The Professional Women’s Hockey League found an interesting way to give its expansion team in San Jose a little bit of a local flavor.
PWHL San Jose’s official team colors are orange, blue and white, the same colors as the city’s flag, which was adopted in 1984.
Per the PWHL, the orange is a nod to “the Sharks and the region’s historic orange groves, while blue evokes the beauty of California’s ocean coastline and sky.”
The San Jose team’s home and road jerseys will be revealed at a later date.
The PWHL will hold a news conference at SAP Center at 12:45 p.m. today to officially announce that San Jose will become the 12th North American city to host a team, which will enter the league for the 2026-27 season.
The PWHL, now in its third season, is the third professional sports league to expand to the Bay Area this decade. Bay FC is now in its third year of play in the NWSL, and the Golden State Valkyries began play in the WNBA in 2025.
“Between a deeply rooted hockey culture, rapidly booming women’s sports scene, and a community known for growth and innovation, San Jose offers a dynamic stage for the PWHL to expand its reach and build lasting momentum,” Amy Scheer, PWHL Executive Vice President, Business Operations, said in a statement.
“Thanks to the San Jose Sharks and City of San Jose’s incredible support systems already in place to grow our sport across the Bay Area, and their enthusiasm for embracing the future of women’s hockey, we have the foundation to establish a lasting and impactful new home for the PWHL in San Jose.”
A logo for San Jose’s new Professional Women’s Hockey League team. (Courtesy of PWHL)
Following an expansion bid led by Sharks Sports & Entertainment and the City of San Jose that gained momentum this spring, the PWHL’s San Jose team will play its home games at SAP Center, the site of today’s announcement, and practice and train at Sharks Ice.
A team nickname, the front office, the coaching staff, and the roster will all be finalized in the coming weeks and months.
“We are honored the PWHL has chosen San José as the site of its latest expansion team, joining the NHL’s San Jose Sharks and the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda,” Jonathan Becher, SS&E’s president, said in a statement.
“From its humble beginnings with an NHL expansion team in 1991, San José is now truly a ‘hockey city.’ Boasting three professional hockey teams and Sharks Ice, a six-sheet public recreational ice facility, San José hosts one of the largest collections of boys, girls, and adult hockey players in the U.S.”
This season, the eight PWHL teams played 30 games each. Now with 12 teams, following the additions of Detroit, Las Vegas, and Hamilton, Ontario earlier this month, it’s unclear whether the league will increase the number of games each team plays or split into two divisions.
PWHL San Jose’s official website can be found here, and the team store can be found here.