May 9: The Beauts have made it official, announcing the one-year contract for Grant-Mentis. Jeff Marek of Sportsnet tweets that the deal is worth $80K USD and has already started to attract players from the PWHPA.
May 6: The free agency period for the PHF has been open for several days now and teams have started spending the additional money they have this time around. After a massive private investment in the league, the salary cap increased to $750K per team (up from $300K last season), allowing much more competitive salaries for the star players.
Competitive is certainly what could describe the deal that Mikyla Grant-Mentis is about to sign. According to Chris Johnston of TSN, Grant-Mentis will sign a “landmark” contract with the Buffalo Beauts worth more than $100K CAD, leaving the Toronto Six behind after negotiating with multiple suitors. Johnston confirms it is a one-year contract, meaning it would represent more than ten percent of the Beauts’ salary cap.
Grant-Mentis, 23, finished second in league scoring this year with 30 points in 19 games for the Six after being named MVP in the shortened 2021 season. This will actually be something of a return for the Brampton, Ontario native, who actually debuted in the PHF (then the NWHL) for Buffalo in 2020 after spending four years at Merrimack College.
News of a six-figure contract like this is a big step for a league that has continued to announce positive news over the last few months, including the appointment of Melody Davidson as league director just a few days ago.
Good to see PHF news here! Keep it coming!