Women Get a Spotlight, but No Prize Money, in New N.H.L. All-Star Event

For years, the N.H.L. said it would not create a women’s league as long as other women’s leagues existed. Daly reiterated that there was no intention to create a women’s league under the N.H.L. umbrella with the N.W.H.L. still in operation.

With Friday’s showcase being played over an irregular time frame and sandwiched between competitions like hardest shot and target practice, the format has drawn criticism for being nothing more than a novelty act.

“There’s effort, but at the same time it’s so limited,” said Courtney Szto, a professor at the school of kinesiology and health studies at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. “They have such a great opportunity to generate a connective relationship even if they don’t want to fund a league, something that’s expected and normal, but it’s always these one-offs, random isolated events.”

Szto, who writes for the website Hockey in Society, referenced a women’s exhibition game held four years ago at the N.H.L.’s annual Winter Classic that had no live television coverage and was played with a running clock. The N.H.L. has not sponsored a similar event since.

“My take on the N.H.L. involvement is, these women deserve everything the N.H.L. has available to them resource-wise,” Szto said. “I don’t think the N.H.L. deserves one lick of their attention, though.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/24/sports/hockey/nhl-skills-competition-women.html?emc=rss&partner=rss