PWHL Ottawa's Daryl Watts, right, celebrates a goal during a 5-3 win against Toronto in Ottawa on Saturday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
PWHL Ottawa forward Daryl Watts is one of the key players who remain unsigned heading into free agency on Friday. PWHL New York GM Pascal Daoust doesn't expect to have a busy opening day of free agency.
"I want the camp to exist and to be available for players to fight for a contract, to fight for a better contract, to fight for a better chair."It's a sign that recent draft picks and veteran players could spend the summer without job security. With only six teams and 42 players drafted earlier this month, it's only going to get harder for players to get a roster spot in the PWHL.
Step one in replacing that scoring is re-signing a key part of last year's top six, Hannah Miller. A steal in the 13th round of the 2023 draft, Miller racked up 14 points in 23 games. "She creates plays," Kingsbury said about Daniel after the draft. "She attracts space. She's very, very smart." Up front, Montreal has Marie-Philip Poulin, Kristin O'Neill, Laura Stacey and Maureen Murphy secured for another two years, and Swedish forward Lina Ljungblom will be coming to North America on a three-year contract after a great season in the Swedish Women's Hockey League.The team's top six looks strong once you add draft picks Amanda Kessel, Abby Boreen and Jennifer Gardiner to the mix. But should a player like Kessel not play for Montreal, the team will have a hole to fill.
Ottawa will have a hole to fill in its top six should one or both not return. On the plus side, the team added world champion Danielle Serdachny second overall in the draft, and her size and skill should allow her to slide into the top six seamlessly. "She drives D back and she can do it with incredible vision and incredible playmaking ability," Marmer said.Another was a strong skating defender who can break the puck out. Marmer feels she got that in Czech defender Daniela Pejšová, who she traded up to acquire at seventh overall, plus two other puck-moving defenders in Sydney Bard and Hadley Hartmetz.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
PWHL Ottawa selects Canadian forward Danielle Serdachny 2nd overall in 2024 PWHL DraftPWHL Ottawa has selected a golden goal scorer as its first round pick in the 2024 PWHL Draft.
Read more »
PWHL Draft sees Ottawa select Edmonton-raised Danielle Serdachny with 2nd overall pickDanielle Serdachny has fulfilled another goal: being drafted by a Professional Women's Hockey League club.
Read more »
PWHL Ottawa signs Zoe Boyd to one-year contract extensionBoyd missed the last month of the regular season with a wrist injury.
Read more »
PWHL Ottawa signs Aneta Tejralova to two-year contractTejralova was a seventh-round pick in the inaugrual PWHL Draft.
Read more »
PWHL Ottawa re-signs Natalie Snodgrass to one-year dealSnodgrass scored six points in 23 games with Ottawa this season.
Read more »
After learning valuable lessons, PWHL Ottawa is ready to build for sophomore seasonOttawa missed the playoffs on the final day of the season, finishing three points back of fourth place. But there’s...
Read more »