3 seasons in, PWHL set to enjoy international coming-out party during Milan Cortina Games

The Professional Women's Hockey League was but a pipe dream in February 2022 when Kendall Coyne Schofield emphatically declared the urgency needed to address a fractured sport with unrealized potential.

''We need to push for visibility,'' Coyne Schofield said then, choking back tears after the United States' 3-2 gold-medal loss to Canada at the Beijing Winter Games. ''We need to continue to fight for women's hockey because (the status quo) is not good enough. It can't end after the Olympic Games.''

Four years later, the women's pro hockey landscape has undergone a seismic shift following the PWHL's launch in 2023. The league's presence and expanding success validates Coyne Schofield's vision as the PWHL prepares for its international coming-out party at the Milan Cortina Games.

''I look at the growth of the women's game, even from my first Olympics in 2014, and it's been exponential,'' said the 33-year-old captain of the two-time Walter Cup champion Minnesota Frost.

''To be a small part of that growth and just to live through that growth has been one of the greatest things I've been able to be a part of,'' she added, in having played a key behind-the-scenes role in the league's formation. ''And I'm excited to see what happens after these Games.''

The PWHL is banking on it. The eight-team league, financially backed by Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter, is placing a major emphasis on marketing the PWHL through advertising spots during the two-week women's tournament opening on Thursday.

The PWHL is well represented with 61 players among the 10 competing nations' rosters, and most notably filling out a majority of the U.S. and Canadian teams.

The objective is twofold: Introducing PWHL fans to the elite level of Olympic play and luring casual viewers tuning in once every four years to the PWHL.

''Previous years, everybody falls in love with the Olympics. They hear stories about players, we have huge viewership numbers, and then it's sort of like ‘What now?''' Hockey Hall of Famer and PWHL executive vice president Jayna Hefford said. ''It's a big opportunity to educate, direct back and make sure they know where they can find the players.''

Though much is being made of NHL players competing at the Olympics for the first time since 2014, these Games mark the debut of true professional women's hockey players.

Their sport has gone through many iterations of so-called pro leagues, many in name only. Canadian Women's Hockey League players weren't paid a salary. A majority of the game's elite eventually balked at competing in the National Women's Hockey League, which later became the Premier Hockey Federation before being bought out to pave way for the PWHL.

Three seasons of growth

Attendance is up. After soaring past the 1 million mark in just under two seasons in March, the PWHL has already surpassed 500,000 fans alone nearing the halfway point of its third season.

Challenges remain. Though every game is available on TV in each U.S. team's market, and across America and much of the globe via YouTube, the PWHL lacks a national broadcaster in the U.S.

International growth

The PWHL also lags in international talent in its attempt to market itself as the world's top league. Only 25 of the league's 200-plus players this season come from outside North America. They include New York Sirens forward Krystyna Kaltounkova, who is from the Czech Republic and in June became the first European player to be chosen No. 1 in the draft.

Hefford is confident expansion, coupled with an Olympic tournament featuring PWHL stars, will be a vehicle to attract more international players. League executive Stan Kasten previously said the PWHL is eying playing exhibition games in Europe and one day establishing teams there.

Boston Fleet forward and veteran Swiss national team player Alina Muller said she believes the PWHL's growth and stability will gradually lure more international players. Europeans who came to North America to play collegiately before returning home now they have a league to further their careers.

''Now being able to watch our games and think, ‘Yeah, I want to end up playing professionally,' will change the attitude toward the sport completely,'' said Muller, who played college hockey at Northeastern. ''Hopefully in Europe people see that it's worth the investment, and it's not just a side gig or charity."

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AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno contributed.

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