Purple Reign

With the PWHL Entry Draft 2026 tomorrow in Detroit the entire Purple Trio shares their disgust at the order for the draft which has clearly favoured the four new teams despite the fact they've already had a chance at collecting good stockWhat's worse is both the Sirens and Sceptres have been royally screwed of their positions in the draft order as Gold Plan teams this could massice impact...

While I would love politics to say out of the things I love the Montreal Victoire were given the opportunity to be honored by the Prime Minister of Canada who makes his second appearance on a bonus episode this seasonThis shows at least someone is recognising how much women's hockey is growing unlike a certain powerful democracy on the other side of the border in the White House

We've reached the halfway point of the Expansion Process as we recap Phase 3 which saw the current existing teams make a second set of protectionsBut the lack of clarity intensified as not all of the expansion teams signed the three players that they were required to do which is going to make a very eventful next phase

Following PWHL Hamilton poaching Kris Sparre the Boston Fleet once again needed to find a new coach and I have to say with regards to their choice they haven't done that bad of a job as it feels like a hiring that would happened anyways just now we thought with BostonAnd given what Kris Sparre was able to do for the Fleet this past season I just feel his successor is going to have a lot of pre...

The The thing that really annoyed me the most about this year's Walter Cup Playoffs was the way the scheduling was handled particulary when it came to our Frost being forced to host back to back games thanks to NHL incompetenceLet's make one thing clear even if we had won our series over Montreal I would still feel exactly the way I feel and it would not have changed how we made this episo...

It's become clear now that Troy Ryan moving to San Jose burst a dam wide open as we have never seen so much overhaul in the PWHL in the coaching department compared to what we see in the NHLThis one really surprised me as I don't think the coach was the problem for the Goldeneyes but clearly the franchise thought differently considering they hold the first overall pick heading into Detroit

Ever since it was announced the PWHL was expanding to San Jose I have been on an emotional rollercoaster given my connection to the city thanks to the San Jose SharksIn this episode I talk about my connections to San Jose and how much I am looking forward to seeing a brand new golden age begin in the Bay Area

With all the excitment of PWHL San Jose arriving to the Bay Area the San Jose Sharks have wasted no time in trying to form a partnership like no other as over the next month they are holding summer camps for young girlsCamps are happening not just in San Jose itself but also my baseball town of Oakland alongside Fresno

With yet another American team on the brink of winning the Stanley Cup in the NHL I talk about how Canada's drought is more impactful now that not only in the PWHL we had a canadian team win but also an all Canadian matchup which was the first ever in my lifetime

It's fair to say Phase 2 took its toll on me as there were plenty of shocks galore and even some delights as the four expansion teams made their first moves signing their foundational playersI record this episode while dealing with headache as a result of the drama that Hillary Knight has inflicted as we still don't have the full story yet so that's why we only talk about four of PWHL...

It's that time of year again as the nominees for the PWHL 2026 Awards are now out as across the board we have a mix of big contenders and some surprising candidatesEven PWHL Hamilton has a nomination despite their team not even having stepped foot on the ice yet as Kris Sparre's nomination got announced before he jumped ships

It's the 2026 playoff show on the Purple Reign podcast as we have a brand new Walter Cup champion the Montreal Victoire a first for the city and for Canada In Part 1 we recap the first semifinal which saw the Ottawa Charge pull off the mother of upsets against the Boston Fleet In Part 2 we recap how the second semifinal where the Victoire chose their poison well and ended our Mineesota Frost&#...

After months of he said, she said we finally now know that both Troy Ryan and Gina Kingsbury are out of their respective roles with Canada's national teamI'm not surprised by this as Canada have over the past two years have been going backwards and for the sake of healthy competition I think its time for a fresh start for this hockey mad nation

Another expansion team decides to go in house when it comes to their coaching staff as this time PWHL Detroit bags one of the assistant coaches from the New York SirensAnd to make the news even sweeter Hosh is a hometown boy so he knows the area and the state very well and it will be interesting to see how he uses his experiences on the US national team

PWHL Hamilton have found their first ever coach and shocked the hockey world by hiring the guy who helped turnaround the Boston Fleet literally this seasonNow there are lots of reasons that makes sense but given what Kris Sparre was able to do in Boston that is what makes it all the more shocking and might now catapult PWHL Hamilton into contention straight away

At Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Bell Centre the Montreal Canadiens decided on having a tribute to celebrate the Montreal Victoire's championshipWhile it sounded like a good idea but it happened during a tv timeout making it impossible for fans of the PWHL across the globe from seeing it in what ended up being another faux pas caused by the NHL

Phase 1 of the 2026 Expansion Process is complete as the current right teams made their protection lists as a lot of shocks were presented following them being made publicBut the big thing is once again the majority of the Purple Trio's selections were indeed protected although some teams really threw us off guard

With Las Vegas & San Jose both landing expansion teams despite not being tested on the Takeover Tour I lead the debate on how giving markets that haven't bee on the tour a team as it helps wider the net when we're looking for future marketsAt the end of the day the PWHL never said the Takeover Tour was designed for expansion as it was designed to help grow our league into markets witho...

With the league now expanded to twelve teams and even split in terms of teams on the East Coast & the West Coast the question now is do we go to a conference system or set up divisionsI personally would prefer to go down the conference route as the entire Purple Trio discuss the cons and the merits to adopting a conference system for our league

Out of all of the coaching hirings made last year Steve O'Rourke was the one the entire Purple Trio were least confident about so none of us are surprised that he has been let go in what feels like a similar situation we saw from New York in the inaugural seasonThe Torrent never seemed to be able to get things clicking and with the expansion process about to begin this could be a chance for a...

Today marks the start of the process to build the rosters for Detroit, Las Vegas, Hamilton and San Jose which will see each expansion team end up with 10 players after a six phase processThis is going to be a stressful few weeks as the current eight markets are most likely going to lose at least one star player from their rosterMy advice to you all is to please look after your mental health and le...

Now if any other team went down this road I would be very intrigued but not if its Minnesota and vertianly not San Jose who have made their first big mistake and they weren't even a week old yetHe was never liked by the Scceptres fans and didn't do Team Canada any favours either and in reality really should have just sticked to coaching and found someone more qualified for the position of...

PWHL Hamilton was next to reveal their selection for general manager and the moment I started reading the article I knew I recognised the name given the work she's done over the last few years with the DevilsThis is a really good choice as Hamilton has someone who is well known for what they've done both on and off the ice and could help jump start this new market to high places

The PWHL Starting Six is where each month the league will recognise three forwards, two defenders and one goaltenderIn this fifth Starting Six recap the Purple Trio celebrate the Starting Six for the month of April 2026

With San Jose now officially joining the league this puts me into a situation similar to what I've done with the Sharks & Wild in the National Hockey League as I officially adopt PWHL San Jose as a second teamMy loyalty remains with the Minnesota Frost but that doesn't stop me from also wanting an affiliation with a market that I've been a part of for a very long time