Forward momentum
PWHL Detroit is poised to ice a dynamic and offensively gifted roster this fall. In an interview with Melissa Burgess of The Ice Garden, general manager Manon Rhéaume acknowledged this focus, saying, “The way [we’re] built right now, we’re strong, really strong offensively.” A closer look under the hood reveals the building blocks for success: maintaining production, rebounding from injury and quickly establishing roles for rookies.
Established stars
Daryl Watts lit up the PWHL in 2024-25, scoring 12 goals and 27 points, good for third in the league. Then, expansion rocked the Toronto Sceptres, marked crucially by the departures of Sarah Nurse, Julia Gosling and Hannah Miller. The result was a league-worst total of 51 goals in 2025-26 (12 fewer than the next-lowest-scoring team). Despite the exodus of top-end talent, Watts scored 10 goals and tallied 19 points to lead the Sceptres that season. At the 2026 Olympics, Watts showed what she can do with a strong supporting cast, leading Team Canada with 8 points in seven games.
Meanwhile, with Team USA, Britta Curl-Salemme posted 6 points in seven games en route to the gold. In the PWHL, she broke out last season, jumping from her 15-point rookie season to a 29-point season in 2025-26. The Minnesota Frost were an offensive powerhouse, leading the league with 91 goals and the top three players in points. Curl-Salemme may just be the linemate needed to help Watts get back into the scoring title race while maintaining her own production.
Shortened seasons
A trio of PWHL Detroit signings missed more than seven games this past season due to injury. With an offseason to rest and rehab, hopes are high for Hilary Knight, Hannah Bilka and Taylor Girard to rebound into key offensive contributors. All three rank among the top players in points per 60 minutes of ice time for forwards who missed at least a quarter of the season.
Knight tied for league leader in points in her last full season (2024-25), racking up 15 goals and 14 assists for the Boston Fleet. Battling through injury during the 2026 Olympics, she captained USA to victory, posting 6 points in seven games. Her teammate Bilka lost time in her rookie season with the Fleet due to a lower-body injury sustained in the USA–Canada Rivalry series in early 2025. Despite her shortened debut season, Bilka still finished with 11 points in 16 games. In 2025-26, she posted 9 points in 14 games before suffering an upper-body injury at the Olympics that ended her season. A 2024-25 first-round pick for Fleet, the 25-year-old Bilka will be eager to show her full potential in Detroit.
Youth infusion
After landing a starting goaltender and a defender with the first two selections at the 2026 draft, Rhéaume used all four remaining picks on forwards. MK O’Brien (University of Minnesota Duluth), Kyla Josifovic (University of Connecticut), Sena Catterall (Clarkson University), and Georgia Schiff (Cornell University) each bring unique skill sets. Josifovic and Catterall boasted strong offensive production in their senior seasons. Josifovic led UConn with 40 points, and Catterall was second for Clarkson with 33 points, including 6 power play goals. Each of these players could play a key role in supplying depth scoring or being an option on a second power play unit. MK O’Brien, for her part, could be an asset in the faceoff dot.
Even with great pieces, head coach Josh Sciba will need to assemble the puzzle to maximize each player’s potential. Will he opt to keep Knight and Bilka together, hoping for built-in chemistry from their tenures on prior teams? Can any rookies crack a spot in the top half of the roster or power play squads? With only Shiann Darkangelo having significant PWHL faceoff experience, who will be PWHL Detroit’s number-one center?
