PWHL Signings Round-Up: Qualifying offers, teams re-sign ahead of free agency
Friday was a busy day across the PWHL, with several announcements coming as teams try to sure up their rosters as the open signing period got underway.
Let’s look at all of the deals that were made as we went from Phase 5 into Phase 6 of the offseason.
Signings
Fleet re-up Mobley, Thiele for next season
The Boston Fleet re-signed a pair of rookies who were pending restricted free agents, as forward Olivia Mobley and goaltender Amanda Thiele both agreed to one-year contracts for the 2026-27 season. Mobley had a tough rookie campaign. While she scored three goals and five points in 10 appearances, she suffered an injury that knocked her out for the last half of the regular season. Yet, she returned to the lineup in time for the Walter Cup Playoffs, playing all four games against the Ottawa Charge.
Theile was the third-string goaltender behind MVP Aerin Frankel and Abbey Levy this past year. Her lone start came on March 29 against the Minnesota Frost, making 21 saves in a victorious effort.
The Fleet now have nine players signed through next season.
Sirens re-sign five players
As general manager Pascal Daoust likes to do, when the deals rain, they pour.
The Sirens extended qualifying offers to forward Anna Bargman, defender Dayle Ross, and goaltenders Callie Shanahan and Kaley Doyle. Bargman, Shanahan and defender Nicole Vallario all re-signed for two more years, while Ross and Doyle each signed one-year contracts.
Shanahan was the only one of the two netminders to play other than Kayle Osborne last year. In four games, the Boston University product went 1-1-1, with a 3.02 goals-against average and a .871 save percentage. Bargman, who was taken in the fifth round of the 205 PWHL Draft, playing in all but one game last year, scoring four goals and six points. Ross started the season on the injured list, but appeared in the Sirens’ final 16 games of the campaign, but didn’t register any points.
Vallario was on and off the main roster for the first half of the season, but was a constant in the lineup after helping Switzerland win the bronze medal at the Winter Olympics. In 11 games, she scored a goal and three points.
The Sirens 13 of a possible 23 players signed to deals for the 2026-27 campaign.
Mattivi, Willoughby re-sign with defending champs
A couple of notable depth names are being kept by the Montreal Victoire.
Defender Nadia Mattivi re-signed with the Walter Cup champions on a three-year contract, while forward Kaitlin Willoughy is signed through the 2027-28 season.
Mattivi was a late-season signing, joining the Victoire on March 24, less than a month after captaining Italy on its surprising run to the quarterfinals at the Winter Games. the 26-year-old didn’t post a point in six regular-season games, but registered an assist in Game 1 of the final against the Charge. Willoughby is coming off a solid rookie campaign, scoring three goals and six points in 29 games, appearing in all nine postseason games. The University of Saskatchewan product has three goals and eight points in 79 career regular-season games, with one assist in 18 postseason games.
Montreal has 11 players signed to contracts through next year.
CJ is staying in Seattle
The Seattle Torrent re-signed Carly Jackson to a two-year contract. In playing behind Corinne Schroeder and Hannah Murphy, CJ played just twice during the team’s inaugural season. Their lone start cam one April 18 against the rival Vancouver Goldeneyes, where the veteran made 42 saves in a 6-5 overtime loss. It’ll be interesting to see what role they’ll play next season, as the Torrent protected Murphy during the expansion process, but drafted Italian National Team backstop Gabriella Durante in Wednesday’s draft.
Jackson has appeared in just three regular-season games in her PWHL career, and one postseason contest. She’s 1-0-1 during the regular season, with a 2.72 GAA and a .909 SV%. With the Toronto Sceptres in 2025, they started Game 4 of the semifinals, making 22 saves in an OT loss to the Frost.
The Torrent have 12 players signed through next season.
Goldeneyes sign McMahon, Rosenthal
The Vancouver Goldeneyes re-signed forward Mannon McMahon to a two-year contract, with forward Gabby Rosenthal inking a one-year deal for next season.
McMahon came to the Goldeneyes as part of the massive six-player trade with the Ottawa Charge. At one time a promising rookie, McMahon found her scoring touch wiith her new team, scoring three goals and four points in 17 games with Vancouver, giving her four goals and six points in 30 total contests. In 60 career regular-season games, the Minnesota Duluth product has eight goals and 14 points, scoring a goal in eight postseason games last year with Ottawa.
Rosenthal was picked by Vancouver in the expansion draft last year, and ended up scoring a goal and an assist in 26 games. The former Siren has two goals and six points in 55 career games in the PWHL.
The Goldeneyes have 13 players signed to contracts for the 2026-27 season.
Sceptres re-sign three veterans, Messier
The Sceptres made a plethora of signings. The team re-signed forward Claire Dalton and defender Allie Munroe to two-year contracts, while forwards Lauren Messier and Emma Woods to one-year deals.
Munroe is one of the few players left from the inaugural Toronto roster in 2024. This past season, she posted two assists in 19 games, and was named the Sceptres’ Intact Impact Award. In 73 regular-season games, she has two goals and 10 points, with two points in nine playoff games.
Dalton, a Toronto native, signed with the Sceptres last summer after spending the first two years of the league with the Victoire. She posted a goal and 10 points in 30 games, a new career high. In 80 regular-season games in three PWHL seasons, the 26-year-old has posted nine goals and 28 points, having appeared in six playoff games with Montreal.
The Sceptres now have 11 contracts signed for next season so far.
Charge return three
The Ottawa Charge also got in on the action late in Phase 5, re-signing defender Brooke Hobson to a two-year contract, and forward Brooke McQuigge on a one-year deal.
Hobson signed with the Charge last year as a free agent after spending the first two years in the PWHL with the Sirens. Despite missing a few games late in the year due to injury, the 27-year-old was a solid depth player on the back end, scoring a goal and four points in 23 regular-season games, posting a goal in eight postseason contests.
McQuigge came to Ottawa as part of the trade with the Goldeneyes in January, joining the team with Michela Cava and Emma Greco. She ended up posting one assist in 17 games with the Charge, and two assists in 30 total games last year. In 59 career-regular season games, the Ontario native has scored eight goals and 17 points, with three points 16 playoff games, winning a Walter Cup with the Frost in 2025.
Ottawa has 12 athletes signed one for next season.
Qualifying Offers
While they weren’t announced when the fifth phase ended on Thursday, all eight established franchises extended qualifying offers to some of their restricted free agents, ensuring they don’t become unrestricted free agents once the open signing period began. The Sirens offered, and signed, Bargman, Doyle, Ross and Shanahan. New York previously sent a QO to Casey O’Brien during Phase 1 of the PWHL Explansion Player Distribution Process, in order to protect her.
Along with Thiele and Mobley, the Fleet also gave forward Abby Newhook a contract offer during Phase 3 in order to protect her as well.
Below are the rest of the qualifying offers:
Minnesota Frost: Brooke Becker (F)
Montreal Victoire: Tamara Giaquinto (D), Skylar Irving (F)
Ottawa Charge: Sanni Ahola (G)
Seattle Torrent: Lily Delianedis (F), Lyndie Lobdell (D)
Toronto Sceptres: Hanna Baskin (D), Sara Hjalmarsson (F), Clara Van Wieren (F), Kiara Zanon (F)
Vancouver Goldeneyes: Madison Samoskevich (F)
There were a number of players who didn’t receive offers, including Goldeneyes forward Michelle Karvinen, who was the team’s first-round pick last year. Vanesson Upson (MIN), Ava Rinker (MIN), Maya Labad (MTL) and Jada Habisch (SEA) also became free agents.