2020–21 PWHPA season

The 2020–21 PWHPA season is the second season of the ongoing strike by the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association.

2020–21 PWHPA season
LeagueProfessional Women's Hockey Players Association
SportIce hockey
Duration
  • Scheduled for:
  • September 2020 - TBD 2021
Dream Gap Tour
Secret Cup

Formed after the collapse of the CWHL in 2019, the organisation consists of over 150 women's ice hockey players sitting out current leagues in North America. For the 2020–21 season, the PWHPA is organised into five different hubs, each of which fields a roster that will compete in exhibition games across North America and in the Dream Gap Tour tournament against each other.[1]

Business

On September 2, 2020, the PWHPA released a statement condemning police brutality and racial injustice.[2] The same day, Liz Knox resigned from the PWHPA board in order to cede her seat to Sarah Nurse, one of the few Black players in the organization.[3]

In August 2020, the PWHPA partnered with Elites Optimization Services to help players find individual sponsorships.[4] On October 22, 2020, the organization announced it had secured a $1 million sponsorship deal from deodorant brand Secret, the largest corporate commitment in North American women's hockey history at the time.[5][6] The sponsorship deal includes prize money for the Dream Gap Tour, planned to start in early 2021 with a minimum of six showcases. The organization also added partnerships with Noble Estates Wines & Spirits,[7] Canadian Tire,[8] and Sportlogiq.[9]

The regional hubs also made sponsorship agreements for the season. The Toronto hub made a sponsorship deal with insurance company Sonnet and was branded as Team Sonnet with the hub's jerseys featuring turquoise and white.[10] The Calgary hub was branded Team Scotiabank, with red and white jerseys, in a partnership with Scotiabank that includes a mentorship program for young female players.[11]

Teams

Of the five regional hubs, three are in Canada: in Montréal, Toronto, and Calgary; and two are in the United States: New Hampshire and Minnesota. PWHPA players competed in try-outs for 25 spots on the official rosters for each hub. In late October, the PWHPA announced the full rosters for each hub as well as coaching staff.[12] Players who did not make the rosters continue to be members of the PWHPA as independents.

Team City Country Colours
Team Scotiabank Calgary    
TBD Minnesota TBD
TBD Montréal  TBD
TBD New Hampshire TBD
Team Sonnet Toronto    

Exhibition games

The first exhibition games of the season took place in late September, as PWHPA teams faced off against teams from the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL), an under-21 junior ice hockey organization.[13] One week after tryouts, the New Hampshire team faced the Islanders Hockey Club's National Collegiate Development Conference (NCDC) team and the Boston Junior Bruins' NCDC team, losing to both 5–0 and 5–1, respectively.[14] The Minnesota PWHPA team faced the USPHL's Premier Division team, the Minnesota Mullets, on September 19 and 20, winning both games by scores of 8–1 and 9–3.[14]

A PWHPA All-Star team of 24 players from the Minnesota and New Hampshire hubs participated in six games at the USPHL's Hub City Tampa from January 7 to 15, 2021.[15][16] The USPHL teams in Hub City Tampa were from the organization's top-level NCDC and second-level Premier Division. The PWHPA team earned a 2–3–1 record[17][18] with wins over the Tampa Bay Juniors' Premier team[19] and the Boston Junior Bruins' NCDC team.[20][21]

Dream Gap Tour

The Dream Gap Tour, named after the gap in professional women's hockey opportunities that girls can of and consisting of matches between the five regional hubs, is due to start in 2021. The first showcase game is announced to take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City on February 28, 2021, in partnership with the New York Rangers.[22]

See also

References
  1. Spencer, Donna (May 13, 2020). "Women's pro hockey players to get more ice time under 5-city regional plan". CBC Sports. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  2. Tokarski, Anne (September 2, 2020). "PWHPA publishes statement on racial injustice". The Ice Garden. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  3. Kaplan, Emily (September 2, 2020). "PWHPA adds Nurse to board to fix 'blind spot'". ESPN. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  4. Jay, Michelle (August 26, 2020). "PWHPA announces partnership with EOS, Parity". The Ice Garden. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  5. Spencer, Donna (October 22, 2020). "PWHPA lands $1-million sponsorship as it aims to launch pro women's hockey league". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  6. Spencer, Donna (October 22, 2020). "Milestone sponsorship keeps pro women's hockey association's goals in sight". CBC Sports. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  7. "Introducing the Official Prosecco of the PWHPA - Bottega Gold". PWHPA (Press release). November 11, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  8. "PWHPA announces new partnership with Canadian Tire". Women's Hockey Life. November 21, 2020. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
  9. "PWHPA Announces Partnership with Sportlogiq". Women's Hockey Life. December 17, 2020.
  10. "Toronto women's pro hockey gains corporate sponsor". CBC.ca. November 25, 2020.
  11. "SCOTIABANK ANNOUNCES PWHPA SPONSORSHIP". PWHPA. December 10, 2020.
  12. Jay, Michelle (October 22, 2020). "PWHPA releases 2020-21 regional rosters". The Ice Garden. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  13. Thomas, Alex (June 26, 2020). "PWHPA, NCDC To Play Series Of Exhibition Games In 2020-21". United States Premier Hockey League. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  14. Burgess, Melissa (September 22, 2020). "PWHPA Opens Exhibition Schedule". The Victory Press. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  15. "24 PWHPA players to play in USPHL's "Hub City Tampa"". The Ice garden. December 21, 2020.
  16. "PWHPA schedule for Tampa USPHL games released". The Ice Garden. January 4, 2021.
  17. "USPHL 2020–21 NCDC schedule". USPHL. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  18. @WIH_Tribune (January 15, 2021). "FINAL: Alex Rivet snipes home the OT winner 2:53 into the extra frame and the Thunder take it 3-2. The PWHPA ends the #HubCityTampa trip 2-3-1. Thanks to everyone who has followed along the last two weeks!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  19. @USPHL (January 7, 2021). "#HubCityTampa: Hear from Haley Scamurra from the @PWHPA All-Stars just after their 5-3 win over the @TampaJuniorsGM, after the PWHPA squad was down 2-0 early on" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  20. @USPHL (January 12, 2021). "#HubCityTampa: The @juniorbruins and @PWHPA All-Stars get underway at 9:10 a.m. this morning live and FREE on @MyHockeyTV!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  21. @WIH_Tribune (January 12, 2021). "No need to Pannek when Kelly is around! Kelly Pannek got the offense started for the @PWHPA 'All-Stars' in #HubCityTampa this morning, scoring her first goal of the trip at 7:34 of the second period to even the game at 1-1! The PWHPA would go on to win it 2-1 over the Junior B's" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  22. "NEW YORK RANGERS PARTNER WITH PWHPA AND BAUER HOCKEY TO ADVANCE WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY". PWHPA. February 3, 2021.
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