Mikyla Grant-Mentis re-signs with the Six

Mikyla Grant-Mentis wants to win the Isobel Cup, and she wants to do it in Toronto.

Grant-Mentis had a breakout season in 2021, quickly becoming a fan-favourite in Lake Placid, scoring five goals in six games played. Her Lake Placid performance earned her both Newcomer of the Year and MVP at the 2021 NWHL Awards. She also earned a Foundation Award for involvement in her community and was one of the Three Stars of the season as voted by fans.

In re-signing with the Six for Season 7, though, it’s clear that Grant-Mentis is thinking about the trophy she didn’t win in 2021 rather than those that she did.

“It was important for me to re-sign because first, we didn’t win the Cup,” said Grant-Mentis in a T6 press release following her signing announcement.

In addition to chasing an Isobel Cup with the Canadian team, Grant-Mentis, a native of the Greater Toronto Area, also cited finally getting to play on home ice as one of her motivators for staying with the team.

“We never really got to play at home, so I haven’t really played in my hometown yet, and that’s really what I wanted to do,” said Grant-Mentis.

Grant-Mentis is Toronto’s fifth signing as defenders Emma Greco and Taylor Woods, goaltender Elaine Chulie and forward and captain, Shiann Darkangelo have all signed on for another season with the Six. As of Grant-Mentis’ re-signing, the team has not brought on any new players or free agents, seeming to instead be opting to focus on bringing back the core that helped them find success in their inaugural season. Mikyla Grant-Mentis is unquestionably a huge part of that core.

Her numbers and accolades speak for themselves, but in addition to 1.5 Pts/GP played in 2021 and 0.85 Pts/GP played at Merrimack, Grant-Mentis brings a style of play that just worked for the Six in Lake Placid. She has an eye for offense that really flourished as she moved from playing as the team’s second or third-line centre, to playing regular minutes on the first line, with Darkangel in the middle.

It was a common sentiment from her teammates and coaches in Lake Placid; Grant-Mentis doesn’t miss. A testament to the power, accuracy and value of her shot. She seems to have a knack for scoring big-moment goals, OT winners, game-tying goals, and one borderline buzzer-beater this past season that prevented a game against Minnesota from going to overtime and winning the game for the Six with 23 seconds left in the third period. While every goal counts, these key goals at crucial moments have endeared her to the fanbase and allowed her to show off the parts of her game that make her a truly special player and an important piece of this team.

She’s still a young player, having played only eight regular season games and two playoff games between the Beauts and the Six. So, chances are, the best is yet to come for MGM and we should get to see it with the benefit of full seasons in the future.

The Six’s coaching staff have in the past expressed the sentiment that they’d like to see Grant-Mentis return to the centre position, but having her on the wing was their best shot at success in Lake Placid. With more games to be played and more time to develop it’s not a stretch to see her as a centre capable of driving her own line with the Six as soon as this upcoming season.

Not re-signing Mikyla Grant-Mentis would have been a serious loss for the Six, she has an incredible well of talent and skill that’s only going to improve as she benefits from more regular playing time and full 20+ game seasons. It’s not hard to imagine the Toronto getting it done and winning their first Isobel Cup in the near future, with Mikyla Grant-Mentis on the roster, that kind of success seems almost inevitable.