Detroit PWHL Adds Olympic Champions in Historic Draft

Detroit's newest professional sports team is building something special, and they're doing it with Olympic champions.

PWHL Detroit made franchise history Friday when general manager Manon Rheaume selected Canadian forward Daryl Watts as the team's very first player. The 27-year-old ranks second all-time in the league with 32 goals and just earned a silver medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, where she led Canada in points.

But Rheaume didn't stop there. Detroit immediately added three members of Team USA's 2026 gold medal squad: defenseman Cayla Barnes and forwards Hannah Bilka and Britta Curl-Salemme.

Barnes brings championship experience from both the ice and the Olympics, having won gold in 2018 and 2026. She helped lead Ohio State to the 2024 NCAA title alongside Bilka, who tied for the Olympic lead with four goals this year.

Curl-Salemme spent her first two seasons with Minnesota, where she set a single-season record with 18 assists in 2025-26. She added five points in her Olympic debut, helping Team USA claim gold.

The signings come as Detroit prepares to join the PWHL as an expansion team. The league is still in its early years but has already drawn massive support in hockey-loving cities across North America.

Why This Inspires

Women's professional hockey has waited decades for this moment. Players like Watts, Barnes, Bilka, and Curl-Salemme grew up without a sustainable professional league to aspire to, yet they continued pursuing excellence anyway.

Now they're not just playing professionally. They're building franchises in major markets like Detroit, where Chris Ilitch said this week that "Detroit made it obvious" the city was ready for women's hockey.

These four athletes represent more than just talent. They're proof that when you invest in women's sports, you get Olympic champions who can fill arenas and inspire the next generation of players watching from the stands.

Detroit fans are getting a team stacked with proven winners who know what it takes to compete at the highest level.