PWHL Montreal re-signs Chuli, Boulier and Keopple
One of the best teams during the inaugural PWHL season has locked down some important assets.
On Monday, Montreal announced it has re-signed defenders Amanda Boulier and Mariah Keopple, as well as goaltender Elaine Chuli.
“Amanda’s arrival on our team last season stabilized our defence, and her return will certainly be appreciated in our locker room,” Montréal General Manager Danièle Sauvageau said in a release. “Mariah progressed so much in her rookie season, and she will only get better over the next years. As for Elaine, she proved that she belongs among the elite goaltenders in the PWHL and we are extremely grateful that she will be returning to Montréal, especially since we will be playing even more games next season.”
Boulier is the only player of the trio who has a multi-year extension, as she is signed through the end of the 2025-26 season. She was originally taken by Ottawa in the 13th round of the inaugural PWHL Draft last year, playing the first 17 games of the season in Canada’s capital. She was dealt to Montreal for Tereza Vanisova before the trade deadline in March in hopes of adding depth to the blue line. In 23 games, the former St. Lawrence star registered a goal and eight assists, three of which came in six games with Montreal.
Chuli was quietly one of the best goaltenders in the PWHL in year one. The 2022 Premier Hockey Federation Goaltender of the Year did an admirable job of backing up Ann-Renee Desbiens in Montreal. In eight appearances, Chuli was 6-1-0, posting a 1.61 goals-against average and a .949 saver percentage, both tops in the league among qualified goaltenders.
While it might not have been noticeable to the naked eye, Keopple was one of Montreal’s workhorses on the back end, playing a lot with Erin Ambrose on the top pair. In appearing in every game during the regular season, the 23-year-old played around 20 minutes every game, and ended up playing over 44 minutes during Montreal’s triple-overtime loss to Boston in Game 2 of the semifinals. The former Princeton standout posted three assists and a plus/minus of +2 during the regular season.
With the signings, Montreal has their one-two punch back in net through next season, with a total of 13 standard player agreements signed for the 2024-25 campaign. With Boulier on for two years, Montreal has seven players rostered through the 2025-26 season.
PWHL free agency opens on Friday.