2026 PWHL Draft

[Windchill22]

Do the GM's actually make the picks or is it all just controlled by the league? Since the teams aren't independently owned it feels like the whole thing is constructed to drive attendance to make the balance sheet look appealing for a possible suitor to either start selling off teams or the whole league. After all that is what private equity firms do to make money on their investments.

I'd assume they can make their own picks (and trades) but they all assumedly have the same boss so....

 

[BuckyB]

What are the factors that are going to cause Simms to fall in the draft?

She can play for sure but maturity is about that of a 13 yr old.

 

[ARM]

Here's my (biased) first round draft prediction:

1. VAN – Harvey
2. SEA – Edwards
3. (DET/VEG) – Murphy
4. SJ – Eden
5. VEG – Janecke
6. HAM – Simms
7. NY – Brändli
8. TOR – Morrow
9. MIN – Wunder
10. BOS – Peschel
11. OTT – Laitinen
12. MTL – Holopainen

Thanks for taking time to share your thoughts. Minnesota would take Peschel if she was available, but I doubt that she will be. I think both she and Janecke have games that will blossom in the pros.

 

[Windchill22]

Thanks for taking time to share your thoughts. Minnesota would take Peschel if she was available, but I doubt that she will be. I think both she and Janecke have games that will blossom in the pros.

I was thinking they lost 3 forwards and 2 D to expansion - and probably wanted to fill a forward a bit more. What are your thoughts on why they'd go with Peschel. I also put Morrow over Peschel because I think Morrow a slightly more rounded game -(though their stats are near identical last year - and I forgot that Peschel was injured a bit - so she played 5 fewer games than Morrow - So I could see in my scenario swapping Morrow and Peschel. Now with that - Morrow being most recently at the Gophers (and the longest at 2 seasons) - she may be a darling pick for the Frost. - so I could see them pulling Morrow if Peschel went to TOR at 8 - then Wonder falls to Boston. And of course - there's always BuckyB's theory that Simms drops a ton. - And any of those three (Morrow, Wunder, Peschel) move up some.

 

[Timothy A]

She can play for sure but maturity is about that of a 13 yr old.

So she was one of the reasons why you were saying UW was going to splinter apart....

 

[robertearle]

So she was one of the reasons why you were saying UW was going to splinter apart....

IIRC, one of the "inside info" people a couple years ago said she was going to be dismissed from the team because of grades. BuckyB is - I think - too recent to have been that person, unless it was under a different user name. But denigrading Simms is nothing new.

 

[LongGame]

I also suspect that with one management group controlling the entire league, very few of the individual franchise decisions are actually made by anyone other than the league office. Tomorrow night, I wonder if there will be any TV cameras in any individual team’s “war room” showing the brain trust of each team deciding who to pick next?

 

[BuckyB]

IIRC, one of the "inside info" people a couple years ago said she was going to be dismissed from the team because of grades. BuckyB is - I think - too recent to have been that person, unless it was under a different user name. But denegrading Simms is nothing new.

There are at least 6 teams that have said “Absolutely not” on Simms.
Hopefully she gets the necessary credits this summer to officially graduate… she was short and is “Pending”

 

[robertearle]

There are at least 6 teams that have said “Absolutely not” on Simms.
Hopefully she gets the necessary credits this summer to officially graduate… she was short and is “Pending”

So, she's like - what - half the men's NCAA players? Mark Johnson finally finished his degree in 1994. Tony Granato during his first year as the UW men's head coach. There was a Wisconsin women's team player a decade ago whose parents I became friends with, and they mentioned to me they were surprised that the 'extra' semester it was going to take for their daughter to complete enough credits would not be covered by her scholarship; she ended up not graduating from UW, after playing her full four years.

As I said, nothing new about some people denigrating Simms here.

 

[robertearle]

There is an Ohio State "booster" Facebook account that showed up on my 'feed' one day recently, so I read some. And it was - not a surprise - very much over the top. They are convinced that Peschel will be a top five pick, no question about it.

So, I guess now I have two reasons to pay closer attention to the draft than I would otherwise have done: to see where/when Peschel goes, and where/when Simms goes.

 

[LongGame]

The draft is at 5 pm today, by the way. Seems like an odd time slot.

 

[Scott_TG]

Do the GM's actually make the picks or is it all just controlled by the league? Since the teams aren't independently owned it feels like the whole thing is constructed to drive attendance to make the balance sheet look appealing for a possible suitor to either start selling off teams or the whole league. After all that is what private equity firms do to make money on their investments.

I don't know how what they've done with this off-season drives attendance. The existing 8 teams are all feeling pissed off and alienated.

 

[ARM]

What are your thoughts on why they'd go with Peschel.

The Frost have seemed to put a premium on players from the area, whether or not they played for the Gophers. Given that the money at best isn't life-changing, and on the low end is barely enough to survive, playing for a team is more attractive if you have ties to the area. Peschel is a hometown kid, but you're right that defenders like Morrow and Laitinen also have ties to the area, although not the same family ties. Sophie Jaques was a good fit for the Frost during her time there, and I think Peschel has some similarities in her game. I don't think the Frost can get a replacement for Curl-Salemme where they will be picking, but Peschel looks to me like the best fit to replace Cooper.

 

[Timothy A]

So, she's like - what - half the men's NCAA players? Mark Johnson finally finished his degree in 1994. Tony Granato during his first year as the UW men's head coach. There was a Wisconsin women's team player a decade ago whose parents I became friends with, and they mentioned to me they were surprised that the 'extra' semester it was going to take for their daughter to complete enough credits would not be covered by her scholarship; she ended up not graduating from UW, after playing her full four years.

As I said, nothing new about some people denigrating Simms here.

On the men's side, at least you get to the NHL w/o going to college. On the women's side it's virtually impossible unless you play in Europe. School is not for everyone. I don't think any less of a player if they get their degree or not. I think Simms slips a bit just because of her size and lack of physicality. Get her on the top 2 lines and she will thrive.

 

[Timothy A]

Yes they don't get KK unless the go to the top - but I don't see Vancouver giving that up.

Make them an offer they can't refuse.

 

[robertearle]

On the men's side, at least you get to the NHL w/o going to college. On the women's side it's virtually impossible unless you play in Europe. School is not for everyone. I don't think any less of a player if they get their degree or not. I think Simms slips a bit just because of her size and lack of physicality. Get her on the top 2 lines and she will thrive.

Yes, you can get to the NHL without going to college at all.

Or you can get to the NHL by going to college, but not graduating (or graduating later). Examples cited were Mark Johnsom and Tony Granato.

And now you can get to the PWHL by going to college, but not graduating (or graduating later). Like Simms will allegedly do.

Equality for the women players! Yay!

Yet BuckyB wants to knock Simms for it.

Some are able to handle the demands of both school and being a DI athlete, and do it all in the normal four years. For others, that load ends up meaning they need some extra time to complete their degree. Why throw shade on one for whom that is allegedly the case?

 

[eastcoastgopher]

The Frost have seemed to put a premium on players from the area, whether or not they played for the Gophers. Given that the money at best isn't life-changing, and on the low end is barely enough to survive, playing for a team is more attractive if you have ties to the area. Peschel is a hometown kid, but you're right that defenders like Morrow and Laitinen also have ties to the area, although not the same family ties. Sophie Jaques was a good fit for the Frost during her time there, and I think Peschel has some similarities in her game. I don't think the Frost can get a replacement for Curl-Salemme where they will be picking, but Peschel looks to me like the best fit to replace Cooper.

I think the Wild have operated that way because as I understand not having enough local players was a reason some people didn't get invested in the North Stars. I thought the Darwitz-era Frost prioritized local players. Caruso's teams haven't (though obviously they're going to keep the ones who were already there around).

 

[LongGame]

If Simms slips, it is because of her size. She kind of disappeared in the Olympics.

But, again, this is a one management group league with only the idea of making money being important. A recognizable name is worth more a lot for selling tickets and raising a team's profile.

 

[robertearle]

The draft is at 5 pm today, by the way. Seems like an odd time slot.

4 PM Central. (I didn't realize)

Already underway. Harvey first pick, of course.

 

[davearm]

If Simms slips, it is because of her size. She kind of disappeared in the Olympics.

But, again, this is a one management group league with only the idea of making money being important. A recognizable name is worth more a lot for selling tickets and raising a team's profile.

IIRC, Simms barely saw the ice at the Olympics.