The Vancouver Goldeneyes have claimed the top selection in the 2026 Professional Women’s Hockey League Draft, positioning themselves to select Olympic champion defenseman Caroline Harvey.
The PWHL determines its first overall pick through a distinctive system called the Gold Plan, which differs significantly from traditional professional sports leagues. Rather than awarding the selection to the team with the poorest record or using a lottery format, the PWHL grants the top pick to whichever team accumulates the most points after being eliminated from playoff contention.
Vancouver clinched this coveted position following their 4-3 overtime victory against the Minnesota Frost on Saturday evening, combined with Seattle Torrent’s 2-1 shootout defeat to the Montreal Victoire. Saturday marked the conclusion of the regular season for the first-year franchise.
The complete draft selection order remains undetermined, as does the exact draft date, though it is anticipated to occur in June.
Harvey, age 23, is transitioning to professional hockey following an exceptional collegiate career at Wisconsin, where she guided the Badgers to three NCAA championships and one runner-up appearance across four seasons. During her 150 collegiate games, she recorded 201 points through 54 goals and 147 assists, including 15 power-play scores and 12 game-deciding goals.
The NCAA championship concluded an extraordinary hockey year for Harvey. She captured Olympic gold with Team USA at the Milan-Cortina Games, adding to the silver medal she earned in Beijing in 2022 at age 19. Harvey earned Tournament MVP honors with nine points across five Olympic games, establishing a record for American defensemen.
Harvey also received Best Defenseman recognition at the 2003 and 2005 World Championships, both tournaments won by the United States.
She hails from Salem, New Hampshire.
