After over a year of waiting, the Professional Women’s Hockey League officially has the names and logos for its six teams. Each team’s color schemes stayed the same, but no jerseys just yet, it was stated they’ll be out later this year.
According to Amy Scheer, the PWHL Senior Vice President of Business Operations, the jerseys will be unveiled at the end of October/early November, as they are still in production, and the league wanted to have them ready to go completely before unveiling them. Also, when the jerseys are launched, they will be immediately available for fans to purchase; however, only replicas will be available this coming season, with authentics, hopefully, in season three.
Following the announcement, the PWHL held a press conference to answer questions regarding the process, and had the captain of each team on to also answer questions. In this article, we’ll examine each name and share thoughts from the league and the captains. We’ll start with how the process took place and then move on to the individual teams.
PWHL Name Process
Following the first year of going by each city name, fans looked forward to having names to represent their respective teams. It wasn’t an easy process which is why it took quite a bit of time to do but they didn’t take the responsibility lightly.
“We are very fortunate to have passionate fans, players, staff, and also very lucky to have started our inaugural season where we were able to really start to see some of these personalities and identities start to take shape and mind those as well,” Kanan Bhatt-Shah, the PWHL’s Vice President of Brand and Marketing stated in their press conference following the name announcement.
Bhatt-Shah continued by explaining the criteria for the names and how it worked into their choices, “So four criteria; the first really being does the name inspire pride of place? So, does it capture the soul of the city, the community, and the people? The second being fan connection, so will the name resonate with fans, does it feel strong, confident, powerful? Those were all really important attributes that we wanted to make sure the name had and then identity possibilities, so how do we go beyond just a name and make it really mean something? I think for us it’s the fans, and the players, and the communities that are going to imbue meaning in these names, and we wanted to make sure they had enough rich territory from which to work off of…”
She finished up by saying, “And then the last piece was just legal, I don’t mean to minimize it but a name that would be ownable to us, so not just distinctive and timeless, but also ownable and ensuring that it was something that wasn’t already trademarked. So those were sort of the criteria, and then from there, we had a lot of names that we considered, and we’re thrilled to have the names that we unveiled today.”
Listening to all of the input during the press conference, it was clear the league went through a lot of work to come up with names they felt accurately represented each team and their fan base rather than just selecting a name to have a name, and that brings us to the individual team names that were addressed both by the league and the captains of each team.
Minnesota Frost
Following the “cold front” announcement on X on Friday, Sept. 6, many believed the team name would include something cold-related, and Minnesota Frost is exactly that. It may not be the most exciting name to some, but it represents Minnesota well. The PWHL stated, “‘Frost’ embodies the State of Hockey’s deep-rooted love for the ice – and the sport that has become a timeless tradition, bridging generations.”
When it comes to frost, Minnesotans know it well and it means that outdoor hockey is right around the corner. Having something that fans can relate to and understand makes it much easier to get behind, and Frost seems to be a hit.
“Yeah, it’s an exciting day, a historical day in PWHL history, in hockey history, sport history, excited for the fanbase in Minnesota, excited for the league, and excited for hockey fans around the world that can now associate a team name and logo with the greatest women’s professional hockey league in the world,” Kendall Coyne-Schofield said when it was her turn to speak on Minnesota’s new name and added what it’ll feel like to see it in Minnesota.
“Yeah, just to build off what Hilary (Knight) and Micah (Zandee-Hart) said, I think excitement, I think the excitement of thinking about a couple of months from now, seeing fans in Minnesota walking around with Minnesota Frost jerseys on and filling the Xcel Energy Center with purple just as they did last year but now with taking it a step further with the identity with the logo of the Frost and it’s such a strong, bold, intense logo that I think a lot of people are very excited about, including the players so I think the word that comes to mind is excitement.”
Boston Fleet
Next up was the Boston Fleet, another name representing its respective city. As someone who isn’t very familiar with the area outside of knowing a little about the harbor, the name makes sense. After reading the PWHL reasoning, it works even better: “‘Fleet’ pays homage to Boston’s collective spirit and rich maritime history, representing the city’s unified strength and resilience.”
After watching the PWHL postseason and how many fans showed up to support Boston, it’s clear they have a strong fan base, and the “collective spirit” they refer to is very accurate. The same can be said about the “maritime history” as that is one of the most widely known things about the area.
“Just so ecstatic, obviously year one, you have to build a culture and somewhat of an identity and now to have logos and names. I’m really excited for our group of individuals that gears up together, but super excited for the fans to have that strong identity in Boston, and obviously, a lot of thought that went into each team name and each logo, and just really excited for puck drop this year and for people to rally around all this amazing movement that’s going on in the PWHL,” said Hilary Knight when asked about her team’s new identity.
Throughout the press conference, she repeatedly mentioned how excited she and the fanbase are to have this name and that it fits really well with the area. Her smile made it clear that she was really happy about what’s to come with the names and season two.
Toronto Sceptres
The Toronto Sceptres is an interesting name, and it fits the style of hockey they play. They’re an intense team that uses their speed and skill to surpass everyone. Except for the postseason, the name fits, and so does the PWHL description, “The “Sceptres” embody Toronto’s regal history and commanding presence, reflected in the moniker Queen City and iconic places like Queen Street– one of the city’s most culturally vibrant thoroughfares– connecting diverse neighborhoods and showcasing Toronto’s rich heritage.”
The league certainly found a way to connect the team name to the city, and the players fully support it. Their captain couldn’t stop talking about how it relates so well to Toronto and the rich history of kings and queens tied into the city.
“Yeah, I think it’s awesome. I think the league did a great job picking our name. Obviously, the teaser that was dropped last week kind of indicated that it might have something to do with a queen, and I didn’t see too many people guess Sceptres, so I think there’s a lot of tie-ins to the city, a lot of tie-ins to our team identity and how we want to play and perform on the ice so overall I think it’s a very fitting name and one that our city will really embrace,” said Blayre Turnbull on her opinion of the name.
She later continued with, “I think similar thoughts to Brianne (Jenner); it’s a super exciting day, not only for the players to finally be able to say that we play on the Sceptres, it’s a lot easier to say then PWHL Toronto, so that’s a plus for us but I think in terms of where the league’s at and how successful it was last year without any names or logos, thinking to what the future holds now for all the teams and franchises to have names and to have logos….”
Montréal Victoire
It’s pretty clear the meaning behind Montréal Victoire and the PWHL was equally as clear with their reasoning, “‘Victoire’ embodies Montréal’s joyously competitive spirit, acting as inspiration for the city to climb to even greater sporting heights. Win or lose ‘Victoire’ is a mindset, celebrating the city’s pursuit of achievement.”
The Victoire truly represents its city and the deep-rooted French culture, and the name does not have an English translation; according to Scheer, that was planned from the start, “There’s not meant to be a translation, we purposely wanted their name to be in French regardless of where they play. They are the Victoire, and they are the Victoire in Québec; they are the Victoire in Toronto, New York, Boston, wherever they play. It was an intentional decision, we wanted to represent Montréal and Québec as best we can, and that is through the French language and that’s their name.”
“Obviously very excited, such an exciting day here today to have six new names, six new logos; obviously, our league works so hard for us to make it happen, for us here in Montréal obviously.. Victoire….I can mention a little bit. It’s going to be a mindset obviously the six-team, we all want to win, you want to be competitive….I don’t think it changed what we were last year, every day you want to perform, you want to bring out your best, and that’s going to be what our team’s going to rally around, what the city’s going to rally around, what our fans are going to be all about, and obviously it’s a league that’s very competitive…” said Marie-Philip Poulin about what the name means to the city and team.
She went on to discuss the meaning of having the name only in French and not translatable, “I think they do their due diligence here, obviously in Québec, French is very important and being able to say Victoire in both language is something I think they did a lot of research and it is important and I think people are going to see it from the French side, from the English side, that it’s all one, and we’re all in this together..”
Ottawa Charge
The Ottawa Charge is definitely a unique name, but it fits the city. The PWHL said the reason is that “Charge’ pays tribute to Ottawa itself: from the city’s motto “Advance—Ottawa—En Avant”, nodding to its constant state of dynamic growth and forward progress as Canada’s Capital City.” The teaser definitely got the team talking, with Gabbie Hughes featured, and their captain spoke about it.
“Yeah, we had our group chat blowing up for sure. I think our guesses were a little bit off, but everyone is really excited about this, and I think in hindsight, seeing that the photo was Gabbie (Hughes), she charges the net quite a bit, so it’s pretty fitting, but yeah, we’re all really excited, obviously this is a great day and I think really special for our fans as well,” said Brianne Jenner after being asked if there was any jealously amongst her teammates over Hughes being in the name teaser.
Something really unique about all of these names is how they connect to the city, and it helps fans who aren’t from the area know what the area is about. It gives them a chance to feel connected despite not living there. If someone doesn’t know much about the city of Ottawa, now, with their name, it gives a unique connection to the city without having to be there. The same can be said for all of these new names and is likely one of the reasons fans appear to love them right away. Of course, there are always fans who won’t like the name, but the majority seems to love them, and so do the players.
“I think it’s really exciting for our fan bases; I think to see our jerseys in the stands like we’re going to see this year, it’s the next step forward for our league, and obviously, we had an amazing first season but now to have team identities and specifically ours in Ottawa, it’s not just a nod to the city and being the center of government but it’s a nod to our fans as well and I hope our fans realize that and embrace that. The electric energy that they brought in our first season is a big part of our identity, so I think it’s just going to continue to carry the momentum of this league forward and like “Pou” said, a very exciting day,” Jenner finished when asked to sum up the team finally getting a name.
New York Sirens
New York Sirens has to be one of the most original names in professional sports, and the PWHL gave great reasoning behind it, “‘Sirens’ is an ode to New York City’s one-of-a-kind energy, pace, rhythm – embodying the City’s sounds and people. Sirens also speaks to the sweet sound of the goal horn after the puck goes into the net.” It’s a great combination of the sounds of the city and the sounds of a hockey game to connect fans to both.
While the name Sirens doesn’t make you think of the Statue of Liberty, the color scheme certainly does. Scheer said, “It’s really a nod to the Statue of Liberty, one of the really great symbols of New York City, without using that in our symbolism.” So clearly, the league wanted to have a way for New York fans to connect with their team along with the name Sirens.
“Yeah, it’s just such an exciting day, been around some players in the league today, some of my teammates and…other teams, been getting a lot of text messages from family and fans and everything. People are just excited, just bringing more hype to the league; people are excited for the season. Like Kendall and Hilary both said to give both us as players but also the fans just something to root for and something to feel a part of in these team names and logos is just super exciting.” Micah Zandee-Hart said during the press conference, and she continued with how everyone reacted.
“I think the suspense was building all last week after the PWHL posted that it was going to be announced today, and I think everyone was waiting for it, so far everyone that I’ve talked to has been really excited to dive into the logos, and I think for all of us players especially and the fans just to find out the why behind it and be able to kind of build that identity out behind the logos and really feel why it’s a part of the city, why it’s important. I think that’s something that we can really get behind.”
PWHL Names an Early Success
According to Scheer, keeping this under wraps and truly a surprise when the names were announced took a lot of time, effort, and “lawyers were pumping out NDAs every day,” but it seems to have gone well. As stated before, there will always be someone who isn’t happy about it, but the league isn’t too worried.
“Well, listen, I think, in life, no matter what you do, you will never please everyone. What I can say is that as a league, we are very confident in our process, in the discovery and the feedback that we took from all of our different constituents. So coming here today, we did a very thorough, a very thoughtful, a very buttoned-up process, and so as I sit here, I am very confident that we did things the right way….” Scheer said later in the press conference about any backlash they may receive concerning the names.
They had plenty of help throughout the process, from the company Flower Shop, which was hired to help come up with the names, to even the NHL. From the start, it was mentioned that the NHL had been helping get the league started in terms of advice and how to go through certain processes, and that also involved the team names.
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Scheer was actually at the NHL league offices during the press conference, “I think the NHL are wonderful partners for us as a matter of fact I’m sitting in the NHL offices right now…,” and she continued in detail how they may have needed to have “coexist agreements” for the names where the NHL needed to be involved and how helpful they’ve been.
It seems like everything is in order and moving along the way they want it to. Everyone may have to wait a little longer for the jerseys, but they’ll be worth it if they’re as fun as the names. As Coyne-Schofield said about finally getting names, “Sometimes the best things in life you have to wait the longest for,” and hopefully the jerseys live up to that statement.
