PWHL adds 9th team in Detroit ahead of next season

The PWHL will add a ninth team in Detroit that will begin play next season, the league announced on Wednesday.

It’s the third expansion team the league has added since it began play in 2024, as the PWHL targets growth in the U.S. and a coveted major American broadcast rights deal.

Detroit has hosted four PWHL games over three seasons, drawing a high of 15,938 at a game between the Montréal Victoire and New York Sirens in March.

Jayna Hefford, the league’s executive vice president of hockey operations, pointed to the long history of hockey in the state of Michigan, which has produced PWHL stars like Megan Keller and Abby Roque, as one reason the league selected Detroit.

“We have now played four games here,” Hefford said in an interview with CBC Sports. “The excitement, the energy, the passion — fans have continued to show up. In the first year, there were signs that said they want a team. In the second and third year, there were signs that said they deserved a team. I think they’re absolutely right.”

The bid to expand to Detroit was led by Ilitch Sports + Entertainment, the company that owns the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings and MLB’s Detroit Tigers, and operates Little Caesars Arena. Detroit will play its home games at Little Caesars Arena and will practice at BELFOR Training Center in the same complex.

Even though the Ilitch family led the bid, the Detroit team will be owned by The Walter Group, which owns and operates all nine PWHL teams under a single-entity structure.

“Bringing a PWHL team to Little Caesars Arena is an exciting next step for our city and for the continued momentum of women’s hockey,” Chris Ilitch, president and CEO of the Ilitch Companies, said in a statement. “This moment also reflects our broader vision