San Jose landed a pro women’s hockey franchise on Tuesday with the PWHL completing its ambitious four-team expansion process with a first entry into California.The league now has 12 teams entering its fourth season, and has doubled in size since the PWHL was established in June 2023. In selecting San Jose, the PWHL adds a region with a population of about 7.6 million, strengthens its geographic footprint with a third Pacific Coast-based franchise, and enters a market with a strong history of supporting women’s sports and girls hockey development.The team will play out of the NHL home of the San Jose Sharks, the SAP Center, with the bid to land the franchise led by the city and Sharks Sports & Entertainment.“Between a deeply rooted hockey culture, rapidly booming women’s sports scene, and a community known for growth and innovation, San Jose offers a dynamic stage for the PWHL to expand its reach and build lasting momentum,” said Amy Scheer, PWHL executive vice president of business operations.San Jose’s selection closes the league’s second expansion process, which began with the addition of Detroit two weeks ago followed by Las Vegas and Hamilton, Ontario, a week later They join Seattle and Vancouver, who were added last year, and the PWHL’s original six markets of Boston, New York, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and Minnesota.Scheer has previously said league officials are exploring splitting in either two conferences or multiple divisions. All four newcomers help fill geographical voids in reducing travel time between markets.San Jose has also become a hockey hotbed in ranking sixth in the nation in girls hockey participation.“From its humble beginnings with an NHL expansion team in 1991, San Jose is now truly a ‘hockey city,’” Sharks Sports & Entertainment president Jonathan Becher said.The yet-to-be-named team’s colors will be orange — in a nod to the Sharks — blue and white, representing the coastline and sky.The PWHL team will be the third major women’s professional franchise to come to the Bay Area in recent years, following Bay …
