Can't believe Kris Sparre did all that and then took Alina Muller in the custody battle. He split up the bonded pair!! I'm calling child protective services!!
PWHL LAS VEGAS BUILDS BLUE LINE WITH MAE BATHERSON AND KENDALL COOPER AS HISTORIC FIRST SIGNINGS
PWHL Las Vegas today announced that defenders Mae Batherson and Kendall Cooper are the team’s first-ever players, signing the duo to two-year Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) Standard Player Agreements ahead of the team’s inaugural 2026-27 season.
Signed through the 2027-28 campaign, Batherson and Cooper are reunited on the blue line after spending the 2025-26 season as teammates with the Minnesota Frost and are the first two of five players to be added to PWHL Las Vegas during Phase 2 of the PWHL’s Expansion Roster Distribution Process.
Worst argument on earth about people not loving forced player movement is being like “well this is how it works in other sports (and by other sports they primarily mean USA/Canada leagues) if they want to be professional they have to deal with it!” Like okay yes but in the big four they making millions to do it not coordinator level white collar office job salary. I mean we can talk about if it’s even ethical for the millions (I don’t think so) but you can at least argue they’re paid for the inconvenience. And I’ve seen people are repeat that it’s the reality of sports and the privilege of being a pro athlete and honestly like. No it’s not a privilege it’s a job they do something they’re very good at and dedicate more time to than the average person dedicates to their job and their building up the league value which the owners will likely get a new profit off of in 2033 or whenever when the teams sell. It’s not a privilege to work a job you’re qualified for just because it’s an entertainment job lol especially these athletes who aren’t even getting like generational wealth or anything from this
For some positive Fleet news today, assistant coach Stefanie McKeough was recently on a podcast where she talks about her journey from youth hockey in Ottawa to Wisconsin to coaching in the PWHL. It is a really great listen if you have the time!
Watch it on Youtube here or it is also on Spotify
Some highlights from the pod:
Meghan Duggan and Vicky Sunohara were role models for her
The Fleet equipment managers rank the popcorn at each arena
She never considered coaching until suffering a career ending injury
She moved to a town in Sweden with 85 people to escape Hockey
Googled the local girls team to volunteer and ended up with a coaching job in the SDHL
Moved back and coached at UOttawa during Covid
Courtney Kessel texted her the day after the inaugural draft saying the league was legit, and convinced her to come to Boston
A film crew followed the team every day of year 1, making the Rise documentary, but it was originally supposed to be much longer
Cassie Campbell-Pascall signed autographs for 4 hours in a McDonald's after winning worlds
Some college coaches drove into the Carlsbad Springs ditches trying to get to her house for recruiting visits
Doesn't think she's a brilliant tactician but focuses on building player trust and buy-in to the system
A big step for her as a coach was learning how to teach others how she sees the game