Madison Square Garden was the backdrop for a blockbuster Broadway show; a show filled with dramatic twists, dancing, singing, a fight scene and star-driven heroics before an adoring sell-out crowd. I’ve seen CATS and Andrew Lloyd Webber himself couldn’t have scripted this any better than the PWHL did. The NY Sirens and Seattle Torrent took the ice and thrilled everyone with world-class hockey from a tying goal late in the 3rd, to overtime and into the shootout. THE Hilary Knight missed her shot for the Torrent, and Maja Nylén Persson deposited the game-winner for a 2-1 Sirens win. Jane and I were two of the 18,006 witnessing this breakthrough and dancing in the aisles.
More than a game, this is smart strategy. The PWHL has arrived and the performance between the NY Sirens and Seattle Torrent proved it emphatically. These fans are voting for women’s hockey with their wallets.
To think it’s only the PWHL’s third year. A game like this is validation that growth is happening and happening fast. The expertly executed Takeover Tour demonstrates that ice hockey is the next boom sport in the women’s ecosystem and that the PWHL has the right model: centralized ownership built on a secure financial foundation with franchises stamping their identities (and brands) on key markets while seducing potential expansion cities with an excellent product, exceptional game-day operations and big-time ticket and merchandise sales.
The lastly, the merch! To see fans decked out in Sirens gear with Fillier, Zandee-Hart and O’Brien emblazoned on their backs was a glorious vision., Game day gear readily available and voraciously consumed. That's the signal amongst the cheers!
