PWHL’s arrival a ‘major moment’ for Hamilton

The as-yet-unnamed team will be the 11th franchise in the fast-growing women’s hockey league and will play its home games at TD Coliseum. 

Girls and young women proudly wearing their hockey jerseys witnessed history in the making, as the city celebrated the official announcement of the new Hamilton franchise of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) at TD Coliseum on Thursday.

The yet-to-be-named hockey team will begin playing in the 2026-2027 season, becoming the 11^th franchise in the fast-growing league that hit the ice in January 2024. The pro women's hockey league announced its new Hamilton team Wednesday, alongside an expansion to Las Vegas. Just over a week ago, the league also revealed a new team is coming to Detroit. That adds up to six teams in the U.S. and five in Canada for the league’s fourth season.

The team will play its home games at TD Coliseum downtown and will train and practise out of the Morgan Firestone Arena in Ancaster.

“This is a major moment, not only for sports in Hamilton, but for our downtown, our economy and our entire community,” said Mayor Andrea Horwath. “The PWHL recognized Hamilton because of our deep hockey roots, our passion and our passionate fan base and the incredible strength of girls hockey participation across our region.”

After the event, Horwath told HAMILTON CITY Magazine that she feels great pride in being the city’s first female mayor who is now welcoming its first professional women’s sports team. The players will inspire more girls and women to play the game, aspire for greatness, and take leadership roles in sports, she said.

“As somebody said on the stage, you have to have women in these roles, in these positions. You have to have opportunity for women and girls and women need to see themselves in those places for it to be real and for them to be able to set those kinds of goals. That's been my journey, and now I know that these girls that are going to be playing in this league and on teams around our city are going to see that possibility for themselves as well. For me, it's a very, very important moment.”

Horwath said even though Hamilton now has a modern, world-class venue, she initially didn’t allow herself to dream too much about a PWHL team because she feared the proximity of the Toronto team would stand in the way (as it has in drawing an NHL team.)

While Hamilton was among cities being considered for a team due to the size of the local market and the rich concentration of local girls’ and women’s hockey leagues, it was the 16,000 cheering fans at a PWHL game between the Seattle Torrent and the Toronto Sceptres at TD Coliseum in January that really sealed the deal.

At the announcement event, league officials noted that more than 70 per cent of ticket buyers to that game were first-time PWHL ticket buyers showing a strong local demand for the game. As well, more than 15 per cent of PWHL players hail from the Greater Golden Horseshoe area.

“From grassroots hockey to the highest levels of the game, Hamilton and the greater Golden Horseshoe have helped shape the future of women’s hockey for decades,” said Jayna Hefford, a four-time Olympic gold medallist with Team Canada who is now executive vice president of hockey operations for the PWHL.

“And it's not just about talent. It's about character. Hamilton is a community that works hard, a community that has fought for what it has earned, a community built on resilience, pride and heart, in many ways, that journey mirrors the way we have built the PWHL. This league was built through belief, persistence and a commitment to creating something that generations of women's hockey players deserved. That's why this moment feels so right.”

Then Hefford, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, directly addressed the young players in the room.

“You no longer have to look far away to see what's possible. The best women's hockey players in the world are now coming here. They're coming they're coming here to Hamilton. They're coming to your community, to live in your neighbourhoods, to skate in your rinks. This team will belong to the people of Hamilton and the entire Golden Horseshoe. We cannot wait to build this next chapter together. Thank you for believing in women's hockey. Thank you for showing up and thank you for welcoming the PWHL to Hamilton.”

Neil Lumsden, Ontario’s minister of sport and an MPP for East Hamilton-Stoney Creek, said the arrival of professional women’s hockey to Hamilton is a source of excitement, and also some sadness.

Lumsden, who was a three-time Grey Cup champion as a CFL player and GM of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats when the team last won the championship in 1999, watched his son Jesse go on to a CFL career. His daughter didn’t get the chance to be a professional athlete, even though she was talented, too, he said.

Four young women from local hockey leagues – Brianne Graves of the Ancaster Avalanche, Emma MacLeod of the Hamilton Hawks, Ivy Johnston with the Stoney Creek Sabres and Elyse Tidridge of the Flamborough Falcons – shared the life lessons and skills they’ve learned through sports, and their excitement at seeing professional women’s hockey in their city and the impact it will have on future generations.

MacLeod, who has been playing with the Hawks since she was six and now plays on the U18 AA team, says the success of the PWHL makes her dream about going pro.

“It is incredibly moving to see a league where women are finally compensated as the professionals they are. It proves to all of us, whether we're on the ice or watching from the stands, that our future in this sport is bright and full of opportunity. As I move into my final season, it's emotional realizing how much it has meant to me,” said MacLeod.

“More than anything, I want every young girl in Hamilton to know that she belongs by dreaming big and working hard, they can reach any level they imagine and lead the next era of women's hockey.”

The league is on a strong trajectory. Its latest season saw record-breaking attendance, with more than 1.1 million total fans attending 120 regular-season games, for an average of 9,304 per game. That was a 28 per cent increase in average attendance over the 2024-25 season and 71 per cent over the league’s first year.

Tessa Bonhomme, a former Team Canada hockey player who now co-hosts the Jocks in Jills podcast, said the PWHL’s expansion “represents the continued momentum of women's hockey. It's been awesome to see. It represents new opportunity for athletes and for young fans and for the next generation growing up in this community, and for might I say, a pretty wicked awesome rivalry with that, that team up the road.”

Amy Latimer, chief business officer of Oak View Group, which owns and operates TD Coliseum after a $300-million investment in its renovation, says the facility is focused on offering a great experience for players and fans alike. She also urged the young women in attendance to think about opportunities in sports beyond the ice.

“The PWHL’s expansion into Hamilton and TD Coliseum marks an exciting milestone for both women’s hockey and the local community,” said Nick DeLuco, senior vice president and general manager of TD Coliseum.

“The team’s presence will do more than elevate the game on the ice, it will unite fans and inspire the next generation of hockey players across the region. We’re grateful to the City of Hamilton for its partnership in helping create a dedicated, high-performance training facility that will support the team’s long-term success.”

Deposits for PWHL season tickets are now being taken and Hamilton merchandise is already on sale, though a name for the team is still being determined.

Hamilton’s official team colours are gold, maroon, and cream. “Gold is a hat tip to the uniforms worn by the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the former NHL Hamilton Tigers, while maroon pays homage to Steeltown by representing the color of aged steel,” reads a league press release.

The PWHL club will share rink time with the recently announced AHL affiliate of the New York Islanders that will move to Hamilton from Bridgeport, Connecticut. That team (a naming announcement will be made next week) will train and practise out of Harry Howell Arena in Flamborough.

The PWHL expects to draw fans from Waterloo Region, St. Catharines-Niagara, London, and Buffalo. And Hefford told reporters that she doesn’t think a Hamilton PWHL team will draw fans away from the future AHL franchise.

“I think people in Hamilton love hockey. I think there's a lot of fans that are going to be ticket members of both, and that's the way we love it. We're going to engage a community, and I imagine in some ways, work alongside that team and lots of hockey fans in this area.”

Hefford said immediate priorities include hiring a general manager and coaching staff, setting up a front office, and participating in drafts and player redistributions. The league now has experience in bringing expansion teams on board with Vancouver and Seattle last year.

While next season’s schedule isn’t finished, it’s expected the team will have 15 or 16 home games in the regular season. Having two hockey teams in the arena just boosts efficiency of ice changeovers, Latimer told reporters. Juggling AHL, PWHL and Toronto Rock games along with a slate of concerts is just part of operating a multi-use venue, said DeLuco.

The PWHL is wholly owned by the Mark Walter Group. Walter is chief executive officer of Guggenheim Partners, a privately held global financial services firm with more than $345 billion in assets under management. He is also the CEO and co-chairman of TWG Global, an American multinational holding company.

Walter is best known for his investments in professional sports, including his roles as owner and chairman of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA.

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