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Hilary Knight trade explained: Top player dealt in Detroit, Las Vegas expansion

One of the best players in women’s hockey is at the center of a trade between two of the PWHL’s newest teams.

Five-time U.S. Olympian Hilary Knight will join the PWHL's expansion team in Detroit as part of a sign-and-trade deal with Las Vegas after playing for the Seattle Torrent last season, according to multiple reports on Monday. In exchange, Las Vegas will reportedly receive Detroit’s first-round pick in the PWHL rookie draft next week, on Jun. 17.

This comes during the second portion of the roster construction window for the league’s four expansion teams (Detroit, Hamilton, Las Vegas, and San Jose), as there is no expansion draft this summer. Instead, the PWHL opted for a five-phase “expansion roster distribution process” that prioritizes players’ wishes.

Phase One of the process allowed existing teams to protect three players under contract for the 2026-27 season. The Torrent chose to protect forward Alex Carpenter, defender Anna Wilgren and goalie Hannah Murphy, leaving her available for Las Vegas to select.

Knight, 36, publicly voiced her desire to stay in Seattle but will now make a move for the second consecutive offseason. She spent her first two PWHL campaigns with the Boston Fleet, then signed with the Seattle Torrent expansion team.

She finished this past season with five goals and 14 points in 22 games after being sidelined for the last two months due to a lower body injury. In 2024, Knight finished tied for the league lead with 29 points (15 goals, 14 assists). For her entire PWHL career, she ranks 12th in the league with 54 career points (26 goals, 28 assists) in 76 games.

Although Knight’s wish to remain in Seattle wasn’t granted, she’ll sign a foundational contract offer, which guarantees she'll earn at least $100,000 per year. She was paid $106,090 last season.

Each of the PWHL's four expansion teams were granted one foundational contract offer, which serves a similar function to the WNBA’s core designation of the NFL’s franchise tag. Las Vegas still had its foundational slot open, while Detroit had already used its offer to sign Toronto forward Daryl Watts.

In Detroit, Knight will join three of her U.S. gold medal-winning teammates: Britta Curl-Salemme, Hannah Bilka and defender Cayla Barnes. All of them were signed in the expansion process.

Detroit’s coach, Josh Sciba, is also a familiar face for Knight. He was an assistant on the U.S. Olympic team.

An Olympic hero in the latter part of her career, Knight has won two Olympic gold and three silver medals dating back to her Team USA debut at the 2007 world championships. She won 10 gold medals at worlds and boasts the career tournament records for goals (67), assists (53) and points (120).

Knight may have concluded her run as an Olympic hero as she captained Team USA to a gold medal victory at the Milan Cortina Games in February, which she said would be her last. In the pursuit of a final Olympic win, she scored the championship game-tying goal late in the third period of a 2-1 overtime victory over Canada.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hilary Knight trade explained: Top player dealt in Detroit, Las Vegas expansion

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