PWHL’s strong first season coincides with a growing appetite for women’s sports

By STEPHEN WHYNO and JOHN WAWROW
AP Hockey Writers

The inaugural season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League has set one attendance record after another while putting the sport on the map across North America outside the Olympics. Finally having the best players in the world in one league has provided the kind of jump start needed to try to catch up with basketball and soccer in a crowded landscape. The blossoming of the PWHL also comes at the perfect time with heightened interest in women’s sports beyond what’s become known as the Caitlin Clark effect.