a powerful defensive player for the Scepters. She is a three-time Olympic medalist, and won the 2024-2025 PWHL Defender of the Year award.
Natalie Spooner: Spooner is a four-time Olympic medalist, and was the point and goal leader during the 2023-2024 season of the PWHL. During that season, she was also named the PWHL Forward of the year.
Daryl Watts: This is Watts’ second season with the Sceptres. She played her first Olympic Games this year with Canada, and scored two goals with 6 assists.
Montreal Victoire
The Montreal Victoire is also one of the inaugural six teams. The team plays their home games at the Place Bell in Quebec, where they have broken multiple records for the number of people attending a women’s hockey game. Marie Philip-Poulin is the captain of the Victoire, as well as the captain of the Olympic hockey team in Milan. They made the playoffs in both previous years, but lost in the semi-finals both times. They are currently in 2nd place in the overall standings, but have the same number of points as the first place team, the Boston Fleet.
Names to Know:
Marie Philip-Poulin: One of the best hockey players of all time, Poulin is a five-time Olympic medalist. She is the only ice hockey player in history to score three game winning goals at three separate Olympics. She serves as the captain of the Victoire and of the Olympic hockey team. She is known for her incredible shot as well as her sportsmanship. She is also married to her teammate, Laura Stacey.
Laura Stacey: Another forward on the Victoire, Stacey has three Olympic medals. She was one of the first three players signed to the Victoire and serves as an assistant captain. During the 2024-2025 season, she was the leading goal scorer for Montreal with 11 goals.
Ann Renee Desbiens: Desbiens is the goalie for the Victoire and is a three time Olympic medalist. She has the highest save percentage and the lowest goals against average in the PWHL.
Abby Roque: This is Roque’s first season on the Victoire as she previously played for New York. She is known for her physicality in the game. She was the first Indigenous woman to play for the US national ice hockey team.
Ottawa Charge
The final Canadian team to be a part of the inaugural six, the Ottawa Charge. They are captained by Brianne Jenner. Despite not making the playoffs in their first year, they played an impressive second season, and ended up playing in the finals, ultimately losing to the Minnesota Frost. They are coached by Carla McLeod, who was also the coach for the Czech Women’s Olympic Hockey team in Milan.
Names to Know:
Brianne Jenner: Jenner is the captain of the charge. She is a three time Olympic medalist, and was named MVP at the Beijing Olympics in 2022. She was one of the first three players signed to the Charge. She was Ottawa’s leading scorer in the 2023-2024 season.
Rebecca Leslie: This is Leslie’s first year with the Charge. She is currently tied for first place in the overall points in the league and tied for second in the overall goals in the league this season.
Emily Clark: Clark was one of the first three players signed to the Charge, and serves as an assistant captain. During the 2026 Olympics, she put up 2 goals and 1 assist. She is also reportedly engaged to fellow PWHL player, Jamie Bourbonnais.
Gwyenth Phillips: Phillips is the goalie for the Charge, and is one of the few American players mentioned on this list. She played her first Olympics this year, and ended up recording multiple shutouts.
Vancouver Goldeneyes
Vancouver is one of the two teams added to the PWHL this year, with the other being the Seattle Torrent. They are currently sitting at 7th in the overall standings, with only Seattle being behind them. As it is their first year, I would expect to see some adjustments over this year, and likely some better stats in the next season. Their captain is Ashton Bell, who played for Ottawa in previous seasons.
Names to Know:
Sarah Nurse: Nurse was one of the first three players signed to the Scepters. This is her first year playing with the Goldeneyes. Nurse scored the first jail break goal in the PWHL (meaning she scored a goal while on a penalty kill, freeing her teammate from the penalty box). She is a three time Olympic medalist, and was the first Black Woman to ever win a gold medal in Olympic ice-hockey.
Ashton Bell: Bell previously played for the Charge and is now the captain of the Goldeneyes. She won gold with the Olympic team in 2022.
Claire Thompson: Thompson previously played for the Frost, winning the Walter cup with them in 2025. She is one of the assistant captains for the Goldeneyes. She is also a medical school student. She took a year off school to play hockey at the Olympics, where she won silver.
Emerance Maschmeyer: Maschmeyer previously played for the Charge, where she was one of the first three players signed. She has the fourth highest save percentage in the PWHL, and had the highest save percentage out of the Canadian goaltenders at the 2026 Olympics.
Hopefully, this gave you a good overview of the Canadian teams playing in the PWHL. If you are still struggling to decide which team to pick, I would recommend watching a couple games and seeing which team you enjoy watching most. Or don’t pick any team and watch whatever games you like. After all, there is no ‘right’ way to watch sports!