PWHL Free Agency: End of July

Salt air, and the rust on your door... it's August!

As we get closer to the season starting (although we don't have a schedule for that yet), let's check in on where the rosters stand for each team.

Minnesota

Though their off-ice actions have been less than quiet, Minnesota had a quiet July in the signing world.

However, on August 2, they signed first-round draft pick, Claire Thompson, to a 2-year deal.

This signing brings Minnesota's first three draft picks under contract, having signed Curl (ninth overall) and Hymlárová (15th overall) back in June.

Minnesota still operates with head coach Ken Klee in the acting GM role. We'll have to wait and see if they lock down their remaining picks from the 2024 draft (McQuigge, Petrie, and Knoll) or other free agents before training camps start.

Current roster:

Forwards:
Denisa Křížová, Michela Cava, Liz Schepers, Britta Curl, Klára Hymlárová, Grace Zumwinkle, Taylor Heise, Kelly Pannek

Defenders:
Claire Thompson, Natalie Buchbinder, Maggie Flaherty, Sophie Jaques, Lee Stecklein

Goaltenders:
Maddie Rooney, Nicole Hensley

Boston

Boston used July to lockdown a couple of draft picks and strengthened their defensive core with a free agent signing.

Emma Greco, a stay-at-home defender, won a championship with PWHL Minnesota last season. Despite earning zero points, she finished +8 on the season. A reliable defender will be a great addition to a team with a young defensive core.

Speaking of defenders, Boston signed defensive draft picks Daniela Pejšová (seventh overall) and Sydney Bard (22nd overall). Pejšová joins the PWHL after playing in the SDHL for both MoDo and Luleå HF.

"Daniela is an explosive and dynamic defender with a bite to her game," Boston GM Danielle Marmer said in the signing announcement. Sounds like she'll fit in quite well with the tough Boston team.

Bard, Boston's third pick in the draft, is now signed to two years with the team. After playing NCAA hockey at Colgate, Bard will look to impress on the blue line for the strong Boston team.

Last but certainly not least, Boston signed first-round pick Hannah Bilka to a three-year deal. Bilka has done pretty much everything there is to do as a hockey player, winning the 2024 NCAA Championships and earning multiple World Championship medals for Team USA. In a league where goals were hard to come by, Bilka is Boston's best shot to rack up some points.

Personally, I think Boston is one of the strongest teams going into training camp. After making a couple of trades at the draft, they only have two unsigned picks going into August. I expect their roster won't change too much as we head into the season.

Current roster:

Forwards:
Hannah Bilka, Lexie Adzija, Hannah Brandt, Sophie Shirley, Loren Gabel, Taylor Girard, Susanna Tapani, Theresa Schafzahl, Jamie Lee Rattray, Alina Müller, Hilary Knight

Defenders:
Daniela Pejšová, Emma Greco, Sydney Bard, Emily Brown, Sidney Morin, Jessica Digirolamo, Megan Keller

Goaltenders:
Emma Söderberg, Aerin Frankel

Montréal

After getting some veterans re-signed and signing Cayla Barnes in June, Montréal continued this path in July.

Early in the month, the team re-signed Claire Dalton to a one-year deal. Dalton had a strong season last year with the team, scoring PWHL Montéal's first goal and earning the franchise's second hat trick. The Ontario-born forward worked hard to earn a second season and was rewarded with this contract.

Also re-signing for one year is Catherine Dubois, a player who worked her way onto the team last season. Dubois was signed as a reserve player for the team, joining PWHL Montréal twice on 10-day contracts. Jumping on the opportunity, Dubois proved to be an important part of the team and was eventually offered a spot on the regular roster.

I'm excited to see how much she can contribute with a full season!

Last but certainly not least, Montréal signed 11th overall pick Jennifer Gardiner to a two-year deal.

Gardiner, who played her college hockey with the Ohio State Buckeyes, comes into the league with not one but TWO NCAA National Championships. In her senior season, Gardiner recorded a career-high 57 points in 41 games.

PWHL Montréal makes themselves even more of a scoring threat with this signing.

Current roster:

Forwards:
Jennifer Gardiner, Catherine Dubois, Claire Dalton, Mikyla Grant-Mentis, Lina Ljungblom, Maureen Murphy, Kennedy Marchment, Kristin O’Neill, Laura Stacey, Marie-Philip Poulin

Defenders:
Cayla Barnes, Mariah Keopple, Amanda Boulier, Dominika Lásková, Kati Tabin, Erin Ambrose

Goaltenders:
Elaine Chuli, Ann-Renée Desbiens

Toronto

The regular season champs were very quiet in the month of July, having done a lot of the heavy lifting in June.

However, they did make their one signing count, bringing back everyone's favourite goaltender, Carly Jackson.

Jackson, who played for the Toronto Six and Buffalo Beauts of the PHF, dressed for one game this season for PWHL Toronto. They'll round out the goaltending trio of Kristen Campbell and Raygan Kirk.

"CJ is a great competitor and one of the best teammates who makes our organization better on and off the ice," GM Gina Kingsbury said in the signing release.

It's pretty clear CJ is stoked to be back on the team.

Current roster:

Forwards:
Izzy Daniel, Julia Gosling, Daryl Watts, Emma Woods, Hannah Miller, Victoria Bach, Natalie Spooner, Jesse Compher, Emma Maltais, Maggie Connors, Blayre Turnbull, Sarah Nurse

Defenders:
Megan Carter, Allie Munroe, Kali Flanagan, Jocelyne Larocque, Renata Fast

Goaltenders:
Carly Jackson, Raygan Kirk, Kristen Campbell

Ottawa

Ottawa locked down two important players this month.

Kateřina Mrázová, the team's second-highest scorer in 2023, re-signed for two years. The Czech player was a huge part of any success that Ottawa had last season and is an important re-signing for the team.

GM Mike Hirschfield called her an "elite passer", which will prove significant with Ottawa bringing in a scoring powerhouse like first-round pick, Danielle Serdachny (who has yet to sign with the team).

We know Coach Carla McLeod loves her Czech players, so while this doesn't come as a surprise, it was a crucial deal to get done for this team.

The team also signed goaltender Gwyneth Philips, the team's third-round pick, to a two-year contract.

Philips, a Northeastern Alum, set a record for the highest save percentage in the NCAA last season. She was also ranked Goaltender of the Year in 2023 and is arguably the most exciting and talented goalie coming out of the draft.

Between her and Logan Angers (Ottawa's undrafted free agent signing from June), Emerance Maschmeyer will hopefully be able to get a bit of a break this season.

Aside from signing Serdachny, these two signings were top priority for Ottawa and they got it done in July.

Current Roster:

Forwards:
Kateřina Mrázová, Anna Meixner, Shiann Darkangelo, Alexa Vasko, Rebecca Leslie, Natalie Snodgrass
, Tereza Vanišová, Hayley Scamurra, Gabbie Hughes, Brianne Jenner, Emily Clark

Defenders:
Zoe Boyd, Aneta Tejralová, Savannah Harmon, Ashton Bell,
Jincy Roese

Goaltenders:
Gwyneth Philips, Logan Angers, Emereance Maschmeyer

New York

New York had one of the strongest drafts of any of the teams in 2024 and they signed a couple of picks to contracts in July.

Earlier in the month, the team signed second-round pick Maja Nylén Persson to a three-year deal.

The defender played the last eight years in the SDHL and earned Defender of the Year three consecutive times. Most recently, she captained Brynäs IF and put up the most goals by a defender.

According to GM Pascal Daoust, the team is excited about Persson's play with and without the puck and her leadership ability. I definitely agree and am excited to see her play this season.

Recently, the team signed a two-year contract with third-round pick Noora Tulus. Tulus comes to the PWHL with seven (yes, SEVEN) SDHL championships.

As the SDHL's leading scorer in 2023, Tulus put up 22 goals and 61 points in 36 games.

It's wild to think that New York is going into the 2024 season with Maja Nylen Persson, Noora Tulus, and Sarah Fillier (still unsigned). That's a dangerous team.

New York currently has the smallest signed roster, so expect them to be busy in August. (Note: There may be players signed with New York whose contracts were not originally announced, they have not been included).

Current roster:

Forwards:
Noora Tulus, Chloe Aurard, Jessie Eldridge, Abby Roque, Alex Carpenter

Defenders:
Maja Nylén Persson, Jaime Bourbonnais, Ella Shelton, Micah Zandee-Hart

Goaltenders:
Abigail Levy, Corinne Schroeder