MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 19: Cayla Barnes #3 of United States and Hannah Bilka #23 of United States pose for a photo with gold medal during the Women's Gold Medal match between United States and Canada on day thirteen of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter … (Monika Majer / RvS.Media / Getty Images)
You wouldn't know the Seattle Torrent were the worst team in the PWHL last season with the way their roster was picked over during the early phases of expansion.
The Torrent saw forward Hannah Bilka, defender Cayla Barnes, and goaltender Corinne Schroeder signed by the Detroit and San Jose expansion franchises on Friday. Bilka and Barnes both represented the United States, winning a gold medal at the Winter Olympics in Milan earlier this year.
Bilka signed a two-year deal, and Barnes signed a three-year contract with PWHL Detroit, and Schroeder reached a two-year deal with PWHL San Jose.
Bilka appeared in 14 games for the Torrent last season, scoring nine points on four goals and five assists. However, she didn't play for the Torrent after returning from the Olympics due to an upper-body injury sustained in the tournament.
Barnes played all 30 games for Seattle, contributing eight points on three goals and five assists from the blue line.
Schroeder made 17 starts in goal for the Torrent, posting a .915 save percentage with a 2.56 goals against average.
Since existing teams can only lose a maximum of three players under contract during this phase of expansion, the Torrent can't lose any more contracted players at the moment. Lexie Adzija, Jenna Buglioni, Mikyla Grant-Mentis and Danielle Serdachny remain under contract with Seattle through next season and can't currently leave for another roster.
Once the four expansion teams have five players each under contract, existing teams will be able to protect another three contracted players at that point. No team can lose more than four contracted players through the entirety of the expansion process.
However, that doesn't include players who had their contracts expire at the end of last season.
Captain Hilary Knight, and co-scoring leader Julia Gosling lead a group of 14 players that are free agents and can sign elsewhere. While a report from Ian Kennedy of The Hockey News suggested Knight could be joining Bilka and Barnes in Detroit, nothing has been made official on that front yet.
Other Torrent players not under contract include Emily Brown (D), Brooke Bryant (F), Megan Carter (D), Carly Jackson (G), Mariah Keopple (D), Sydney Langeth (F), Theresa Schafzahl (F), Natalie Snodgrass (F), Aneta Tejralová (D), Marah Wagner (F), and Emily Zumwinkle (D).
Lily Delianedis (F), Jada Habisch (D) and Lyndie Lobdell (D) are also out of contract, but the Torrent retain their rights.
The current phase of free agency continues until Monday. The signing period ends at 10 a.m. PT, and a draft process to fill any vacancies on the expansion teams' five-player rosters would occur between 1-3 p.m. PT.
Phase 3 of the process will get underway at 9 a.m. on June 10, with the Torrent able to submit up to three more players for protection. Players out of contract are eligible to sign with any of the league's 12 teams at this stage.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Seattle Torrent and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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