LOS ANGELES — With an alphabet soup of vanished leagues littering its history, women's professional hockey is still awaiting its big moment. The Professional Women's Hockey Players Association believes that moment is imminent.
The evolution of women's pro hockey has been slowed by a lack of funding and philosophical splits that divide players whose best chance for success is in uniting. Leagues born amid great optimism have discovered the harsh realities of a game that's expensive to operate and remains a niche sport to many Americans.
Financial woes sank the Canadian Women's Hockey League in 2019. The National Women's Hockey League lost most of its stars the same year when they boycotted to protest a lack of health insurance and being paid too little to make hockey their only job. The NWHL continues as the seven-team Premier Hockey Federation, but without most of the elite American and Canadian players.
