Professional Women’s Hockey Hitting Las Vegas Strip with New PWHL Expansion Team

^{Las Vegas hockey fans hope to celebrate a PWHL championship outside T-Mobile Arena in the near future. (Photo: John Locher / AP / Alamy)}

LAS VEGAS – Sin City is getting a new professional hockey team. Though you might've heard that line before, this time around it's the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) planting roots in Las Vegas with one of two expansion teams starting next season.

The PWHL made the move official on Wednesday, with Las Vegas joining another new team in Hamilton, Ontario. The newest Vegas hockey team will have a green-and-gold color scheme “inspired by the natural tones of Southern Nevada.” 

The team will train at America First Center in Henderson and join the NHL’s Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena for a majority of their home games. Lee’s Family Forum will serve as the backup venue.  

Even though the official name of the women’s hockey franchise has yet to be revealed, the team is already taking season ticket membership deposits of $50 per seat. This aligns with previous season ticket deposits for the Golden Knights and the Henderson Silver Knights, both owned by Bill Foley. 

Many have speculated on Foley's involvement with the team, given his role with the Golden Knights. Rather than fully owning the team, it's more likely he will have some form of involvement due to the PWHL's single-entity ownership model. The women's league is currently owned by Mark Walter and his wife, Kimbra, who also own the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Women’s Hockey Following Lead of Las Vegas Aces

Some will question whether T-Mobile Arena is too large a venue to support a PWHL franchise. However, the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces are the perfect model for the women’s hockey team, winning three WNBA championships in the past four years.

The team just played their season opener at the arena last Saturday in front of 16,511 fans. Over the past two seasons, they've averaged more than 11,000 fans per game, with a single-game high of 20,366 at the arena in 2024. They play most of their home games at Michelob Ultra Arena, located inside Mandalay Bay, with a much smaller capacity of approximately 12,000 fans.

Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s Senior Vice President of Business Operations, highlighted how it's the right time to bring the team to Vegas.

“While professional women’s hockey may be new to the market, we know Las Vegas is ready to welcome and champion a PWHL team of its own,” said Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s Senior Vice President of Business Operations, in a statement. “This new team will be Las Vegas Valley-born and reflect the identity of its bold, welcoming, and resilient community, with athletes ready to put on a show and build a passionate following across the region.”

Unlike the Aces that relocated from San Antonio, the PWHL women's hockey team will be a true expansion team built from the ground up, much like the Stanley Cup-winning Golden Knights.

Girls’ Hockey Boom Should Create Instant Support

Another key element of bringing a PWHL franchise to Las Vegas is how popular girls’ youth hockey has become since the Golden Knights arrived. 

USA Hockey had 107 registered female members in the Vegas Valley back in 2017, the NHL team's inaugural year. That number has since ballooned to 5,305 in the 2024-25 season, with nearly half (2,353) between the ages of nine and 18, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Many of these “Vegas Born” fans grew up cheering for the Golden Knights and will now have the chance to root for a women’s team. The PWHL will expand to 11 teams with the additions of Las Vegas and Hamilton, and crowds have already been large across the league.

The largest PWHL crowd ever was 21,105 fans at the Bell Center in Montreal two years ago. The U.S. record of 18,006 fans was just set at New York’s Madison Square Garden on April 4, and the Seattle Torrent had a record 16,014 for their home debut at Climate Pledge Arena last Nov. 28. The Torrent had previously set the U.S. record with 17,335 fans on Feb. 27.

“The arrival of the PWHL in Vegas is a milestone for women’s hockey and our entire community,” said John Penhollow, Golden Knights President of Business Operations, in a statement. “We’re proud of how far youth hockey has come locally, and even more excited about the path forward and opportunities ahead for future generations with the PWHL’s arrival in Las Vegas.”