Breaking: NWHL expands into Canada, NHL backs women’s league

This past weekend the Canadian Women’s Hockey League (CWHL) abruptly announced that it will cease operations entirely on May 1st, 2019. Just two days later though, the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) has announced that it will expand into Canada for the upcoming 2019-20 season with teams in Toronto and Montreal.

Check out this report from ESPN’s Emily Kaplan:

Just spoke to Dani Rylan, have some women's hockey news to share: the NWHL board has approved investments in two Canadian markets. League expects to have teams in Toronto and Montreal this upcoming season. NWHL will have 7 teams.
— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) April 2, 2019

No word yet on whether the existing CWHL teams, the Toronto Furies and Montreal Canadiennes, will simply merge into the NWHL or if the league will create new franchises.

In addition, the NHL has stepped up to “significantly up its contribution” in the NWHL:

In addition, Dani Rylan met with Gary Bettman yesterday. The NHL has agreed to significantly up its contribution to the NWHL. The NHL is now one of the NWHL's biggest financial sponsors.
— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) April 2, 2019

Both the Furies and the Canadiennes received funding from the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens, but it’s unclear whether that will continue if the teams do in fact merge into the NWHL.

More to come on this breaking news story.