Women's pro hockey is back, but still facing an uncertain future

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While most hockey fans are focused on the start of the new NHL season, the women's pro game is returning too. On Saturday and Sunday, Montreal will host the fourth-season opener of the Professional Women's Hockey Players' Association's barnstorming Dream Gap Tour. In three weeks, the Premier Hockey Federation begins its eighth season. The optimism inherent in the start of any sports season is tempered here by the chronic uncertainty about the future of women's pro hockey. Here's a look at where things stand with the two main factions:PWHPA Formed from the ruins of the Canadian Women's Hockey League after it folded in 2019, the PWHPA's oft-stated objective remains the formation of a "sustainable" North American women's pro hockey league — preferably one funded by the NHL (much like the NBA subsidizes the WNBA). But, despite having nearly every player from the dominant Canadian and U.S. national teams on its roster (in other words, nearly all of the world's best players), the PWHPA has been unable to achieve that goal. Back in the spring, the NHL brokered talks between the PWHPA and PHF in hopes that they might collaborate on a unified league. But the PWHPA walked away. Following that, reports suggested a PWHPA-run pro league could launch this January, but that possibility has since been ruled out. "I think our vision with the PWHPA has remained the same since we were founded, and that is to build a league that is professional in all aspects, not just in salary but in the way that players are supported — the facilities, healthcare, all avenues of that," Canadian star Brianne