PWHL's Detroit team signs first player in prolific scorer Daryl Watts
FOX 2 - The Professional Women's Hockey League Detroit franchise added Daryl Watts as the team's first-ever player Friday.
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Watts was announced after being acquired with an Expansion Foundational Offer used on cornerstone players ahead of the team's inaugural 2026-27 season.
Watts, a forward, joins the Detroit franchise after two seasons with the Toronto Sceptres, signing a four-year deal. She becomes the first of five players to be added to the team’s roster during Phase 2 of the PWHL’s Expansion Roster Distribution Process.
The 27-year-old standout is one of the league's most prolific offensive players in league history.
Toronto Sceptres winger Daryl Watts skates with the puck before scoring the winning overtime goal during a Professional Women's Hockey League game against the Vancouver Goldeneyes at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, on January 17, 2026. Toronto d
Watts ranks second all-time in goals (32) and is tied for third in points (63) after two seasons with the Sceptres (2024-26) and one season with Ottawa (2024).
By the numbers:
This past season, she led Toronto with 19 points (10G, 9A) and became the first player in the PWHL to score 10 or more goals in three straight seasons, leading her team in the category a third consecutive season.
A native of Toronto, she is the second player in league history to reach 50 career points.
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She made her Olympic Winter Games debut this year at Milano Cortina, earning a silver medal while leading Canada in points with two goals and six assists.
Each expansion team was granted one binding EFO for a player on an expiring PWHL contract through a multi-year contract. Players who received an EFO were permitted to choose a contract length ranging from one to four years.
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More on Daryl Watts from the PWHL:
She also earned silver in her Canadian Women’s National Team debut at the 2025 Women’s Worlds. The 2018 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner, and the first freshman to ever earn the honor, played collegiately for Boston College and the University of Wisconsin. She earned WCHA Forward of the Year, WCHA Player of the Year and USCHO Player of the Year honors in 2020-21 — the same season she scored the overtime-winning goal that lifted the Badgers to the NCAA National Championship.
EDMONTON, CANADA - FEBRUARY 16: Toronto Sceptres' Daryl Watts is seen at a press conference following her team's overtime victory against the Ottawa Charge in the PWHL Takeover Tour match at Rogers Place Arena in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, on Februar
Last month Josh Sciba, 41, was named Detroit's head coach on Thursday. He comes from the New York Sirens, where he served as assistant coach for two seasons. This year, he also was an assistant coach for the gold medal-winning women's Olympic team.
PWHL Detroit:
Detroit's PWHL team, which does not have a name yet, was announced as one of four expansion teams joining the league next season.
Other cities getting expansion teams include San Jose, Las Vegas, and Hamilton, Ont.
What's next:
The PWHL Draft is set to be held June 17 at the Fox Theatre in Detroit.
Phase 2 of the Expansion Player Distribution Process, which began Friday and continues until Monday, June 8 at 1 p.m., allows each expansion team to build the foundation of its roster by acquiring five players through signings and, if necessary, a player selection process.
Only players identified on an expansion team’s initial 20-player Exclusive Negotiation Target List are eligible to be signed during Phase 2.
Existing teams can lose a maximum of three players who are under contract for the 2026-27 season during this phase.
A complete list of player signings and transactions is available on the official PWHL Transactions Page. To see the full overview of the status of PWHL player contracts ahead of Phase 2, visit the PWHL page HERE.