Just as the PWHL was gearing up for year three— a season with higher expectations—the league quietly pulled the plug on its established Central Situation Room team (responsible for reviewing disputed goals and major penalties.)
We’re talking about former NHL officials with thousands of games under their belts suddenly told to hand in their headsets… with almost no runway before game one
From The Hockey News: “As one source stated, the Central Situation Room staff had requested a raise prior to the season and were released from their jobs days before puck drop without negotiation or discussion. The request was allegedly made due to the expected increase in workload due to the removal of the coach’s challenge and additional games added to the PWHL schedule.”
The timing is terrible, the transparency is nonexistent, and the optics couldn’t be worse.
And here’s the kicker: the league also removed the coach’s challenge from the rulebook this season. So not only do teams have zero control to challenge a blown call — the league now has fewer eyes and fewer camera angles (eight instead of the NHL’s fourteen) to get things right in real time.
If you’ve watched early games this season, you’ve probably noticed the ripple effects: Momentum-killing delays as the on-ice officials wait for someone in the CSR to find the right replay—it’s hockey’s version of Where’s Waldo. Reviews that last longer than the buttered popcorn fans are consuming. Broadcast angles doing all the heavy lifting because not every rink is rigged with the same tech.
Yes, the PWHL absolutely deserves credit for trying to raise its standard of officiating. Better communication, better training, better accountability — all impressive ideals for sure.
But the rollout here? It feels like changing your goaltender during the national anthem — and then asking your equipment manager to hurriedly strap on the pads.
The league can talk long-term strategy all it wants, but right now fans just want the basics: call the goal right, call the penalty right, do it quickly, and don’t turn every celebration into a suspense thriller.
Early season turbulence is expected.
Creating turbulence on purpose?
That’s a choice.
And if the Central Situation Room doesn’t find its footing soon, the loudest review won’t be happening in a dark video room — it’ll be happening from the paying customers reviewing their ticket-buying decisions—tired of waiting for hockey’s fastest game to make up its mind.
