Pregnancy Sidelines Hockey Star for PWHL Season
Working parents planning a pregnancy around a demanding job should review their employer's leave terms early.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Pregnancy
Britta Curl-Salemme announced on Monday that she is pregnant and will miss the PWHL season with Detroit, an expansion team in its inaugural year. She revealed the news on Instagram, and she is the second member of the U.S. team that won gold at the Milan Cortina Games to announce a pregnancy.
Why it matters
For families planning around a pregnancy while building a career, the announcement shows how a professional athlete's schedule can shift quickly and how a team must plan around a mid-season absence. The news also adds to a trend of Olympic-level athletes making pregnancy decisions within the same season as their competitive commitments.
Curl-Salemme, 26, won the 2025 Walter Cup with Minnesota in her rookie year before signing a three-year contract with Detroit in June. She was also left off the U.S. roster for the world championship tournament, which opens Friday in Denmark.
The players
Britta Curl-Salemme
A 26-year-old forward from Bismarck, North Dakota, who won the 2025 Walter Cup with Minnesota and signed with PWHL Detroit.
PWHL Detroit
An expansion team in the Professional Women's Hockey League playing its inaugural season.
Manon Rheaume
General manager of PWHL Detroit, who publicly congratulated Curl-Salemme on the announcement.
Kendall Coyne Schofield
A member of the U.S. women's hockey team that won gold at the Milan Cortina Games, who has also announced she is expecting her second child.
The details
Curl-Salemme revealed the pregnancy in an Instagram post showing herself and her husband, Andrew, beside an open oven. She and Andrew were married in 2024. PWHL Detroit general manager Manon Rheaume congratulated her in a post on the team's X account, confirming the absence for the expansion club's first season.
Timeline
June: Curl-Salemme signed a three-year contract with Detroit.
February 2026: Curl-Salemme made her Olympic debut at the Milan Cortina Games, where the U.S. won gold.
Monday, November 2, 2026: Curl-Salemme announced her pregnancy.
Friday: The world championship tournament opens in Denmark.
The Home Front
The announcements arrive in a season when professional women's hockey is still forming its team structures and contract norms. Teams in new leagues are building rosters around players whose family plans now enter public view alongside their on-ice performance.
If your household is planning a pregnancy around a demanding job, consider raising schedule and leave questions with your employer early, and keep your work and benefits documents in one folder. Check whether your employer's policy covers a mid-contract leave before you make commitments that depend on it.
The takeaway
A pregnancy can change a professional schedule on short notice, so it helps to know your employer's leave terms before you plan around them. Keep a copy of any contract or leave policy where your family can find it quickly.
Further reading
For more on the planning side of a pregnancy, see our Pregnancy coverage.
