I know that no fan wants to experience losing their favorite player to an expansion draft in the third year of a league. And there aren’t many good arguments against that. Not to mention the players who have started to establish themselves in a market, develop chemistry with their teammates, and become comfortable with staff have to pack their bags and start over on a new team. But, hey, this is professional hockey. Shit happens.
I know I haven’t started off with a good case. But … hear me out.
The PWHL had to expand at some point. Before Seattle and Vancouver it was looking like a northeast hockey league (plus Minnesota). And it’s safe to say we’ve learned that those aren’t sustainable. The PWHL wants to do this thing differently. Plus, broadcast deals don’t happen with regional leagues.
Anyway, back to the draft. The fact of an expansion is that players are going to have to get stolen to make teams. Could they have been a little more conservative on who got protected? Maybe. Seattle and Vancouver are looking like they’ll be pretty good teams, but there is simply so much talent in this league right now.
I want to address the argument that Seattle and Vancouver are going to take over in the league after the expansion. Montreal and Toronto were arguably the best teams on paper this past year, and haven’t won. These women are talented and know how to compete. No expansion team will come in and simply dominate right off the bat. Plus, people, there’s a salary cap for a reason.
This is a good move for the league if they want to grow to be anything. Plus, as a fan, and for women’s hockey, it’s exciting as hell. So that’s what I have to say about the expansion draft if anybody actually reads this. First post woohoo!
Women’s Hockey Blog 