Where Will the PWHL Takeover Tour Go Next?

If you’ve been keeping up with the PWHL, then you know how successful the league’s Takeover Tours have been. They are games that different teams will play in non PWHL markets – they help gauge the interest of women’s hockey in different cities and markets, allow fans from all over to experience women’s pro hockey live, and provide neutral sites for teams to play games in.  

And beyond diversifying the fanbase? They also help decide where the next expansion teams may go. The Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes are a great example of this: after both cities sold out their Takeover tours in the PWHL’s inaugural season, they were granted a team in the 2025 expansion. The same can be said for some of the new expansion teams: Detroit had 4 Takeover Tours over the span of 2 seasons, before being awarded a team in the 2026 expansion. 

We know that cities show up for women’s hockey. But what cities would be our picks for this year’s Takeover Tour? The league tested waters all over North America last season and each were a huge success, with every city making a case for a permanent team. But which felt just that much more special, and which deserve another shot at proving they could be home to a team? Let’s dive into it! 

Halifax 

I must preface this by admitting that I am completely biased – I went to both the Takeover Tour games in Halifax last season, and I may never be the same again. Vibes were electric, the stadium was packed, and the two games were a way for the Maritimes to finally experience pro hockey. 

The PWHL showed up on the East Coast of Canada on December 17th and January 11th, playing in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The December clash featured hometown Blayre Turnbull and her Toronto Sceptres, and universally loved Marie Philip Poulin and her Montreal Victoire. Montreal edged out Toronto in a shootout (with the winning goal scored by none other than MPP, because who else?!), but beyond the score of the game, Halifax packed the stadium, selling out Scotiabank Centre’s 10k ish seats. Nova Scotia native Blayre Turnbull felt the love playing in her home market, and no one could deny the atmosphere that Halifax created. The January 11th clash between the Ottawa Charge and Boston Fleet was much of the same: Jill Sauntier felt the love in her hometown market, and once again, Halifax packed the stadium.

We know each province across Canada cares deeply about hockey. Nova Scotia is no exception – there are a few National Hockey League (NHL) stars from Cole Harbour you might have heard of – but they differ from other provinces in that they don’t have a professional team. Halifax’s Scotiabank Centre is home to the Halifax Mooseheads, who play in the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), and in the 2025-2026 season, they ranked third in home attendance across the entire Canadian Hockey League (CHL), behind only the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) London Knights and QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts. Despite lacking a professional team, Halifax has been proving for years that they can fill a stadium, and selling out their two Takeover Tour games only furthered this point. 

Given the popularity, we can only imagine that the PWHL will want to return to the East Coast of Canada. Establishing the Hamilton team shows that they’re willing to expand into non NHL markets, and Halifax has shown already that they can support women’s sports; if they are given another Takeover Tour this season and sell it out, then it’s not impossible to guess that a Maritime expansion might happen in the not-so-distant future. (And then you will hear my screaming from the other side of the country!)

Denver 

How could we make this list without including Denver? One of the central hubs for women’s sports, Denver showed up in a big way in their Takeover Tours. They have had 3 to date, and all have been monstrous successes. In fact, the aforementioned US attendance record had actually been held by Denver in their first Takeover Tour before it was broken by Seattle. 

Across their three Takeover Tours, Denver has drawn just over 41 thousand fans, and seen the Frost beat the Victoire and Sirens, and the Goldeneyes beat the Torrent. After setting the US attendance record, the attendance for their second Takeover Tour game dipped slightly, but then skyrocketed for their third Takeover game. The addition of the Denver Summit, the city’s new National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team just highlights that Denver intends to be a city circled on the PWHL’s agenda. The Takeover Tour games were played in Ball Arena, home of the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, and though the games weren’t sellouts, Denver’s attendance rates in their games were actually some of the highest given that Ball Arena is one of the biggest NHL stadiums.

With the addition of PWHL San Jose, West Coast hockey is alive and thriving, and adding Denver will only make the rivalries and matchups more exciting. While it may not happen right away, we’re expecting to see riveting hockey action in Denver, and if they get another Takeover Tour this year, we’re sure they’re going to make a case for an expansion team. After all, a stadium full of dedicated fans chanting ‘we want a team’ shouldn’t be denied, should they?

Edmonton

Another must on this list: Edmonton, Alberta. Their sister city, Calgary, has also had expansion talks as well as their own Takeover Tour, but it’s Edmonton that really sticks out when looking at overall attendance, fans, and support. 

Like Denver, Edmonton has hosted their own PWHL games three separate times: their inaugural game saw Toronto beat Ottawa in overtime, and last season’s Takeover Tour featured the Frost besting Vancouver in OT, and the Fleet also overcoming the Goldeneyes 5-1. Edmonton’s first game ranked behind only Quebec City and Vancouver for attendance, and was a sellout of Rogers Place, another large NHL arena. Like Denver, fans also took it in their own hands to let the league know what they thought, and ‘we want a team’ chants were frequent as the games progressed. 

Given that the league expanded to Vancouver, and the numbers were similar between Vancouver and Edmonton, it would make sense for Edmonton to still be underlined on the PWHL’s list. The city itself draws popularity from their NHL team, but more than that, it would line up for another ‘Battle of Alberta’ situation with a potential future Calgary team, too. Calgary had their first Takeover Tour game last season, and it was a massive success, drawing more fans than Detroit’s first two Takeover Tour games. Given that Edmonton has seen PWHL action three times as opposed to Calargy’s one game, it makes sense that the league would be looking to seriously invest in Edmonton as a potential expansion plan, and thus we’re hoping to see it pop up on the Takeover Tour list this season. 

Washington D.C

To round out this list, let’s discuss a lesser known market, but still a great investment that may happen in the future. 

Washington D.C doesn’t immediately scream out ‘hockey’, but maybe they should. Contrary to the other cities in this list, they’ve only hosted one Takeover Tour game, but it may have been the biggest one yet. The city saw professional women’s hockey last January for their first time, but they made an impression, drawing over 17000 fans to Capital One Arena, home of the NHL’s Washington Capitals. That set the record for attendance at a professional women’s hockey game in the US at the time, and ranked alongside Vancouver and Detroit in numbers. 

And beyond the rink, Washington has proved they’ll show up for women’s sports. They have a Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team; the Washington Mystics, as well as a NWSL team; the Washington Spirit. Adding a PWHL team to their ever growing resume would only increase popularity across all of the city’s women’s sports, and we know fans will show up. 

Given that Washington only has one Takeover Tour game on their repertoire, we’re hoping they’ll get a chance to make a case for themselves in the upcoming season. Having that many fans show up in such a large arena makes a statement, and if they’re able to prove that that success is real and that the city can sustain it, then we’re beyond excited to see where professional hockey will go in the future. 

The 26-27 Season

While the PWHL has yet to release their dates for the upcoming season, they did announce on September 10th that preseason games will begin on November 18th, which means it’s reasonable to assume that the regular season games will begin around the start of December. 

We’re not sure when the Takeover Tour dates will be released or where they will go, but we do know that every market that gets to see PWHL action is a candidate for a team in the future. We’re beyond excited for the growth of this league, and we hope you are too!