Professional Women's Hockey Players Association Buys PHF to Create Single League

The Professional Women's Hockey Players Association and Premier Hockey Federation are merging to form a single league.

The PWHPA issued a statement about the merger on Friday:

ESPN's Greg Wyshynski reported on Thursday that Los Angeles Dodgers chairman and controlling owner Mark Walter purchased "certain assets" of the Premier Hockey Federation to clear the way for a single professional women's hockey league in North America.

The league is expected to begin play in January 2024.

Four-time Olympic gold medalist Jayna Hefford, who serves as chairperson of the PWHPA, tweeted about the merger:

Per Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star, existing PHF contracts may need to be renegotiated with "concern" some players might lose their jobs before the deal can be finalized.

According to the Canadian Press, the players' goal is to build a "sustainable league that pays a living wage and offers the competitive supports the male pros get."

The PWHPA was founded in 2019 in the wake of the Canadian Women's Hockey League folding due to financial issues. The league wrapped up its fourth season in March, with Team Harvey's defeating Team Scotiabank in the final.

The four-team league played a 20-game regular-season schedule. Acrisure Arena in Riverside County, California, hosted the championship game on March 12.

The Premier Hockey Federation, previously known as the National Women's Hockey League, launched in 2015. The league features seven teams ranging from Minnesota, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut to Quebec and Ontario.

The Toronto Six defeated the Minnesota Whitecaps in the Isobel Cup final on March 26 to win the first title in franchise history.

More than 200 of the top players from the former NWHL formed the PWHPA as an alternative league after expressing their unhappiness with their pay and playing conditions they had to work under.

Previous talks between the rival leagues about a potential merger being facilitated by the NHL broke down in April 2022.