The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) is North America’s premier women’s ice hockey competition, featuring such names as Team Canada’s Marie-Philip Poulin and Sarah Nurse, and representing cities like Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Boston, Minnesota, and New York. The league boasted impressive viewership throughout the 2023-24 season and will continue to play in the 2024-25 season, with an unannounced start date as of yet.
Despite their prestige, the newly-founded PWHL was without official branding or jerseys for their first season, which began play on Jan. 1, 2024 and concluded with a PWHL Minnesota Walter Cup championship, the first ever in league history. Instead, each team was referred to as PWHL [City] in lieu of official monikers, and sported their own colorway to distinguish themselves as their own group.
On Sept. 9 of this year, however, the PWHL unveiled the official team names, logos, and wordmarks as part of a collaborative effort between the league and New York-based creative agency Flower Shop that had been more than a year in the making. This process involved input from the players, staff, and, most importantly – the fans.
“The heart of our efforts was to capture the soul of each city and its people,” says Kanan Bhatt-Shah, PWHL Vice President of Brand and Marketing, according to the PWHL.
A list of potential team names were generated, then was eventually whittled down as legal checks were made to ensure the rights to each name could be obtained in both the U.S. and Canada while still representing the identity of each team and their fanbase most accurately.
Montreal hosts the Victoire, an homage to the city’s success in ice hockey, while the Fleet sails into Boston, a nod to Bean Town’s rich maritime history. Ottawa plays home to the Charge, which is a play on the Canadian capital’s motto: ”Advance–Ottawa–En Avant”. Meanwhile, a Frost falls over Minnesota, incorporating the state’s cold climate, Sirens sound in New York, referencing the “vibrant sights and sounds” that New York City is known for, and Toronto wields the Sceptres, owing to the “regal” history of Toronto, and its moniker as “Queen City.”
The National Hockey League is going through its own branding process, too. Utah Hockey Club, an expansion team replacing the former Arizona Coyotes, is playing in the 2024-25 season with generic branding consisting of basic colors and a simple roundel featuring the team’s name. This has been a point of contention among NHL fans, citing a lack of inspiration and noting the disappointing timeline for more official branding like jerseys, a logo and a name.
Though the PWHL has no plans to expand until at least the 2025-26 season, the market for a legitimate platform for professional women’s hockey is tried and true. Last season, the league played games in venues in Detroit, Pittsburgh and St. Paul to the cheers of several thousand in attendance.
“When you have a good sports brand, you receive lots of sponsorship offers, sell more merchandise, attract new fans, and get people emotionally invested,” writes Dominic Tarn on a ReVerbico.com blog post.
It’s true, the introduction of a brand that represents the city, players and fanbase and speaks to the cultural niche of the community that it represents is important for bolstering local spirit. The changes made this offseason are leaps and bounds towards accomplishing this tremendous undertaking, though time will tell how the Inaugural Six fare.
