Many former CWHL players will not have an opportunity to play pro hockey next seasongetty images
Since the CWHL announced plans to cease operations, its displaced players "have had conversations" with the NWHLPA about "what the future might hold," according to Erica Ayala of THE HOCKEY NEWS. Union leaders from both the CWHL and NWHL are "confident a clear and growing line of communication exists." NWHLPA Dir Anya Battaglino said, “There’s unity. I don’t think that in any way, shape or form, any conversations we’ve had have been polarizing. ... We plan to have a joint call once the players get back from their respective national teams." Ayalala noted there is "no guarantee the now-former CWHL players will compete professionally next season." While the NWHL "provides an option for some players with its Canadian expansion, more than half of the women who played in the CWHL last season would still be without a place to play." CWHLPA co-Chair Liz Knox said, “I’m very realistic, honestly, about next season. I don’t see us starting something in September." She added, "I see a lot of work in my future.” Knox and Battaglino "believe the market exists for women’s hockey in North America and both are committed to finding the right partners to prove it." Meanwhile, "neither Battaglino or Knox seemed to believe it was necessary the NHL would or should be involved in the future of women’s hockey" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 4/13).
TAKE ME TO EMERALD CITY: In Seattle, Geoff Baker noted a "push to land" a women's franchise "within three to four years will begin with the launch of a 'NWHL to Seattle' campaign by longtime local hockey fixture Zoe Harris." The campaign "comes at a crucial time" after the CWHL's demise because "losing dozens of on-ice jobs wasn’t what anyone envisioned." The NWHL has "no Western presence," but with the NHL launching in Seattle in October '21, those "connected to women’s hockey locally feel it’s time for NWHL expansion here and to potential rival Vancouver" (SEATTLE TIMES, 4/14).
