With all six teams having played at least 12 games, we’re officially at the halfway point of the inaugural PWHL season.
A lot of action has been packed into the two months since puck drop on Jan. 1, and there’s still plenty more to come in the 24-game campaign.
With the first half in the books, we’ve rounded up some notable numbers to help tell the story of the 2024 season so far.
2 – First-place Montreal has been quite a force, and while their wins have been impressive the most notable number can be found in the loss column: Through 13 games, they’ve lost just twice in regulation.
3 – Last-place Ottawa has struggled to string wins together so far this season, registering just three in their first 12 games. All three victories have come in regulation, two of which were against Toronto. The club is 0-4 in overtime, and with just 13 points through the first half of the season, Ottawa could soon see the playoffs fall out of reach.
4-2-2-4 – If you love symmetry, take a look at Boston’s record (the PWHL uses the following format: W-OTW-OTL-L). With equal parts regulation wins and losses and as many Ws as Ls in overtime, Boston sits at a perfect .500 on the season with 12 games played and 12 more to go. Where do they go from here?
5 – Hats have been flying in the first half of the season, with five players recording three-goal games. Two of those hat tricks have come courtesy of Montreal players, with Marie-Philip Poulin posting a trio on Jan. 10 followed by teammate Claire Dalton over the weekend.
7 – Toronto’s Kristen Campbell, like the team in front of her, took a little time to hit her stride but has since gotten her swagger back. Campbell is the hottest goalie in the league right now, leading the PWHL in goalie wins (7) while riding an impressive individual win streak of six straight wins. She’s also got the league lead in shutouts, with two.
8 – Jail Break! The PWHL’s debut brought to life some intriguing rules, including one that makes penalty kills a whole lot more interesting: A team can end its minor penalty if they score while shorthanded. So far this season, we’ve seen eight “jailbreak” goals scored. All six teams have gotten in on the action, with Ottawa and Boston leading the way with two each.
10 – Toronto’s offence started slow, but is really coming alive thanks in large part to Natalie Spooner, the league’s goal-scoring leader at the halfway point and the first player to hit double-digit goals. Of her 10 markers on the season so far, seven came within a three-game hot streak, including a hat trick in Boston on Feb. 14. Keep this up, and we might be hearing some MVP chants in Toronto.
10 – New York prioritized defence in their early roster-making decisions, so it’s no surprise they’re getting some offence from the blue line. Ella Shelton’s 10 points gives her the league lead in points among defenders (tied with Boston blueliner Megan Keller).
15 – New York boasts the league’s overall scoring leader, too. Forward Alex Carpenter leads all of her PWHL peers with eight goals and 7 assists for 15 points. Even more impressive: She’s been held off the scoresheet only twice through 12 games.
26/25 – Minnesota’s league-low 26 goals scored so far this season would be more of a concern if they weren’t also limiting opponents to the fewest goals against. But it’s worth asking whether these numbers point to a team that’s starting to slow down. After tallying at least three goals in five of their eight games in January, Minnesota’s offence has been held to two or fewer through all five games in February. (They take on Toronto Tuesday to close out the month and try to buck that trend while they’re at it.)
72 – A total of 72 different players have tallied at least one goal so far this season. While the leaderboard is dominated by Canadian and American talent, eight different countries are represented on the list of PWHL goal-scorers, which also includes players from Finland, China, Switzerland, Austria, Czechia and Japan.
183,925 – The league’s total attendance through the first half of the season (as stated in a PWHL press release) points to success right from the start. The league is averaging more than 5,000 fans in attendance per game through the first 36 matchups, with 13 boasting sell-out crowds. Toronto’s sold out all seven home games so far, followed by Montreal (four) and Ottawa (two). The highlight? Toronto’s Battle on Bay Street against rival Montreal brought 19,285 fans to Scotiabank Arena in what was the best-attended women’s hockey game ever.
