NEW YORK AND TORONTO — The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) today announced expansion to San Jose, California, rounding out the league’s four-team expansion class set to debut for the 2026-27 season. PWHL San Jose will play its home games at SAP Center and train at Sharks Ice at San Jose, following an expansion bid led by Sharks Sports & Entertainment and the City of San Jose.
San Jose and the Bay Area represent a compelling next step for the future of the PWHL, featuring a unique combination of established professional and youth hockey culture, record-setting support for women’s sports, continued opportunity for league geographic diversity, and a strong corporate base.
While Northern California is a new market for pro women’s hockey, the San Jose Sharks have helped build a strong local hockey community in the Bay Area, which boasts one of the largest ice facilities in the Western United States, while California ranks sixth in the country in girls’ hockey participation behind five colder-climate regions. Off the ice, after welcoming the NWSL’s Bay FC and the WNBA’s Golden State Valkyries in 2024 and 2025 respectively, fans have propelled both teams to league attendance records. San Jose’s location places four PWHL teams in the Pacific Time Zone, expanding the league’s footprint and offering more balance for scheduling and travel.
Today’s announcement also unveils PWHL San Jose’s official team colors: a bright, bold palette of orange, blue, and white, inspired by the San Jose flag and reflecting the Bay Area’s optimistic energy. Orange is also a nod to the Sharks and the region’s historic orange groves, while blue evokes the beauty of California’s ocean coastline and sky. PWHL San Jose merchandise is available to U.S. fans now at thePWHL.com/shop, opens in a new tab.
San Jose follows Detroit, Hamilton, and Las Vegas as the PWHL’s 2026-27 expansion markets, joining the league’s eight current markets — Boston, Minnesota, Montréal, New York, Ottawa, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver. Details about a forthcoming expansion roster building process, and how expansion teams will be integrated into the 2026 PWHL Draft, will be announced in the coming weeks.
Fans can place a time-stamped deposit here, opens in a new tab to secure priority access to season tickets for PWHL San Jose’s historic inaugural season, once ticket packages are released. To learn more and stay up to date, visit PWHLSanJose.com, subscribe to PWHL San Jose’s newsletter here, opens in a new tab, and follow the team on Facebook PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab, Instagram @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, X @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, TikTok @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, YouTube PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab, Threads @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, Bluesky @PWHL-SanJose, opens in a new tab, and LinkedIn PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab.
