On Friday morning, the PWHL announced that long-time Team Canada and Toronto Sceptres Head Coach Troy Ryan would be heading south to assume both the General Manager and Head Coach roles of newly announced PWHL San Jose. Ryan’s departure from the Sceptres came to very mixed reactions from PWHL fans.

Troy Ryan’s Toronto

When Ryan was initially announced as PWHL Toronto’s head coach in 2023, I was ecstatic. He knew the Canadian players extremely well, having led many of them to Olympic Gold the year before, as well as multiple IIHF World Championships. He built the team up to where they soared in 2022, and were so very close to winning Gold again in 2026.

His first season with the Sceptres was incredibly strong, with the team finishing first in the regular season. Unfortunately, they did select Minnesota as their first playoff opponent, which ended up beating them in a reverse sweep in that first season. Troy Ryan was the PWHL’s inaugural Coach of the Year. The Sceptres’ second season and this most recent season were less successful. The team lost to Minnesota in the semi-finals for a second time in 2025. Things did not get better as they missed the playoffs this year.

I’ve been a bit bitter during this third season. I’m a Toronto hockey fan, how could I not be? Especially since the Sceptres had the lowest goals-for across the league this season. When Canada was smoked in the Canada-USA Rivalry series leading up to the Milan Olympics, I was blaming Ryan. I was telling my only-tune-into-hockey-during-the-Olympics-or-maybe-just-because-of-heated-rivalry friends that there was no way Canada was going to get Olympic Gold with our older roster. Not to mention our current coach, who had been just missing the top with Toronto these last two years.

three expansion teams getting an important woman in sport as their gm

meanwhile san jose: pic.twitter.com/iqbeGRLnSh

— izzy (@nyiphobic) May 22, 2026

Love Not Lost

The writing seemed to be on the wall for the departure; a slew of celebratory posts graced my timeline this weekend. However, it’s important to note that Ryan was not fired from his role with the Sceptres based on the statement from Toronto GM Gina Kingsbury. Perhaps surprisingly, the Sceptres wanted him to stay. In Kingsbury’s interview with the Toronto Sun, she was open about the fact that she found out with Ryan. She knew the league wanted to see him in general management. Kingsbury also said,

“Of course. I believe he is one of the best coaches in the world if not the best coach that I have had the chance to work with. On top of that he’s a great human being and just a great asset to have.”

I’ve never heard or read a bad word about Ryan from someone within his organizations. I really love this 2022 interview with Ryan about coaching the women’s National team. He speaks on how special watching them hand each other their medals during the COVID-19 restrictions of the 2022 Beijing Olympics was. It’s very clear how much he loves and respects his players.

“I remember one special moment at the Olympics in Beijing. Because of COVID-19, the athletes had to put the medals around each other’s necks. That was just so unique and special. You look at each one while they’re doing it, and you just have a story in your head for each of those people. Maybe it’s an obstacle they had to overcome to be in that situation. Several of them had been released from the team prior to world championships, and they did what they could to get back into the mix. So, I remember just almost checking out mentally during that five-minute span of the medal ceremony and just reflecting on some of the cool stories that each person had to overcome to get to that moment. To see them getting an Olympic gold medal around their necks from one of their teammates was a pretty cool experience.”

Invisible Experiments

Ryan’s contract with Team Canada ended after the 2026 Olympics. I assume this factored into San Jose’s decision to offer Ryan both the Head Coach and General Manager roles with the new team. This is what feels the most dramatic about Ryan’s departure.

I find it interesting on a couple of levels. Having someone who has never been a General Manager before now must split his time between two full-time roles. This feels off for a brand-new team with a fresh slate. I’m surprised the league is open to setting this precedent with a brand-new team. Alternatively, I wonder if the league is assuming the pressure of a PWHL team in San Jose will be less than that of a traditional hockey market. If so, this is the perfect team to do some leadership experiments on.

Personally, I think the PWHL should be using these young-league years to let new faces into the professional management club.

My own personal pure speculation: I wonder if Ryan is trying to break into NHL coaching or general management in some capacity, and believes that holding two major roles in a smaller league will open some doors. This doesn’t feel on-brand for Ryan, as he is such a champion of women’s hockey. Or does he want to slowly transition into being solely the GM of San Jose? He could hold both roles to get to know the team more deeply before taking the dive as solely GM. Only time will tell!

Combination Roles, Personnel aside…..

PWHL coaching and management staff crossover into the NHL hasn’t happened yet, and I wonder how and if that relationship will develop, if it does at all. We’re currently seeing the flip side, with Meghan Duggan leaving her development role with the New Jersey Devils for PWHL Hamilton’s GM role.

I find a coach with no GM experience an odd choice for this prescient setting position, conflicts of interest aside. 

Conflicts of interest front and centre, I don’t love the idea of a new team’s roster being built by the person who knows my team the best. Excluding fan loyalty, I have questions about how the players’ union feels about one person holding both these positions, especially in a league-owned system.

New Faces

Ryan has been working with many of the same players for years now on the Sceptres and Team Canada. I’m excited for him to get the opportunity to coach different talent.

Looking Forward

Since the Montreal Victoire’s dominating Walter Cup win this week, PWHL fans are back to discussing expansion as the league shifts to make room for four new teams. The draft is on June 2, but the four expansion teams may begin reaching out to seasoned players on May 28 as a part of the eliminated expansion draft system. See our team’s draft rankings here! Hopefully, the expansion process will be a bit less heartbreaking for fans than last year’s, with players getting more of a voice in where they will end up.