The PWHL has two new teams. That means the PWHL has two new nicknames and logo sets. Most importantly, that means it’s time for a fresh set of rankings.
How do the Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes stack up against the league’s original six? The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian, Sean McIndoe and Sean Gentille teamed up to figure it out. Spoiler: One expansion team fared a whole lot better than the other.
1. Vancouver Goldeneyes
Salvian rank: 1
Gentille rank: 1
McIndoe rank: 1
McIndoe: This one is … awesome? I’m teetering a bit, only because I can see this being the sort of logo that seems cool at first but whose novelty wears off quickly. But for now, the name is pretty cool, even if you never owned a Nintendo 64. And the logo works well for me, with lots going on without being overly complicated — really nice work.
Salvian: I’m not in love with the name, only because I had no idea what a “Common Goldeneye” was — or that it’s a bird native to Vancouver — before the names came out. However, the logo looks unbelievable, and the color palette is maybe my favorite in the league. Fun fact: The league says the eye points to the Pacific Northwest, which is a fun nod to expansion without making the logo look too busy. I didn’t plan on dethroning the Montreal Victoire when I started this project, but I’m sad to say it’s happened.
Gentille: I indeed owned a Nintendo 64, so I’m a mark for the name. This is the best color scheme in the league — and that’s a solid accomplishment, given how well the PWHL has done elsewhere in that department. My only issue here, kind of like McIndoe’s, is that the logo winds up looking a bit too much like a secondary, shoulder-patch sort of thing. Overall, though, huge win, starting with the fact that they’ve got a plural nickname that references something local without being cloying.
2. New York Sirens
Salvian rank: 3
Gentille rank: 2
McIndoe rank: 2
McIndoe: The logo is fine. On its own, it’s a C-plus, maybe a B-minus. But I’m ranking the Sirens this high because I was told to consider the name/logo combo, and this is flat out one of the single best team names in all of pro sports. “Sirens” is the sound of a hockey goal, a reference to classic mythological females, and the soundtrack of downtown New York. To paraphrase the immortal George Carlin: “That’s clever stuff! That’s a triple pun, gosh darn it, you didn’t think of it!” The logo would have to be bad to mess that up, and it isn’t.
Salvian: I’ve soured on New York a tiny bit over the last year. I still love the colors and the name, but the logo — the soundwave “S” detail, in particular — stresses me out. It hurts my eyes (yes, I need glasses) and makes me feel like I’m being yelled at or honked at while I’m trying to find coffee in midtown Manhattan. None of that is enough to drop New York down meaningfully, though. It’s still great! Please don’t yell at me!
Gentille: I had them at No. 2 last year, and I’m standing firm. McIndoe stole all my reasoning, as so often is the case. The teal still puts it over the top.
3. Montreal Victoire
Salvian rank: 2
Gentille rank: 3
McIndoe rank: 3
Salvian: You could make the argument that the Sirens have the better name – especially if you’re French and trying to write something like “Victoire pour la victoire!” — but Montreal has the best complete package of the original six teams. The colors are great, the sand colored away jerseys are stunning, and I like all the little details in the logo.
McIndoe: I like this combo a lot, even as I found myself a little surprised at how it was everyone’s near-unanimous pick as the best of the original six. But it’s very good, with the logo being the best of the 2024 batch by a decent margin. On my list, the Sirens and Victoire are a coin flip, with a solid gap down to the next tier.
Gentille: The Victoire’s logo works better as a center crest than any other logo in the league, but there’s too much detail for it to pop on a smaller scale. I still love the originality on this one, but the Sirens and Goldeneyes are more complete packages.
4. Toronto Sceptres
Salvian rank: 4
Gentille rank: 4
McIndoe rank: 4
Salvian: I have not and will never call Toronto “the Queen City,” which is how this name and logo came to be. If I ignore that slice of lore, it’s a nice look!
Gentille: It’s a clean look, but I wondered initially whether it’d look a little boring on a jersey, and I think I’ve been proven correct.
McIndoe: The name works well enough, and the logo is maybe a bit simple compared to the others, but that’s OK. It passes the pencil case test. Did we ever decide if they were trying to do a Taylor Swift thing here?
Salvian: I don’t think it was on purpose, but Swifties were definitely quick to point out the similarities last year to the point where the league made a statement to the Toronto Star:
“While we welcome the comparison to Taylor, our logo started with the Sceptre symbol at its core, with the top and bottom points of an ornamented rod. From that starting point, the Toronto Sceptres logo was born.”
Again, why did it start with a Sceptre symbol? Many cities claim to be “the Queen City,” such as Charlotte, N.C., or Cincinnati. I was not aware my home was on the list.
5. Boston Fleet
Salvian rank: 5
Gentille rank: 5
McIndoe rank: 5
Salvian: Last time around, I had a defined top three and bottom three, with Boston at the top of the second tier. A year later, the Fleet is more of a coin flip with the Sceptres. I always liked the fishhook “B,” but I think the logo really benefited from being seen on a jersey.
McIndoe: I don’t hate it. I’ve always enjoyed a sports logo that takes letters and turns them into something clever, like the Milwaukee Brewers or Montreal Expos. The all-time king of the genre is the Hartford Whalers, and this one seems intentionally evocative of that classic. The wavy lines don’t work for me, but it’s a pun, so I have to give points for the effort.
Gentille: I wound up liking this one more than I thought. It’s a bit “create-a-team-ish,” but the logo looks great on the jersey, and the color scheme is a proven winner.
6. Seattle Torrent
Salvian rank: 6
Gentille rank: 7
McIndoe rank: 6
McIndoe: I’m old enough that “Torrent” makes me think of stealing music, so maybe I’m not the target audience here. I don’t love the name, but the logo is fine. I like that the color scheme nods to the Kraken without ripping them off, because a little cross-league synergy isn’t a bad thing. For now, I’d say this one is OK, with maybe some room to grow on me after I’ve seen it a bit. But I can’t imagine anyone thinking this is the better of the two expansion entries.
Gentille: When they’re playing home games at Climate Pledge Arena, are we going to refer to it as “The Pirate Bay?” The name is whatever, and the color scheme is fine, but the logo looks like it came off a gum wrapper. Not for me.
Salvian: A torrent can also be a fast-moving stream of water (like a Seattle river!) or even rain, which feels like a nod to the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. I appreciate trying to stay within the Seattle sports ecosystem, but the Torrent name isn’t doing much for me. The “S” looks like a swirl of water, and I love the colors (how many times have I said that already?). I honestly think it will grow on me, too.
7. Minnesota Frost
Salvian rank: 7
Gentille rank: 6
McIndoe rank: 7
McIndoe: The name is OK, as far as non-plurals go. The logo doesn’t work for me. It’s just a scary, pointy “F”, plus I don’t really get how purple and frost work together. (Also, I saw that last year Shayna Goldman had suggested Reign, so that Minnesota would have a purple Reign, and I can’t stop thinking about how much better that would have been.)
Salvian: *Taps the IP sign that includes the Seattle Reign (NWSL) and Ontario Reign (AHL)*
I’ll also add that the purple color palette does work for me. But the jerseys feel empty, even with the championship patch being added.
Gentille: Decent usage of negative space — the side of the “F” looks like a mountain — keeps Minnesota squarely in the middle tier. The nickname puts a hard cap on the ceiling, though.
8. Ottawa Charge
Salvian rank: 8
Gentille rank: 8
McIndoe rank: 8
McIndoe: I didn’t like it a year ago — it felt too much like the Calgary Flames, while having little or nothing to do with Ottawa and the surrounding area — but since it was my local team, I was willing to let it grow on me. One year later, I can report that it has not. Ah, well, I guess not every Ottawa hockey team can have its name become a cultural phenomenon.
Salvian: Unfortunately, Ottawa remains at the bottom of my list, and that’s a shame because the fan base might be one of the loudest and most dedicated in the league. And maybe it’s because I’m writing this story from a Cleveland hotel room, but all I can see when I look at the Charge logo is the Cavaliers’ “C,” but with a few more little “electricity power” spikes. And I feel like that’s not a good thing?
Gentille: Last year, I compared the logo to something you’d see from a defunct software company, and that stance has not changed. I’m on McIndoe’s side here regarding the nickname, too — say what you will about the Fleet or the Frost, but they’ve at least got some local tie. That’s not the case with Ottawa.
