For PWHL stars, expansion process serves as a reminder that hockey is a business first

For Sarah Nurse, the shocking trade of former Toronto Sceptres teammate Jocelyne Larocque last New Year's Eve was a bit of a wake-up call.

Larocque is a veteran, shutdown defender who's seen, and won, just about everything. She's the teammate that everyone wants to have.

Her teammates in Toronto thought she was untouchable before she was sent to Ottawa in a four-player trade. It was a reminder that the PWHL is a business first, even if it hasn't always been that way, historically, in women's hockey.

Now, Nurse is moving across the country to Vancouver, where she signed a one-year contract earlier this week, after Toronto left her unprotected ahead of the expansion draft.

As the process unfolded, Nurse found herself having to separate emotions and business. Many of those emotions were tied to the fact that Toronto is home. It's one of the only cities Nurse has ever lived in, and a city where she always dreamed of playing professional hockey.

"Being one of the foundational players that kind of helped build the program [in Toronto], it means so much to me," Nurse said.

"But at the end of the day, when you think of an opportunity to go to an expansion team and to be able to bring what I bring off of the ice, but to be able to bring the level of play that I also bring on the ice, I think is something really special and something that [Vancouver GM Cara Gardner Morey] had recognized and identified with me, and something that I really appreciated."

Nurse is one of 10 players who signed with expansion teams in Vancouver or Seattle this week, as both prepare to begin play next season.

By the end of Monday's expansion draft, both new teams will have 12 players each, and all the existing teams will have lost four players each.

So far, both Vancouver and Seattle have accumulated an embarrassment of riches.

In addition to Nurse, Vancouver has signed Defender of the Year nominees and Walter Cup champions, Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques, as well as goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer and hometown forward Jennifer Gardiner.

Seattle, meanwhile, started by signing former Boston Fleet captain Hilary Knight to lead the new team. She was joined by 2024 first-round draft picks Cayla Barnes and Danielle Serdachny on Thursday, followed by two stars from the New York Sirens on Friday: starting goaltender Corinne Schroeder and sniper Alex Carpenter.

Existing teams were only able to protect three players each, initially, with a fourth to be added after the team lost two players.

It means all six existing teams have big holes to fill.

In Toronto, fans will miss Nurse, a forward who's done a lot for hockey both on and off the ice.

Nurse missed time due to an injury last season, but in 2024, tied for second in the league in both points and goals. She was one of the Sceptres' first three signings in 2023.

Toronto opted to protect star defender Renata Fast, leading scorer Daryl Watts and captain Blayre Turnbull, which left Nurse eligible for an expansion team.

Nurse had conversations with both Seattle and Vancouver, but was drawn to the culture Morey is building in Vancouver.

That all came after what Nurse described as a difficult and emotional conversation with Toronto GM Gina Kingsbury, who Nurse has known for years and respects.

WATCH | How the PWHL's expansion process works:

"There are a lot of players who are worthy of being protected and all the power to their group moving forward because they do have a great group," Nurse said about her former team.

Like Nurse, Maschmeyer was one of the first players signed by the Ottawa Charge when the league launched.

Maschmeyer was having a strong season before an injury in March took her off the ice.

In her absence, backup goaltender Gwyneth Philips seized the net and didn't let go, backstopping the Charge all the way to the Walter Cup final. Even though the Charge didn't win the Cup, Philips was named playoff MVP.

"She's obviously an incredible goaltender and had a standout playoff series, and so I have no ill will against her," Maschmeyer said. "Honestly, I'm very happy for her. I think that we both deserve starting roles, and so this is the best scenario where we're not competing for ice time, where we both get to own the net."

For Maschmeyer, this season has been an emotional roller-coaster that culminated with a two-year deal to go to Vancouver.

The move will bring Maschmeyer's young family, including baby Beckham, closer to Maschmeyer's family in Alberta.

"It's quite awesome to see how our extended family has rallied around us," Maschmeyer said. "They're already offering babysitting, flying in every couple of weeks. Everyone just wants to help."

Knight has often found herself building things throughout her hockey career, whether it was fighting for better conditions from USA Hockey or creating the PWHL.

She'll have that chance again in Seattle, where she will get to help grow women's hockey from the ground up in the Pacific Northwest.

Knight, who's from Sun Valley, Idaho, is excited about the number of people from the western states who can now more easily access women's hockey.

The 35-year-old recently announced that the 2026 Olympics will be her last. She signed on with Seattle for only one season, but don't expect to see her hang up her skates any time soon.

"My plans professionally as of now are to continue to play," she said, adding that the length of her contract doesn't reflect how long she'd like to be in Seattle.

Knight also doesn't plan to stop playing for the American team immediately after the Olympics. But there is a world now where a player can continue to play professionally even if they're done with their national team. In the past, the top players planned their careers around Olympic cycles.

That it's an option speaks to how far women's hockey has come over Knight's career. It's only fitting that the next chapter is on an expansion team, in a place where she can keep building.

"I think things aligned for me personally in the right way and I cannot wait for puck drop," Knight said. "I cannot wait to play in front of Seattle fans."

Monday's expansion draft is set for 8:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on the league's YouTube channel.

Even with 10 players already off the board, there's still lots of talent up for grabs for Vancouver and Seattle. The new teams will also have to be compliant with the salary cap, which could limit just how many more stars the new GMs can add.

Top players available on Monday range from young players with high ceilings, like Julia Gosling (forward, Toronto), Ashton Bell (defender, Ottawa) and Hannah Bilka (forward, Boston), to hard-to-play against forward Emma Maltais (Toronto), and back-to-back Walter Cup champion and faceoff ace Kelly Pannek (forward, Minnesota).