Report: NHL may be 'working on a women's league'
Since the Canadian Women’s Hockey League ceased operations back in March, Canada has been without professional women’s hockey. But according to recent reports, the NHL might be in talks to create a league of their own with franchises in the country.
During the second intermission of Saturday night’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens, Elliotte Friedman led the Saturday Headlines segment with a breaking report that the NHL could possibly create and support a fully-fledged women’s league.
If you missed the HNIC/@FriedgeHNIC hit re women's hockey:
"There is word that the NHL is working on a women's league IF THE TIME EVER BECOMES NECESSARY. 6 teams maybe 2 in Canada...sounds like there is a plan being worked on and put in place IN CASE the NHL needs to step in."— Hailey Salvian (@hailey_salvian) October 27, 2019
As of right now, the National Women’s Hockey League is the only existing professional league in North America and they have recently lost some support.
Before the 2019-20 season began, Pegula Sports and Entertainment severed ties to the Buffalo Beauts franchise and the New Jersey Devils ended their partnership with the New York Riveters.
Not to mention that many of the best players in the world — who were playing in the CWHL — refused to go to the last remaining league in a dispute over fair salaries and health insurance. More than 200 players released a joint statement in the summer, stating their intent to not participate in the NWHL.
Just recently, the NBA-supported WNBA saw a spike in TV coverage and viewership, averaging about 413,000 viewers per game. Most of the increase was the result of the WNBA agreeing to a multi-year partnership with the CBS Sports Network.
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