PWHL 2025-26: What You Need to Know

The 2025-26 PWHL regular season kicks off on Friday, November 21. For the first time in league history, 120 games will be played – each of the eight teams playing in 30 regular season matchups.

All eight teams will be participating on opening night. The league’s two newest teams, PWHL Seattle and PWHL Vancouver, will faceoff at 10pm Eastern Time at Pacific Coliseum in the B.C. city.

The season will pause for an Olympic break from January 29 to February 25. The 2026 Winter Olympics will be held in Milano Cortina, Italy from February 5-19.

“Season Three will be truly special with the highly anticipated debut of our first expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver and the growth of the PWHL community to the West Coast,” said Jayna Hefford, PWHL Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations in a media release. “We can’t wait for puck drop to see the impact our new and returning players will make, and to deliver a competitive season with even more games for fans to enjoy.”

With the rosters of the original six teams having been depleted because of expansion, more than few rivalries have already been created even before the first puck drop Here are a few intriguing matchups to watch for, this season.

New York at Montreal: Tuesday, November 25

The biggest player-for-player swap this summer occurred on the draft floor, when Abby Roque and Kristin O’Neill switched teams, the latter player heading to the Sirens. They faceoff against each other in Montreal’s home opener at Place Bell in late November

Seattle at New York: Sunday, December 28

Three core players from last year’s Sirens’ roster all signed with Seattle: forwards Alex Carpenter and Jessie Eldridge, and goaltender Corrine Schroeder. The anticipated rematch comes just after Christmas, in a New York-area venue still to be determined.

Seattle at Boston: Wednesday, January 7

Last year’s co-leading scorer Hilary Knight was the face of the Boston franchise for two seasons. She returns to Beantown as a member of PWHL Seattle as do former Fleet players Hannah Bilka, Lexie Adzija and Emily Brown.

Vancouver at Toronto: Saturday, January 17

Sarah Nurse signed as a free agent with the newest Canadian expansion team after being one of the most recognizable players on Toronto’s roster for two seasons. Also coming over from the Sceptres are B.C. native Hannah Miller and 2024 Patty Kazmaier Award winner Izzy Daniel.

Vancouver at Minnesota: Wednesday, January 28

A pair of projected Team Canada Olympians, Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques, were both nominated for Defender of the Year in 2024-25. Both are now on Vancouver’s blue line. They’ll visit Grand Casino Arena (formerly known as Xcel Energy Center) on the final day before the Olympic break.

Seattle at Montreal: Thursday, March 19

Victoire fans will have to wait until after the Olympics to see their former top defensive tandem return as members of the opposition. Cayla Barnes and Anna Wilgren both headed west in the off-season, as did forward Mikyla Grant-Mentis.