The North American women’s hockey league PHF was sold to new owners. The change affects, among others, Finnish goalkeeper Noora Räty, whose new contract is no longer valid after the trade.
The sports investment companies The Mark Walter Group and Billie Jean King Enterprises have bought the North American women’s professional ice hockey league PHF. The matter was reported by the US media, among others The Athletic.
In the background are the plans published at the beginning of the year, the goal of which is to implement a hockey league for the 2023–2024 season, which brings together the world’s best female ice hockey players.
The deal concerns several Finnish players, as with the change of ownership, all player contracts in the league have been terminated, according to media reports.
About Finnish ice hockey players With Noora Rädy, Minttu Tuominen, Anna Kilposella mixed Susanna Tapanilla had a contract with the Metropolitan Riveters playing in the PHF. Noora Rädy’s transfer to the Riveters was reported in May, so she only stayed with the club for about a month.
The change means that the Finnish players are currently without a club for next season. The players will receive compensation for the unilateral cancellation of the contract.
In addition to the players, the Riveters’ coaching side has had a Finnish color, as the team has been coached by a Finn Venla Court. There is currently no information about the coach’s continuation.
The background to the changes is the smoldering division in women’s hockey in North America, where the parties have been the PHF, formerly known as the NWHL, and the PWHPA, which operated like a players’ association.
The PWHPA was founded in 2019 with the goal of building a sustainable series for North American women’s ice hockey. The Mark Walter Group and Billie Jean King Enterprises, which acquired PHF, have acted as financiers of PWHPA.