PWHL Detroit signs Shiann Darkangelo to two-year contract
A veteran pro is heading home to join one of the league’s newest teams.
On Sunday, PWHL Detroit announced that the team has signed forward Shiann Darkangelo to a two year contract, which will carry through the 2027 28 season.
The Brighton, Mich. native is the franchise’s first signing of Phase 4 of the PWHL Expansion Player Distribution Process, and the second native of Michigan to sign with the team. Detroit signed Macomb, Mich. native Taylor Girard to a two-year contract during Phase 3.
Darkangelo joins a solid core of players in Detroit, which includes it, which includes their first five foundational signings. Detroit also added Girard and Sydney Bard during the third phase.
Darkngelo was playing pro hockey long before the PWHL was introduced in 2023. She was part of the last Premier Hockey Federation Isobel Cup team, the Toronto Six, in 2023.
Since entering the new league, she has proven to be an exceptional depth player who adds secondary scoring to wherever she plays. After starting off with Boston during the league’s inaugural season, she became one of the Ottawa Charges’ more important players over a season and a half, helping the team reach the Walter Cup final in 2025. She ended up signing with the Montreal Victoire last summer, and while she wasn’t nearly as productive as she was offensively in year two with the charge, she was a key intangible on a team that was desperate to get over the hump after a pair of playoff failures. With Darkangelo in tow, the Victoire was able to beat the charge in the Walter Cup final, clinching the franchise’s first championship.
In 30 regular-season games this year, Darkangelo posted four goals and eight points, adding a goal in the playoffs. In 83 career regular-season games, she has posted 12 goals and14 assists for 26 points, with two goals in 17 postseason contests.
With the signing, Detroit now has to add two more people before the end of the phase. The deadline for phase four signings is 3 p.m. ET on June 15. If Detroit and any of the other expansion teams fail to reach 10 players on their roster by then, a selection process will be initiated for each team to hit their quota.