Sarah Nurse to sign with PWHL’s Vancouver expansion franchise: Source

Forward Sarah Nurse is expected to sign with PWHL Vancouver, a source briefed on the scenario told.The league’s growth rules enable players in Nurse’s position– as well as unrestricted free representatives– to negotiate with either of the brand-new franchises in Seattle and Vancouver during a five-day signing window that opened on Wednesday morning.Advertisement The Toronto Sceptres, where Nurse invested her very first 2 seasons in the PWHL, protected No. 1 protector Renata Quick, captain Blayre Turnbull and forward Daryl Watts. Watts was Toronto’s prized free-agent signing in the offseason and led the Sceptres in scoring, so it’s affordable that basic supervisor Gina Kingsbury didn’t want to let her go.Still, leaving Nurse exposed was constantly going to be a danger. For Vancouver, locking her up throughout the signing window was a no-brainer. Nurse, 30, is among the most identifiable faces in females’s

hockey. At the 2022 Beijing Olympics, she broke a record for points in a single competition(18) and ended up being the first woman to appear on the cover of an EA Sports hockey game with NHL 23. She was an essential figure in the launch of the PWHL as a member of the player-led bargaining committee that struck a first-of-its-kind CBA.She was second in league-wide goals(11)and points( 23)in the

inaugural season and was well on her way to a strong sophomore year with 12 points in her very first 15 games before missing out on several weeks with a lower-body injury.Advertisement Nurse is a versatile foundational forward for Vancouver, with the capability to highlight the middle or on the wing. She has great hands, an outstanding shot and has shown to be a high-impact player for both club and nation.”What I enjoy about Sarah, as a teammate and as a hockey player, is that she does the little things right. She’s flexible.

She can win draws, she’s tough to play against, you can trust her in tough matches,” Team Canada defender Erin Ambrose told The Athletic last season.” For so long with the national group, that was her m.o. Whatever you required, she was there.”Vancouver will likely get a highly encouraged– totally healthy– Nurse next season after being left unguarded by her previous team.Off the ice, no player is better matched to be the face of a brand-new franchise.Advertisement Nurse is personalized, charming, extremely valuable and comprehends her role in growing the game. In Toronto, with her” Nursey Night “occasions, she brought over 200 kids from underprivileged neighborhoods to games, met with them postgame and provided mentorship throughout the year.Nurse signs up with a core group in Vancouver that already includes star defenders Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques, which leaves Vancouver with 2 last signing areas before the window closes on Sunday night.The PWHL’s Vancouver team will debut in the fall of 2025 and will dip into the Pacific Coliseum, the previous home of the WHL’s Vancouver Giants and the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks.This article initially appeared in The Athletic.NHL, Women’s Hockey 2025 The Athletic Media Business