The first wave of the PWHL Expansion got underway on June 3^rd, and PWHL Seattle and PWHL Vancouver certainly used the exclusive signing window to their advantage. Below, I’ll be citing Points per 60 Minutes and Points per Game to quantify how both expansion clubs did on building a strong core as defense is important, but star power in the offensive zone is imperative to both qualifying for the postseason and winning once you’re there. There are obvious exceptions to this logic, where elite goaltending (and defense) can carry a team beyond their stars, as seen with Montréal’s Ann-Renée Desbiens whose 8.70 GSAA this past season (Whole League GSAA stats) elevated them to the top of the league, despite having the 2^nd lowest P/60 from their top stars (Production Model and P/60 Tracker if you want to compare at home). Additionally, strong P/60 from depth players pushed Ottawa to the postseason and eventually the finals despite them having the lowest scoring efficiency from the top of the line-up. With that context out of the way, let’s jump into the first five players on each PWHL expansion roster.

PWHL Vancouver

               Cara Gardner Morey built the foundation for long term success almost immediately for the Vancouver franchise by acquiring 3 young players and 2 prime aged ones. Signing Cliare Thompson, Sophie Jaques, Emerance Maschmeyer, Sarah Nurse, and Jennifer Gardiner already, Vancouver has already signed enough stars for the top of their lineup to be compared to every team in 2024-2025. On paper, the average P/60 of the top 4 players in Vancouver’s line-up in 2.05 which is lower than every inaugural six team in 2024-2025 (Ottawa was last at 2.11). That number is also lower than it could be, as Vancouver currently only has 2 forwards on their roster, and provided that Claire Thompson’s 1.62 P/60 was 4^th best of all defenders last season, they’re almost guaranteed to increase their top 4’s average, while also rostering at least 5 star+ caliber players in the inaugural season (tying them with Boston and Montréal and exceeding New York and Ottawa in 2024-2025).

               In goal, Maschmeyer is a prime-aged starter. It isn’t much of a debate that Maschmeyer is one of the best goalies in the world when watching her play, but her stint with the Ottawa Charge frustrated me. On paper, her GSAA was -4.9 in 2023-2024 and -1.34 in 2024-2025 placing her in the bottom half of the league both seasons, despite being a central piece of all of Ottawa’s wins when she was playing. Her 23 games played and 599 shots against in 2023-24 led the league and in 2024-2025, her average of 28 shots against per game was tied for 2^nd most with Boston’s Aerin Frankel. In the interest of marrying stats and anecdotes, Maschmeyer’s statistical struggles could be stemming from workload and health (she did miss the last 3^rd of the 2024-2025 PWHL season) and I expect Gardner Morey to address both. With the abundance of great goalies in women’s hockey, finding a suitable 1B or 2 to ease the load on Maschmeyer should be a reasonable task; however, the biggest assist has already arrived in the form of Jaques and Thompson. Elite puck moving defenders are invaluable assets to relieving pressure on goalies. Desbiens’ GSAA was 5 goals greater than 2^nd place Aerin Frankel last season while facing 5.4% fewer shots per game, and it’s reasonable to point at Erin Ambrose and Cayla Barnes’ puck moving superiority in their own zone over Boston’s blue line (Megan Keller can only play for so many minutes) as a key factor. An extension of this thought train is that no starting goalie in the PWHL saw less shots on goal per game last season than Maddie Rooney. If Gardner Morey’s plan works, we should finally see Maschmeyer’s statistics match her film.

               Overall, Vancouver has a clearly defined plan with just their first 5 signings. We can’t say for certain yet how they will perform as the expansion draft is just over the horizon, as well as free agency and the entry draft, but there’s virtually no chance they won’t be competitive with core group they’ve already formed. A fully healthy Sarah Nurse should also see an uptick in her scoring efficiency this season, which when combined with everything else going for this team, the Pacific Coliseum should be rocking all season.

PWHL Seattle

               Meghan Turner does not play. I voiced a handful of concerns about the Seattle market in my initial expansion piece based on the Kraken’s hurdles in their first 4 seasons, and Turner went out and got what the Kraken don’t have: A Transcendent Superstar. Hilary Knight brings eyes and ears wherever she goes and however she plays, and she is now the biggest name in Seattle Pro Hockey History (only nerds like me talk about Frank Foyston). Turner didn’t stop there though. Beyond Knight, Seattle also added Danielle Serdachny, Cayla Barnes, Alex Carpenter, and Corinne Schroeder. Using the same logic from above, Seattle’s top 4’s average P/60 is 1.79, which is substantially lower than any team from 2024-2025 campaign. The reason for this is Seattle’s gambling for their future. Barnes was exceptional in her rookie campaign in Montréal posting the 7^th best P/60 in the league (1.19). Yes, this was done playing on a team with Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, but it would be one hell of a debate to convince me that they’re significantly more efficient than the combination of Knight and Carpenter. Serdachny’s potential is possibly the biggest question mark for Seattle. Serdachny’s playmaking ability off the rush is obvious, as is her ability to dominate possession in the attacking zone, but in her rookie season in Ottawa, she couldn’t convert that talent consistently on the scoreboard. If Serdachny figures it out in Seattle, she could have a breakout season like that of Michela Cava in 2024-2025 (8 points to 19 points year over year).

               In goal, Seattle struck diamond with Corinne Schroeder. Through two seasons in the PWHL, Schroeder finished 1^st and 3^rd in GSAA (3.35 in 2023-2024 and 1.47 in 2024-2025 respectively) with only Ann-Reneé Desbiens and Aerin Frankel having a higher career GSAA. Frankly, it’s disappointing that the New York Sirens’ poor standings performances the last two seasons have overshadowed the greatness that has been Schroeder, and I am genuinely concerned about New York’s 2025-2026 campaign with their most valuable player (you can’t change my mind on this) taking her talents to the Emerald City. The first concern with Seattle’s roster now is that they swung big on scoring prowess, but we’ve seen that Knight is a defensive phenom up front and Serdachny was a crucial bottom-six player for Ottawa down the stretch, so there’s potential that the concern itself could be invalidated quite quickly. Even if their defense doesn’t turn the corner immediately, Schroeder has dominated the league in shots against per game with 34 in 2023-2024 (24% more than 2^nd place) and 29 in 2024-2025 (3% more than 2^nd place). No PWHL goalie is more acclimated and successful playing in the “Craig Patrick/Bob Johnson Special” (Full Press Offense for 60 minutes) than Schroeder. Additionally, at the advanced age of 25 years old, Schroeder will likely inherit the Emerald throne as Seattle’s biggest star by decade’s end from Hilary Knight whenever Captain America decides to walk away from the game.

               Overall, Seattle is currently an incomplete core built very much like the infamous Sega Dreamcast platformer Sonic Adventure 2—A lot of spectacle and fan service, but enough substance beneath the sheen to be more than just something fun to look at. I’m more curious about Turner’s approach to the expansion draft than Gardner Morey’s solely because Seattle has taken more risks with their skaters so far. The elephant in the room I’ve ignored is that Carpenter battled some injuries in 2024-2025, and because of that and the challenges of adjusting to a new coach and a superstar linemate in Sarah Fillier, she couldn’t replicate her dominance from 2023-2024. If Carpenter hits the ground running with Knight, Seattle is going to be an exhausting team to defend against for at least 20-minutes a night. If all of Turner’s gambles payoff Climate Pledge Arena is going to be the place to be in Seattle at least 15 times next year.