PWHL 2025-26 Takeover Tour schedule and cities: 16 neutral-site games in 11 new and returning markets

The Professional Women’s Hockey League is doubling the size of its neutral-site caravan this winter. When the puck drops on December 17 in Halifax, the 2025-26 PWHL Takeover Tour will roll through 16 regular-season games spread across 11 cities—seven of them first-time hosts—before wrapping up in Edmonton on April 7. Last season’s nine-game loop drew 123,601 fans and set attendance records in Detroit and Vancouver; league executives are betting that an expanded calendar and a broader map will accelerate the sport’s reach even faster.

Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s Executive Vice-President of Business Operations, calls the concept “a travelling showcase for the world’s best players.” Every one of the league’s eight clubs will skate in at least three Takeover Tour contests, with Montréal, New York and Vancouver each appearing five times. Below is the complete PWHL 2025-26 Takeover Tour schedule and cities guide, plus ticket information, venue notes and storylines to watch.

PWHL 2025-26 Takeover Tour schedule and cities: the full calendar

All face-off times are local to the host building. Presales begin Thursday, November 13; public on-sale is Friday, November 14 at 10 a.m. in each market.

Five buildings—Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Edmonton and Halifax—will each host two games, giving local organisers a better chance to build buzz with double-weekend packages or rivalry rematches.

First-time hosts on the PWHL 2025-26 Takeover Tour schedule and cities map

1. Calgary, AB – Saddledome, Apr. 1
   The Flames’ barn hasn’t seen top-tier women’s hockey since the 2013 Women’s World Championship. With Alberta-born stars such as Blayre Turnbull and Renata Fast likely suiting up, expect a red-sea turnout.

2. Chicago, IL – Allstate Arena, Dec. 21 & Mar. 25
   The Wolves’ rink holds 16,000 and sits next to O’Hare, ideal for fly-in fans. The league purposely placed two high-table clashes—Ottawa-Minnesota and New York-Seattle—on weekend dates to maximise Midwest reach.

3. Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center, Dec. 28
   Everything’s bigger in Texas, including the stage: Seattle meets New York in a rematch of last year’s 3-2 OT thriller in Newark. Local youth associations have already ordered 40 group sections.

4. Halifax, NS – Scotiabank Centre, Dec. 17 & Jan. 11
   Nova Scotia’s government signed on as presenting partner, hoping to duplicate the 2019 World Juniors tourism bump. The twin bill features three Canadian clubs and an Original Six flavour with Toronto-Montréal opening the tour.

5. Hamilton, ON – FirstOntario Centre, Jan. 3
   A one-hour GO-train ride from Toronto, the steel-town venue gives Maple Leafs fans a cheaper ticket to see Natalie Spooner and Sarah Nurse on the same sheet.

6. Washington, D.C. – Capital One Arena, Jan. 18
   The U.S. capital last hosted women’s pro hockey in 2017. With the NWSL’s Spirit drawing 15k crowds down the street, the PWHL is targeting the same politically engaged demographic for a Montréal-New York matinée.

7. Winnipeg, MB – Canada Life Centre, Mar. 22
   The league’s most central market finally gets a regular-season taste. Manitoba natives Jocelyne Larocque and Kristen Campbell could headline a playoff-preview tilt between Montréal and Ottawa.

Returning cities that proved their worth

• Denver, CO – Ball Arena, Jan. 25 & Mar. 15
  Mile-High magic struck last February when 13,886 watched Minnesota edge Boston. Woody Creek Distillers returns as presenting partner; both 2026 games feature Vancouver-Seattle and New York-Minnesota, two rivalries that could decide postseason seeding.

• Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena, Jan. 3 & Mar. 28
  The 2024 record (14,288) still stands as the U.S. benchmark for women’s pro hockey. Ally Financial’s multi-game deal ensures prime ice-time and a league-leading production budget.

• Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place, Dec. 27 & Apr. 7
  Explore Edmonton’s two-year extension guarantees season-bookend dates. The late-April finale could be a must-win for Boston or Vancouver in the playoff push.

• Québec City, QC – Videotron Centre, Jan. 11
  The 2024 neutral-site opener sold 18,000 tickets in 48 hours. Videotron remains the only QMJHL rink big enough to handle PWHL crowds, and the league loves the European-style atmosphere.

How the 2025-26 PWHL Takeover Tour schedule and cities were chosen

League officials evaluated more than 40 bids across eight months, weighing arena availability, local corporate support and travel logistics against the existing 240-game regular-season matrix. Priority went to NHL buildings in non-PWHL markets, but 12,000-plus capacity and a proven ability to stage ancillary fan festivals were non-negotiables. DoorDash’s title partnership in Canada freed budget to add mid-week dates in Calgary and Winnipeg, while U.S. brands such as BJ’s Wholesale Club ( Dallas) and Ally (Detroit) underwrote American legs.

Scheer says geography played a role, too: “We wanted a true coast-to-coast footprint. This year we’ll touch every time-zone except Pacific in the U.S., and every region in Canada except the North.”

Ticket intel and fan-experience extras

• Price range: CAD $19–$129 in Canada; USD $18–$119 in the States.
• Group sales: 10-plus tickets unlock on-ice post-skate sessions in Calgary, Hamilton and Halifax.
• Theme nights: Star-Wars night in Denver (Jan. 25), Indigenous celebration in Winnipeg (Mar. 22) and a Bell Let’s Talk mental-health matinée in Halifax (Jan. 11).
• Streaming: All 16 games air on CBC (Canada) and ESPN+ (U.S.) as part of the league’s national packages.

Storylines to follow on the road

1. Expansion hangover? Vancouver and Seattle enter their second seasons after combining for only 18 wins. A strong Takeover Tour could energise new fan bases on both sides of the Cascadia rivalry.

2. Goaltending carousel Minnesota’s roster overhaul includes Team USA’s Aerin Frankel; she makes her Frost debut in Chicago on December 21.

3. Rookie watch First-overall pick Sarah Fillier (New York) squares off against Montréal’s Marie-Philip Poulin in Washington—an early Calder Trophy measuring stick.

4. Playoff preview The March 28 Detroit double-header (New York-Montréal) lands one week before the regular-season finale and could decide home-ice for a best-of-three quarter-final.

What the 2025-26 PWHL Takeover Tour schedule and cities mean for the league’s future

By tripling its original concept, the PWHL is essentially running a 32-city feasibility study in real time. Strong gate numbers in Chicago or Dallas could fast-track expansion franchises, while under-performing markets risk falling off the 2026-27 map. The tour also gives sponsors a travelling billboard: DoorDash will hand out promo codes at every Canadian stop, and regional tourism boards from Nova Scotia to Alberta are bundling hotel-park-and-play packages.

More importantly, the caravan keeps the league in headlines during the NFL playoffs and March Madness, traditionally dead zones for hockey buzz. If last year’s 80% first-timer rate holds, the PWHL could welcome another 100,000 new fans without expanding its core footprint—proof that neutral-site hockey can scale faster than bricks-and-mortar arenas.

Mark your calendar for December 17, when the puck drops in Halifax and another 112-day hockey road trip begins. Whether you’re a Prairie purist in Winnipeg or a Beltway bandit in Washington, the world’s best women’s players are coming to a rink near you—and the 2025-26 PWHL Takeover Tour schedule and cities map is the only GPS you’ll need.