PWHL San Jose sign Laila Edwards to three-year contract
PWHL San Jose made one of their biggest moves in the lead-up to their inaugural season on Monday, signing versatile forward and defender Laila Edwards to a three-year contract, instantly making her the marquee star of the California team’s expansion season.
Edwards, who played a key role in helping the USA win the gold medal at the 2026 Olympics in Milan-Cortina, comes into the PWHL after San Jose selected her fourth overall in the PWHL Draft, following an outstanding collegiate career.
Outside of the Olympic gold medal, Edwards has a decorated career at just 22 years old. With the USA, she won gold at the 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championships and silver the year prior.
At the youth level, she also helped her nation win silver at the 2022 U18 World Championships. At the most recent Olympics, she scored two goals and six assists in seven games, bringing her international totals to nine goals, 11 assists and 20 points in 21 games.
While casual hockey fans know her best for her international accolades, Edwards established herself as a clear-cut superstar in collegiate hockey, winning three NCAA Championships in four seasons with the University of Wisconsin Badgers. In that time, she scored 81 goals and 118 assists for 199 points in 151 games, headlined by an NCAA-leading 35 goals and 71 points in 41 games in 2024-25.
Last season, she scored 12 goals and 33 assists for 45 points with the Badgers, while also balancing her duties with the USA Olympic programme en route to securing the country’s first Olympic women’s hockey title since 2018.
“We are thrilled to officially welcome Laila to San Jose and are excited about what her commitment means for the future we are building here,” said Troy Ryan, PWHL San Jose general manager and head coach, who took the role after leaving the head coaching roles with the Toronto Sceptres and Hockey Canada, where he lost to Edwards’ USA teams at the international levels.
“Laila is an exceptional talent who embodies the character we value in our organization. She has tremendous potential, and we are committed to supporting her growth and development as she establishes herself as a professional.”
With her signing, PWHL San Jose’s contracted player pool rises to 14 players for its inaugural season, as they prepares to take on the first year of the 12-team PWHL, featuring itself and fellow expansion teams in Las Vegas, Detroit and Hamilton, with the season expected to start in early December.
“I couldn’t have landed in a better place and organization than San Jose,” said Edwards. “I’m so excited to get to work and get going with this group.”
