Boston Pride Fans Start Organizing
Written by Abbi Holt
Edited by Laura Everett
When the news dropped on June 29th that the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) was purchased and shortly thereafter the rumors that Boston might not have a team going forward, fans were quick to react. In Facebook groups, twitter threads and Discord chats, many fans expressed worry for players and staff, along with concern over the overall decrease in the number of roster spots as the total number of women’s pro hockey teams rumored to be dropping by almost half in the new league. Some were also concerned about the inclusiveness of the new league, especially since its new union has some noted transphobic members in leadership roles.
In all that confusion, fans, including Oliver Antone, began to organize and advocate for a team to remain in Boston. Oliver, who handles social media for the Pride Diehards, the Boston Pride’s supporters’ group, jumped into action. The Diehards have been instrumental in cultivating an active fanbase around the Boston PHF team. Only a day after the PHF purchase became public, the Diehards introduced the hashtag #saveourpack with the stated desire to to keep a women’s pro hockey team in Boston. Anticipating the time when the new league will announce locations for the new teams, Antone tweeted, “We have until AUGUST (if not sooner) to make our voices heard.”
“I don’t want to go quietly,” Antone told Boston Women’s Sports, “and I don’t think women’s hockey fans in Boston want to go quietly.” “What I want to achieve” is that the new owners see “we are here” and “we (Boston) have more value” as a team location because of the already-formed fan community.
In an interview, Antone told Boston Women’s Sports that the best ways to support keeping a team in Boston is for local fans to both post to social media and sign their petition. They are asking fans to tweet or post about their own reasons for having a women’s professional hockey team in Boston with the hashtag #saveourpack, while also tagging the @PWHPA (Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association). Once social media is established for the new league, adding them into any posts will be helpful. The Diehards have also launched a petition and are asking fans to sign it to send a clear message that “professional women’s hockey belongs in Boston.”
Antone and the Pride Diehards have since put out t-shirts and other merchandise with this hashtag and are asking fans to wear the slogan. Money from the sales will go to keeping the Pride Diehards podcast going and the website up and running with remaining profits to be donated to a hockey non-profit according to Antone. As Antone put it “we live in an age where social media can do so much. If this had happened twenty years ago our voices might not have been heard, but we are at a time and place where… we can be seen and we be heard.”
If a team in Boston is not immediately forthcoming in the new league, Antone says, “we want to know that team is coming.” He notes that early organizing by fans in Montreal and Toronto paid off after the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) folded. “It took one year to get a team in Toronto and three in Montreal.”
It remains unclear if the new owners have received the #saveourpack message as they decide which cities will host teams. Antone is concerned that the new owners are repeating what he sees as the old NWHL problem of poor communication with the existing fan base.
Through it all, Antone remains hopeful. He sees the other fans who are rallying around the Boston Pride, and their love of this team. “When you look at it (the situation), you see there is hope.”
Boston Women's Sports 
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