PWHL News: Ottawa signs Samantha Isbell, Montreal adds Mikyla Grant-Mentis to reserve list

There were two PWHL transactions on Sunday involving Ottawa and Montreal.

Ottawa signed forward Samantha Isbell to a one-year, Standard Player Agreement. The 26-year-old joined the team after appearing in three games with Boston earlier in the season.

The move comes just days after the team announced Fanni Garat-Gasparics would be placed on Long-Term Injury Reserve (LTIR) and will miss the rest of the season with a lower-body injury. Gasparics has played in every game this season, and became the first Hungarian native to score a goal in the PWHL on Feb. 28 when she found the back of the net in a 4-2 win against New York.

Meanwhile, Montreal signed forward Mikyla Grant-Mentis to a Reserve Player contract. The 25-year-old played six games with Ottawa, recording three assists before being released by the club.

Through the previous two seasons with the PHF, Grant-Mentis was one of the most dominant players in the league, scoring 30 points (13 goals and 17 assists) with the Toronto Six in 2021-22 and being named Most Valuable Player. She would follow that up with 21 points in 24 games with the Buffalo Beauts in 2022-23.

Despite the success, she was not selected by anyone at the PWHL Draft last September and signed with Ottawa before the season started.

Going into the March 10 slate of games, Montreal is 10-3-3 with 30 points, tied with Toronto for first in the league. Ottawa, meanwhile, is fifth in the standings with a 4-6-5 record and 17 points.