We know how things will line up for the 2025 PWHL Draft.
On Friday night, the league formally announced the order for the league’s annual draft, which is set to take place in Ottawa on Tuesday, June 24.
This year’s draft will consist of six rounds, with the original six teams joined by the league’s two newest franchises, Vancouver and Seattle, making for a total of 48 picks, up from the 42 names called in the 2024 draft.
The New York Sirens will hold the first overall pick after finishing with the most ‘Gold Plan’ draft points for the second year in a row. Last year, they selected Sarah Fillier, who went on to finish tied for the most points in the league and is a heavy favorite to win Rookie of the Year.
The two new teams will be placed at the end of each round. However, it has yet to be announced whether Seattle or Vancouver will pick seventh in the first round. Similar to the expansion draft, a random draw will be held, with the teams then flip-flopping seventh and eighth in for the remaining five rounds.
Here’s the order for the 2025 PWHL Draft:
1. New York Sirens
2. Boston Fleet
3. Toronto Sceptres
4. Montreal Victoire
5. Ottawa Charge
6. Minnesota Frost
7. PWHL Seattle*
8. PWHL Vancouver*
Seattle and Vancouver will have a chance to add even more talent to their rosters through the draft. Both franchises added quality players through the expansion roster-building process, where each team signed five players away from the original six teams before selecting seven more in the expansion draft this past Monday night.
Like the 2024 draft, teams will be allowed to trade draft picks beginning on June 16, when the eight teams are also allowed to start signing players on expiring contracts. There will be a league-wide signing freeze from June 27 at 2 p.m. ET to July 8 at 9 a.m. ET.
The 2025 draft is certainly going to be an interesting one, as there isn’t a clear favorite of who will be picked first overall. With Abbey Murphy staying at the University of Minnesota for one more year, it opens the door for players like Colgate star Kristýna Kaltounková and Clarkson’s Haley Winn, both of which are top prospects coming out of the NCAA ranks. Another player who could be a dark horse to be picked by the Sirens is Patty Kazmaier Award winner Casey O’Brien, who’s coming off winning a national championship with Wisconsin.
The draft will begin at 7 p.m. ET. The first three rounds will be broadcast live on TSN, with the entire event streamed on TSN+ and the league’s YouTube channel.
More must-reads:
The Green Bay Packers’ blockbuster trade to acquire Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys altered the landscape of the NFL, and raised the expectations in Titletown for 2025 and beyond. Parsons immediately bolsters the Packers’ pass rush and, opposite Rashan Gary, has the potential to be a true difference-maker on a roster built to make a deep playoff run. Micah Parsons fired up after Packers trade While those inside the league both resoundingly praised general manager Brian Gutekunst and the Packers while lampooning Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Parsons’ reaction of pure joy may have been best of all. Parsons has plenty of reason to celebrate between the change of scenery and the fact that he’ll collect $188 million with $120 million fully guaranteed on his new contract with the Packers. The All-Pro will also get the chance to exact some revenge on Jones and his former team when the Packers take on the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football in Week 4.
Several positive — and surprising — developments have helped push the Boston Red Sox into playoff contention this season. The Sox enter play on Friday with a 75-60 record, which gives them a 2.5 game lead on the first wild-card spot. Since trading Rafael Devers in mid-June, Boston has one of the best records in baseball behind only the Brewers and Blue Jays. Left-hander Garret Crochet has firmly planted himself in the AL Cy Young Award discussion. Crochet is leading the league in wins and strikeouts, while sitting third in ERA (behind Detroit's Tarik Skubal and Houston's Hunter Brown). Outfielder Roman Anthony has arrived and appears to be just as talented as scouts projected. His .865 OPS is second among rookies with more than 200 plate appearances, behind only the Athletics' Nick Kurtz. Meanwhile, at the back of the Boston bullpen, closer Aroldis Chapman is quietly having a historic season. The 37-year-old left-hander is putting up some of the best numbers of his career in his 16th MLB season after joining the Red Sox last offseason on a one-year, $10.75 million contract. Chapman has worked 52.0 IP on the year, collecting 26 saves with a 1.04 ERA and 0.673 WHIP. Chapman's 1.04 ERA translates to a 401 ERA+ -- a stat in which 100 equals league average, meaning he's been 301% better. Just three times in the history of the sport has a player finished a season with an ERA+ above 400: Robert Keyes (1944), Garnett Blair (1945), and Roy Parnell (1932). All three accomplished the mark while pitching in the Negro Leagues. Shane Bieber's 273 OPS+ in 2020 is the most recent instance where a pitcher was so significantly better than league average. Meanwhile, Chapman has allowed just 21 hits on the season, and only three of those have been home runs. Opponents are batting a mere .119/.183/.182 against him. He has walked 14 batters. Chapman's WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) would also be the best mark in MLB history. George Walker posted a 0.734 WHIP in 1940. Pedro Martinez nearly matched it in 2000, with a 0.737 WHIP. Set to reach free agency again after the season, Chapman could parlay a historic season into another substantial payday even at this late stage in his career. Jon Heyman at the New York Post reported on Thursday that the team would like to bring him back for next season and the early indications suggest the interest is mutual.
There had to be at least some expectation that the Boise State Broncos were going to take a small step backwards in 2025. They probably just did not expect it to happen so soon in the season, and so emphatically. The No. 25 ranked Broncos were absolutely humiliated on Thursday night, losing 34-7 to an unranked South Florida team that was just 7-6 a year ago. It was a rude awakening for what might be ahead for Boise State following the departure of Heisman Trophy runner-up Ashton Jeanty. Jeanty's historic season helped carry the Broncos to an 12-1 regular season, with the only regular season loss being a three-point defeat to Oregon early in the season. They ended up in the College Football Playoff where they lost their first game to Penn State. But with Jeanty on to the NFL (a first-round pick by the Las Vegas Raiders) there was always going to be a huge hole for them to replace. Not only in terms of production and skill, but also in their identity. They had none of that power-running identity on Thursday. Not only did they allow 34 consecutive points to South Florida, but the Broncos also managed to rush for only 122 yards on 38 carries, coming out to just 3.2 yards per attempt. They averaged 6.1 yards per carry in 2024, tied for the second-highest mark in college football. On one hand, losing an early season game isn't the end of the world, especially in the era of expanded playoffs. Boise State could still run the table the rest of the way with a very manageable schedule and play its way back into playoff contention. It's also not uncommon for teams to struggle early in the season. There is no preseason in college football and everybody is just coming in cold right into real games. Sometimes teams take a while to get moving. But this is not a particularly good South Florida team, and for Boise State to come out so flat and be so uncompetitive in the opener is a bad sign for what might be ahead.
The Chicago Bears, along with the rest of the NFC North, received some unwanted news Thursday night when the Green Bay Packers officially pulled off a trade for Micah Parsons. The all-world pass rusher is now a cheesehead through the 2029 season and will certainly be on the minds of the Bears and their divisional counterparts moving forward. The move sent ripples throughout the NFCN and the conference as a whole. For the Bears, specifically, it reminded them of a harsh reality: They're still a step away from becoming a playoff contender and the expectations for 2025 should simply be about progress before anything else. Bears have a ways to go before competing in the NFC North With all the additions made this offseason in Chicago, expectations undoubtedly rose to an even higher level, a dangerous game the Bears are used to playing. After this trade by the Packers, it’s clear the Bears still have a long way to go before being able to truly compete for an NFC North title. Now, let me be clear, it won’t take too much time to get to that level with a strong foundation in place. The future is very bright for the Bears and this team could easily be in a spot, next year, where playoffs are a realistic expectation. But when it comes to 2025, expectations should be lessened after seeing this move. Detroit, Minnesota, and Green Bay are primed to make some noise and a deep run in the NFC. Chicago still has a lot to prove to get out of the division basement. Caleb Williams has to prove he's the franchise quarterback the Bears believe him to be. The offensive line has to show it's not just improved on paper, but on the field, too. Allen faces the questions of re-proving himself as a defensive coordinator after several years of being a head coach. If he can pick up where he left off as a DC then the Bears have the talent of defense to be one of the NFL's best units. We still have to see that come to fruition, however, and we don't know if it will just yet. At the same time, Chicago has early measuring stick games in the first two weeks against Minnesota and Detroit to determine if the revamped team can hang with the top dogs. While a lot can change over the course of an NFL season, those two contests will say a lot about the state of the Bears and the direction they're headed. As for the matchups against Green Bay, the Bears won’t face its bitter rival and the team’s new weapon until Week 14, giving Chicago plenty of time to prepare. So, while the Bears still have a lot to prove, the key part is 2025 will give them all kinds of opportunities to do just that - answer questions. Packers trade for Micah Parsons overshadows all progress the Bears have made in the NFC North arms race The Chicago Bears have been the talk of the town in the NFC North the past few months and earned the title of “Offseason Champs” in the NFL once again. It’s a faux award fans are tired of hearing in Chicago - because the only thing that matters are results on the field. Even still, the progress the Bears made in the NFC North arms race this offseason has been impressive. By adding head coach Ben Johnson, the Bears locker room culture and offense took a complete 180 degree turn. On defense, Allen’s presence and new additions created a whole new aggressive mindset. But even with all the moves, the Parsons-to-Packers trade overshadows them all. It's simply because we're talking about one of the best players in the game who is still in his prime, regardless of position, and he just so happens to play one of the most important positions. Parsons is a true game-wrecker and his presence can take a bad defense and immediately make it a good one. That's how special he is. There's still plenty of reason for optimism in 2025 and beyond No one is saying this should take any excitement away from the Bears' current direction. The good news is if things go according to plan, they'll be right in the playoff mix in 2026. It's not a permanent or even short-term status, whatsoever. The arrow is pointing up in Chicago, but unfortunately it's even higher in Green Bay after the Parsons trade.
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