Connecticut Whale bringing professional women’s hockey to Simsbury
Women’s professional hockey is coming to the Hartford area.
The Connecticut Whale of the Premier Hockey Federation will play the majority of its home games at the International Skating Center in Simsbury next season.
“The Whale are thrilled to be putting down our roots at ISCC in Simsbury and bringing ‘Brass Bonanza’ back to the Greater Hartford area,” said Tobin Kelly, the franchise’s owner. “Preparation has been under way for some months now, and I can’t say enough about how hard ISCC ownership has been working to make this a great home for the Whale. We are looking forward to being a part of the community in Simsbury.”
The Whale, one of the four original franchises in the league, first known as the National Women’s Hockey League, has been playing downstate since 2015. Its first season was spent in Stamford, followed by a year in Northford, two more in Stamford and, since 2019, at the Danbury Ice Arena.
Last season, the Whale was 15-3-2, and lost the Isobel Cup final to Boston. The franchise sports the blue and green worn by the NHL Whalers, who left Hartford in 1997, and makes use of Brass Bonanza, the Whalers’ theme song.
Colton Orr, who played in the NHL for the Bruins, Rangers and Maple Leafs between 2003-2016, has been the Whale coach since 2019.
In May 2021, the Whale franchise was sold to an independent ownership group, Shared Hockey Enterprises, LLC, led by Tobin Kelly, reducing the league operated teams to three. The PHF includes the Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Montreal Force, Toronto Six, Minnesota Whitecaps and the Metropolitan Riveters, based in East Rutherford, N.J.
“We are so excited to bring the highest level of sports back to Simsbury and our surrounding communities,” said Kelle Becconsall, the International Skating Center’s owner and GM. “This building opened with Olympic figure skaters and has been host to many national hockey tournaments and competitions over the years. It’s been our mission to revitalize that hometown pride and bring ISCC back to the international spotlight. Now we get to host women’s professional hockey, and it doesn’t get much better than that. We’re beyond honored to have the Connecticut Whale call us their home rink and can’t wait to welcome them to ISCC.”
The Whale will play its first two home games at the Milford Ice Pavilion and use that as its practice rink during the season. The rest of the home schedule, to be released later, will be at Simsbury. The PHF doesn’t release attendance figures, but crowds at Whale games in Danbury before the pandemic were estimated in the 200-400 range, and known for their enthusiasm.
Interest in women’s hockey has been growing in Connecticut, with Yale, Quinnipiac and UConn all ranked in the top 10 in the country during last season.
Dom Amore can be reached at damore@courant.com
