This weekend, the NWHL season will officially kick-off when the Metropolitan Riveters meet the Minnesota Whitecaps on Saturday, October 6. What does that have to do with Pittsburgh, you ask?
When the NWHL returns to the city of Pittsburgh (or more aptly the suburb of Cranberry) for the third time, it will likely be to test, once again, the area’s desire and feasibility for a franchise, following a wildly successful All-Star competition hosted there in 2017 and a regular season matchup between the Buffalo Beauts and the Connecticut Whale.
Beyond just the desire of the NWHL to potentially expand into cities like Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., there are several reasons why Pittsburgh is a prime contender to land a team.
Even in 2016, the Pittsburgh area recognized the potential for bringing in a professional women’s hockey team. Matt Herr, Executive Director of the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex (more about that later), said this in an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
"The next phase is women’s hockey, I feel like it’s an untapped market in the Pittsburgh area."
Dani Rylan, Commissioner of the NWHL, in a recent statement to the Ice Garden, made it clear that the NWHL is open to all possibilities and opportunities, including expansion. Rylan said the following:
"We are open for business and seek partners for all of our teams, and I’ll add, additional teams as we continue to expand to other markets in the coming years. This is not just limited to prospective partners in the NHL, but anyone who recognizes the value of our league, teams and players, and has the ability to help elevate the club to another level. We’ve had very good discussions with ownership groups in other sports and other businesses, and those conversations will continue. The possibilities for women’s hockey are endless, and so are the benefits for our partners."
It doesn’t seem like a stretch of the imagination to imagine a women’s hockey club coming to Pittsburgh and succeeding on and off the ice.