More Than a Game: When the PWHL Took Over Washington, D.C.

There are sporting events you remember because of the score, and then there are the ones that sit heavier in your chest….the kind that feel like a line being crossed. The PWHL Takeover Tour’s stop in Washington, D.C. was very much the latter.

Twenty-four hours later, somewhere on the road heading south, the noise still hadn’t left my head. The roar that hit Capital One Arena when the attendance record was announced (17,228) wasn’t polite applause or a marketing beat. It was a visceral, full-throated eruption. We were down in the pits at ice level in the third period, cameras in hand, when the number flashed. The building shook. People screamed. People sang. I felt it in my throat before I felt it in my eyes. It’s what happens when people realize they’re part of something that matters.

For me, the Takeover Tour coming to D.C. was never just “a cool, a big event.” This is my city. This is where I live, where I play, where I coach. Seeing the best women’s hockey players in the world skate in the same building where we watch NHL games already felt surreal. The line between “fan,” “coach,” and “media” blurred in the best possible way.

On the ice, the game delivered exactly what the moment deserved. The New York Sirens edged the Montréal Victoire 2–1 in a tight, physical, playoff-level contest. Kristýna Kaltounková opened the scoring just 84 seconds in, ripping a power-play goal that immediately set the tone. Montréal answered late in the first, and the game turned into a goaltending duel and trench fight until the end. New York found the winner off a faceoff in the second period, and from there it was survival hockey. Blocked shots, crease scrambles, and mounting tension.

But the story of the weekend, at least from our vantage point at ČWHR, lived just as much off the ice.

We had the chance to speak with both Czech players during the weekend, and the contrast between those conversations stuck with me. Natálie Mlýnková caught up with us at MedStar Caps Iceplex before Montréal’s practice. She was warm, kind, and genuinely happy to see us, but also tired in that way only pro athletes understand. When we asked how her season was going and how she was adapting to professional life, she didn’t sugarcoat it. The grind is real. Injuries happen. The pace is relentless. And yet, she kept coming back to the same thing: how grateful she is to be playing hockey professionally at all.

That conversation grounded everything. These women aren’t abstract symbols, they’re working professionals. They’re managing their bodies, their finances, their futures. They’re trying to stay healthy, yes especially with the Olympics looming quietly in the background, but they’re also just trying to make it, to survive, to build something sustainable. Nat felt focused, worn, optimistic, and proud all at once. It was human in the most honest sense.

Kaltounková, by contrast, had a lighter, more buoyant energy when we finally connected. The New York Sirens had travel delays getting into D.C., which unfortunately meant their scheduled practice, slated to follow Montréal’s on Saturday, had to be canceled. Even so, the Sirens’ PR team went out of their way to make time for us. We were incredibly grateful to get a chance to chat not only with Kalty but also with Jamie Bourbonnais. Those efforts matter. Access matters. Being seen matters.

Beyond the Czech lens, what struck us was how universally excited players were to be in Washington. Over the course of the weekend, we spoke with Marie-Philip Poulin, Hayley Scamurra, and Laura Stacey and every single one of them echoed the same sentiment: D.C. felt special. Scamurra, who has deep roots in the area, was visibly emotional about the crowd. Poulin reflected on how different this visit felt compared to her previous trips with the PWHPA, before the PWHL even existed. I mentioned to her that the last time she’d been in town, this kind of arena, this kind of turnout, simply wasn’t possible. Seeing her back under these circumstances, in a full NHL building, as part of a stable, unified league, was quietly powerful.

That’s the through-line that kept emerging all weekend: contrast. Before and after. Then and now.

And what makes the PWHL unique, what truly separates it, is how intentional it feels. The league makes space for creators, independent media, and niche platforms like ČWHR to exist inside the ecosystem. We’re not treated as an afterthought or a novelty. We’re welcomed. From league staff to coaches to players, there’s a sense that storytelling matters here, that growing the game means letting people tell it from many angles. It feels less like a polished product and more like a community that’s still being built in real time.

That sense of belonging is why we do this. It’s why we’re in rinks instead of just behind screens. It’s why moments like this hit harder than numbers on a stat sheet ever could.

On April 11, we’ll be at Madison Square Garden for New York vs. Seattle. Our first time at MSG. Women’s professional hockey in one of the most iconic arenas on the planet. Another “holy ****, this is real” moment waiting to happen.

The D.C. Takeover was a proof point. That women’s hockey doesn’t need qualifiers. That international players including Czech women don’t need to be framed as exceptions. That the audience is already here. The passion is already here. The future isn’t coming.

It’s here now. And it’s not going anywhere.