PWHL Detroit team announced as first expansion team of the year
'It had to be Detroit': PWHL expansion team announced for Hockeytown
The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced that Detroit is getting an expansion team on Wednesday morning, with all home games to be played at Little Caesars Arena.
DETROIT (FOX 2) - The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) is coming to Detroit – and this time for more than a couple Takeover Tour games.
At a press conference with Ilitch Sports + Entertainment, city officials, and league representatives Wednesday morning, the league's ninth team was announced.
MORE: PWHL Detroit season ticket deposits open
All homes games will be played at Little Caesars Arena. It was announced that the PWHL Entry Draft will be held at the FOX Theatre on June 17.
"This market is ready for its own team, the fans told us," said Amy Scheer, the senior VP of business operations for the PWHL. "You are a city that lives and breathes hockey. You're a city that in so many ways made this moment feel inevitable. It had to be Detroit."
Fans can start placing deposits on season tickets starting today, Scheer added.
Despite not having a team for the first three years of the PWHL, fans in the city have thrown massive support behind the league, with neutral site Takeover Tour games drawing big crowds each time they came through Little Caesars Arena.
Scheer and Jayna Hefford, the PWHL VP of hockey operations, said the Takeover Tour support paved the way.
"To the fans - thank you for bringing your energy and your signs to every Detroit Takeover game," she said. "You've set attendance records, and you've shown your love for the sport and a hunger for a team."
Detroit has hosted four Takeover Tour games, more than any other city the league has visited outside its eight home markets. After the city hosted two successful games this season, Detroit Red Wings co-owner Denise Ilitch said she expected the city to get a team.
It's not really a surprise, then, that Detroit would finally get a team.
The PWHL started with six teams before two more, Vancouver and Seattle, were announced last year. Those new teams started play this season.
Scheer spoke about the impact Detroit has had on the sport, and the PWHL, itself.
"You've already played such an important role in our story, and now you get to help shape what comes next," she said. "And I think that's really pretty cool. Why also, is this important? Because pretty soon, the best women's hockey players in the world will be playing right here at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit."
What's next:
It has been reported that the league could expand to as many as four cities this year, meaning that we could see three more announcements in the coming weeks.