DETROIT – Hockeytown sure wishes they would be celebrating a Red Wings Stanley Cup win right about now, but the city did receive a nice consolation prize this spring.
The Professional Women’s Hockey League will have four new teams for it’s fourth season in 2026, one of them stationed right here in Detroit. Wednesday (June 17) the PWHL Entry Draft was held at the Fox Theatre where Detroit, who has yet to announce a team name, held the 15th overall pick.
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Swiss goaltender Andrea Brändli became the first player to ever be drafted by Detroit’s PWHL franchise, marking the beginning of a new chapter of hockey at Little Caesars Arena. The second selection in the second round was received by some of the loudest cheers of the night coming from Detroit hockey fans that packed the mezzanine level of the Fox Theatre.
"It felt like the right place to be."
— Hobie Artigue (@HeyItsMeHobie) June 18, 2026
The 1st draft pick for PWHL Detroit is goaltender Andrea Brandli.
More from Brandli on her new team & getting drafted by women's hockey legend Manon Rheaume.
"Because of her, I wanted to be the 2nd woman to play in the NHL."
🎥@Local4News pic.twitter.com/pQZFr0Lznc
It’s a special moment for Brändli as she was not only the first goaltender selected in the draft, but just so happened to hear her name called by the first woman goalie to play in the NHL, Manon Rhéaume, the General Manager of Detroit’s PWHL franchise.
“Because of her I always wanted to be the second woman to play in the NHL,” said the goalie that led Switzerland to a bronze medal in this year’s Winter Olympic games. “She has had a lot of impact on my career, especially when I was young. I had a call with them two or three weeks ago and just like being on the call I just felt welcome, it felt like the right place to be and that’s why I am just so happy it ended up like that.”
Thanks for the ✨ assist ✨ in welcoming Casey home, @DetroitCityFC pic.twitter.com/S2jBhJ4rcg
— PWHL Detroit (@pwhl__detroit) June 18, 2026
Seven picks later Detroit found themselves on the clock again in which they selected Casey Borgiel from Port Huron, Michigan. The defender from Colgate University is no stranger to Hockeytown as she was a member of the Little Caesars youth hockey program. Borgiel wore the letter ‘A’ on her sweater while at Colgate, scoring four goals and 17 assists in her senior season.
The PWHL Draft is a one night event at the Fox Theatre that will see 72 players be selected by 12 different franchises. You can see the full results of the fourth annual PWHL Draft here.