‘THERE NEEDS TO BE ONE LEAGUE’

CANADIAN, AMERICAN LOOPS CONTINUE TO SPLIT WOMEN’S HOCKEY ATTENTION

The Canadian Women’s Hockey League kicks off its schedule on Saturday and as is typical for the CWHL, the off-season brought many changes. Moves that would be seismic in a lot of pro leagues happen somewhat routinely in the best women’s hockey league in the world.

Its two China-based teams, the addition of which was the shock of last offseason, have been collapsed into one. The Boston Blades moved to the delightfully named suburb of Worcester. And longtime commissioner Brenda Andress stepped down, replaced by Canadian national team legend Jayna Hefford, a 15-year alum of the CWHL and pending member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

So, things change.

But one thing that has not is the question that has plagued the CWHL since the upstart NWHL began in the United States a few years ago and siphoned away some of its talent: Why isn’t there just the one league for elite professional women?

Hefford, 41, knows there is not a simple answer to that question.

“It’s not an easy fix,” she says. “Navigating the road of what that truly means is difficult. There needs to be one league and I just don’t know what that looks like.”

Would the two leagues merge? Would one absorb the other? Would a bunch of teams fold and the survivors move?

Looming above all that is the National Hockey League, which commissioner Gary Bettman has already said would be more active in supporting a women’s league if there wasn’t already two competing leagues. Could a combined women’s league be run under the auspices of the NHL? Could it be independently run, but with formal NHL support?

The careful reader will note that there are many questions so far and few answers. But some level of clarity could begin to come as early as next week, when Hefford is scheduled to meet with Bettman.

She knows that he could be a valuable partner.

“I want to hear it myself to understand what their vision is and where their level of interest lies,” Hefford says.

“I don’t want to take it as hearsay. I haven’t had that conversation yet.”

So, one league was the goal when Hefford took the job in July — she is technically the interim commissioner for now — and it remains the goal now. But, baby steps.

“Unfortunately, I think that will just take longer to work through than everyone hopes it would,” she says.

But there will be no lack of change in the on-ice product in the coming season. The two teams that began play last season based in Shenzhen, China — Kunlun Red Star and Vanke Rays — have become one team: Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays, which does not exactly roll off the tongue. The roster will again be a mix of non-Chinese imports, including American Kelli Stack, the reigning league MVP, Canadians Melanie Jue and Jessica Wong, and Finnish goaltender Noora Raty, plus several young Chinese players who are being groomed for national team success.

It’s an unusual experiment, to be sure, with the imports paid handsomely as hockey ambassadors to circumvent the CWHL’s modest salary structure and the whole thing underwritten by the Chinese sports ministry with an eye to fielding a competitive women’s team at the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.

But Kunlun Red Star was good enough to make the Clarkson Cup final last year, losing in overtime to the Markham Thunder.

The CWHL’s other five teams will each visit Shenzhen for a week and play three games, while, um, SKRSVR will play its road games over two-week stretches this month and again in January. “They want to grow the game and also they want to win,” Hefford says of the Chinese program.

But the fact that they are building toward 2022 is a reminder that the Olympics just finished last winter, which means women’s hockey is entering what is a traditional downtime from an exposure standpoint.

Despite another CanadaUnited States gold-medal thriller in Pyeongchang, Hefford knows what it’s like to have played on that big stage and then return to the relative wilderness of the women’s pro game.

“That’s always been our challenge,” she says. “We’ve always had a lot of interest in the Olympic years, and maintaining that momentum is important.”

She says she wants to increase the visibility of the players and notes the league is as strong as it has ever been, talent-wise, with the addition of American Olympians such as Hilary Knight in Montreal and Brianna Decker and Kacey Bellamy in Calgary (side note: each jumped from the NWHL).

“We want to make sure people know who the players are and how many great stars we have in the league,” Hefford says.

It’s been five years since she played among them, but Hefford, one of the leaders of the Canadian team that won four Olympic gold medals and seven world championships, is undoubtedly one of the players that inspired some of the league’s current stars.

Not that she is eager to claim credit for it.

“To be honest, I don’t think about it a lot,” she says.

“When I do think about the history of the game, I think about the people who played before me, who played before it was in the Olympic Games, before there even was a national team.

“They were the ones who were breaking barriers around women being allowed to play the game.”

“I understand our generation played a role, but I think it’s one of those things where everyone played their part,” Hefford says.

Now she’s just playing it in a different way.

Five games into the season, the Toronto Maple Leafs are scoring goals at a historic pace. And they are doing it without William Nylander.

For the Leafs, this means either one of two things: they will be an even deadlier offensive team when the 22-year-old eventually signs an extension or they don’t need him in the lineup as much as they thought they would.

Toronto, led by Auston Matthews’ league-leading nine goals and Morgan Rielly’s 12 points, is 4-1-0 without Nylander.

In his absence, Kasperi Kapanen has emerged as a near-perfect substitute on the top line, scoring four points in five games.

In other words, the Leafs don’t really miss Nylander as much as he probably misses them. But they could still use him even if GM Kyle Dubas is ready to move on without him.

While the Leafs’ offence is clicking, their defence remains a work in progress.

The team, which had to score its way out of trouble against Chicago and Dallas, is giving up four goals per game. Nylander cannot help that stat, unless, of course, the Leafs flip him to another team for a defenceman.

It’s not something Dubas wants to do, because it sets a bad precedent for future restricted free agents.

But if done properly — along the lines of the Ryan Johansen for Seth Jones trade rather than the Taylor Hall for Adam Larsson trade — it could benefit the Leafs in a way Nylander’s return wouldn’t.

Here are eight teams that might be interested in acquiring Nylander, and who have something that Toronto would be interested in:

ARIZONA

Why they need him: The Coyotes, who have been shut out in two of their three games, cannot seem to score. Put Nylander in their lineup and that changes dramatically. Who knows, he might even revive Dylan Strome’s career.

What they could offer: Jakob Chychrun, who is currently out with an injury, is not a polished defenceman by any means. But he’s 20 years old, was a first-round pick in 2016, and scored seven goals and 20 points two years ago as a rookie. With his size and skating ability, he’s got top-2 potential.

CAROLINA

Why they need him: Trading Jeff Skinner to Buffalo for a package of prospects and picks essentially took 25 to 30 goals out of Carolina’s lineup. Nylander, who reached the 20-goal mark in back-to-back seasons, would replace that offence and more.

What they could offer: The Hurricanes parted with defenceman Noah Hanifin in a trade with the Flames, but they still have options on defence.

The most obvious one is Justin Faulk, a right-handed shot who logs a ton of minutes and is still relatively young. Of course, Toronto’s analytics department is probably far more interested in 23-year-old Brett Pesce.

COLUMBUS

Why they need him: Artemi Panarin looks like he won’t be re-signing with the Blue Jackets, meaning there could be a serious need for a high-scoring winger to play alongside Pierre-Luc Dubois or Alexander Wennberg.

What they could offer: The Leafs could take Panarin back in a one-for-one trade, but the player that suits their needs even more is a defenceman. Columbus has a lot of them, with Zach Werenski the most appealing. The 21-year-old, who played with Auston Matthews with the USNDTP, was the eighth-overall pick in 2015. And he’s coming off a year in which he scored 16 goals — second-most amongst NHL defencemen.

EDMONTON OILERS

Why they need him: Connor McDavid needs a wing man who can shoot the puck. Nylander, who had 205 shots while playing mostly with Auston Matthews last season, can do that no problem.

What they could offer: It would be funny if the Oilers offered Adam Larsson. After all, GM Peter Chiarelli acquired the stay-at-home defenceman two years ago in exchange for Taylor Hall. Then again, Darnell Nurse seems a more reasonable fit, especially since Dubas initially drafted him when he was the GM of the OHL’s Greyhounds.

NASHVILLE

Why they need him: While the Predators’ defence is amongst the best in the league, their forwards could use a bit of an upgrade. Nashville didn’t have a 30-goal scorer last season or anyone who was ranked amongst the top-50 in points.

What they could offer: You’re not getting Roman Josi and P.K. Subban might have too rich of a contract. Mattias Ekholm can log big minutes, chip in goals and help Toronto on the penalty kill. But if the Leafs want a right-handed shot to play with Morgan Rielly or Jake Gardiner, then 27-year-old Ryan Ellis could be a nice addition.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Why they need him: Losing John Tavares took a point per game forward out of the Islanders’ lineup. And though Nylander might be better suited as a winger, he has played centre and could slot in nicely behind Mathew Barzal. Either way, the Lou Lamoriello connection means Dubas has probably been answering his calls in the last two weeks.

What they could offer: The Islanders selected two blue-chip defencemen in this year’s draft (Noah Dobson, 12th overall, and Bode Wilde, 41st), who could be a year or two away from NHL duty. But the player the Leafs would likely target is 24-year-old defenceman Ryan Pulock, a 2015 first-round pick who scored 10 goals and 32 points as a rookie last season.

NEW YORK RANGERS

Why they need him: The Rangers are rebuilding and could use all the help they could get. Nylander would instantly be the team’s best forward.

What they could offer: The Rangers would obviously want to unload Kevin Shattenkirk’s $6.65-million cap hit, especially since he’s been a healthy scratch this season. But there’s no chance of that happening. Instead, 24-yearold Brady Skjei has the size (6-foot-3 and 214 pounds), skill (one goal and one assist in four games) and capfriendly contract (six years at $5.25 million annually) that Toronto covets.

VANCOUVER

Why they need him: Adding Nylander to a roster that already includes Elias Pettersson could give Vancouver the second coming of the Sedins.

What they could offer: This is a tough one. Chris Tanev, who played alongside Rielly at the 2016 World Championships, might be too old and too banged up. And seventh-overall pick Quinn Hughes has far too much potential to give up at this time. Would the Leafs want to take a chance on Olli Juolevi, a fifth-overall pick in 2016 who has yet to play a game in the NHL? Or could Erik Gudbranson be a starting point?