PWHL Detroit signs Britta Curl-Salemme to three-year contract
One of the most polarizing players in hockey is heading to Hockeytown.
On Friday, PWHL Detroit announced that the team has signed forward Britta Curl-Salemme to a three-year contract. The deal is a standard player agreement, not an Expansion Foundational Offer nor a Foundational Player Offer.
Curl-Salemme joins an already stacked core of signings made by general manager Manon Rheaume. Detroit has the likes of Daryl Watts, Hannah Bilka and Cayla Barnes, with Curl-Salemme adding even more offense.
The North Dakota native comes to the Motor City after spending her first two years in the PWHL with the Minnesota Frost. She was a solid scorer during her rookie season, posting 15 points before adding a couple of assists in the postseason, helping the Frost win a second straight Walter Cup. This past year, she set career highs in goals (11), assists (18) and points (29), finishing third in the league in scoring and tied for ninth among all skaters in goals, with three goals in their semifinal series against the Ottawa Charge.
In 58 career regular-season games, Curl-Salemme has scored 20 goals and 24 assists for 44 points, posting five points in 11 playoff contests.
While signing the 26-year-old certainly adds to Detroit’s on-ice talent, it might cause some angst among potential fans in the market. Curl-Salemme was under fire prior to being drafted due to her beliefs and support of anti-LGBTQ and COVID-denying posts on social media. Her reckless physical play has led to her being suspended four times in just two years.
Along with her pro career and a decorated tenure at the University of Wisconsin, Curl-Salemme has won hardware on the world stage, winning gold at the 2023 and 2025 IIHF Women’s World Championship, as well as the 2026 Winter Olympics.
With the quartet of signings on Friday, Detroit now has four of the five roster spots filled for Phase 2 of the Expansion Player Distribution Process. The second phase ends on June 8 at 1 p.m. ET.