Attendance and scoring are up two-thirds into PWHL's 2nd season with expansion plans on horizon

Attendance is up, and so is scoring two-thirds of the way through the PWHL's second season, with the six-team league closing in on a decision to expand by as many as two franchises for next year.

“Fourteen months in, it’s an exciting time for us and we certainly haven’t slowed down,” executive vice president of business operations Amy Scheer said during a recent call with reporters. “I think we’ve proven over the last year and a half that we’ve got staying power, and now we’re a solid part of the hockey community.”

The league is on the verge of growing, with Scheer saying an expansion decision is expected by early April. Scheer would not provide any hint on what markets are in the running and whether one or two teams will be added.

Detroit is nonetheless considered a front-runner, with the PWHL also impressed with neutral site Takeover Tour game turnouts in Seattle, Denver, Vancouver, Edmonton and Quebec City this year.

Attendance jump

The league is averaging 7,365 fans per game — up from 5,500 last regular season. Including playoffs, the PWHL has drawn a combined 925,406 fans entering this week, with the anticipation of surpassing 1 million within the next month.

The attendance jump can be attributed to the Takeover Tour. Six of the nine games so far have drawn 89,953 fans, including 19,038 in Vancouver — the fourth-highest in league history.

Another factor is the Toronto Sceptres playing in a larger venue this year, moving to the 7,800-seat Coca-Cola Coliseum from the 2,500-seat Mattamy Athletic Centre.

The New York Sirens have slightly benefitted in establishing their home at New Jersey's Prudential Center after playing out of three venues last season. They're averaging 2,648 fans through 10 games at Prudential vs. 2,496 over 12 home games last year.

More goals

The league is seeing 5.18 goals per game, up from 4.8 last year. The jump is attributed to a boost in power-play goals with teams combining for 70 through 60 games after scoring 68 through 72 last season. The league introduced a no-escape rule this season in which a team cannot make a line change on the faceoff after its player is penalized.

"The game is faster, more skilled and it's more physical, and we try to find ways to create a product that makes the game more entertaining," EVP of hockey operations Jayna Hefford said.

Playoff race

The question is whether the PWHL can replicate the intrigue over last year’s playoff race, which wasn’t decided until eventual champion Minnesota clinched the fourth and final spot on the last day of the season.

With two months to go, the current standings feature the same teams — Montreal, Toronto, Boston and Minnesota — holding the top four positions, with Ottawa fifth and New York in jeopardy of finishing last for a second straight year. New York is in an 0-5-3 skid.

"No question, we are frustrated. We want to see different results," New York forward Eldridge said after a 3-2 shootout loss to Boston in a Takeover Tour stop at Buffalo, New York, on Feb. 23. "We're in this together and there's no one that's not on the same page right now, which is tough to do on a team that's in a bit of a skid."

Secondary scoring is an issue for the Sirens, with Eldridge, rookie No. 1 pick Sarah Fillier, Alex Carpenter and defenseman Ella Shelton accounting for 28 of the New York’s 47 goals.

Miller time

Toronto forward Hannah Miller leads the PWHL points race following a recent run in which she’s combined for 14 points (six goals) over an eight-game span. That includes Miller becoming the league’s third player to enjoy a four-point outing with two goals and two assists in a 4-1 win at New York on Feb. 19.

“I think a combination of everything, being in the right spot, right time,” said the 29-year-old from North Vancouver, British Columbia, who previously spent five seasons playing for China’s Vanke Rays in Russia’s women’s hockey league, and represented China at the 2022 Beijing Games.

With 10 goals and 12 assists, Miller has already surpassed her total last year (seven goals, 14 points). Her surge coincides with Toronto welcoming back 2024 PWHL MVP Natalie Spooner while losing forward Sarah Nurse to injury. Toronto went 7-0-2 before a 3-1 loss at Montreal last week.

Fleet footnotes

The Fleet have printed T-shirts in coming to call themselves the “Bad Girls” after former WNBA star Sue Bird attended Boston’s Takeover Tour stop in Seattle. Bird posted a picture on Instagram of Boston defenseman Emily Brown in the penalty box with the caption “Bad Girl.” ... Boston is 3-0 in shootout decisions with goalie Aerin Frankel stopping 12 of 13 attempts.

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AP Women’s Hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-hockey