OTTAWA, ON – The Ottawa Charge announced today the signing of three international players selected in the 2025 PWHL Draft held in Ottawa on June 24. Second round pick Anna Shokhina (13th overall), fifth round pick Sanni Ahola (37th overall) and sixth round pick Fanuza Kadirova (45th overall) have all signed one-year Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) Standard Player Agreements for the 2025-26 season.
Shokhina, at 28-years-old, and Kadirova, 27, are both experienced and skilled Russian forwards who are the first players from their country to sign in the PWHL. Ahola, 25, becomes the first Finnish goalkeeper to sign in the PWHL and has backstopped her country to back-to-back bronze medals at the IIHF Women’s World Hockey Championship.
“We are extremely excited to add our three international draft picks to our roster,” said Charge General Manager Mike Hirshfeld. “We had Anna Shokhina ranked very high on our talent chart at the draft, so to be able to get her with the 13th pick was exciting for us. We think she’s going to be a good player in this league. Fanuza Kadirova is also a talented and skilled goal scorer. She’s going to need to deal with the physicality in this league. It’s going to be a learning curve for her, but we think the upside is high, especially where we picked her in the sixth round. Anna and Fanuza have played together the last two seasons and they have been on the Russian National Team.”
Ahola just completed a five-year NCAA career at St. Cloud State University where she posted a .917 save percentage across 84 games and notably earned 2024 WCHA Goaltender of the Year followed by All-WCHA Third Team honours in 2025. On the international scene, the 5’7” goalkeeper has represented Finland in three straight Women’s Worlds and was named a 2024 Tournament All-Star and selected one of her country’s top three players.
“Sanni was at the top of our list as far as goaltenders went in the 2025 entry draft,” said Hirshfeld. “We think she will be a terrific support for Gwyneth Philips. She’s had a good career in the NCAA, but again, she comes with international experience where she’s had lots of success.”
Shokhina comes to Ottawa as a three-time Olympian and four-time Zhenskaya Hockey League (ZhHL) champion. The 5’6” forward is coming off an impressive 2024-25 season with Dynamo-Neva St. Petersburg where she scored 30 goals and led the league with 73 points in 42 games, then led the playoffs with nine goals and 16 points in nine games. The left-shot right winger also tied for the playoff scoring lead in 2024, helping Dynamo capture its first league title.
“I am incredibly happy to get things going in Ottawa,” said Shokhina. “I will be able to play in the strongest league in the world with the best team. I’m looking forward to putting some pucks in the net, contribute to victories and help my new team take the cup.”
Kadirova is a 5’4” forward and two-time Olympian who was second in scoring to Shokhina with Dynamo-Neva St. Petersburg last season. She collected 26 goals and 57 points in 42 regular season games, followed by 13 points in nine games in Dynamo’s drive to the finals. She was also a champion of the ZhHL alongside Shokhina in 2024.
“I am happy and I can’t wait to join the team in Ottawa,” said Kadirova. “I will do everything possible to help this team.”
Ahola is the third goaltender signed by the Charge with PWHL Playoff MVP Philips and Logan Angers.
“I’m incredibly excited and grateful to be signing with Ottawa. It’s a dream come true to play in the PWHL and to represent a city with such passionate fans,” said Ahola. “This is a big step in my career and I’m ready to give everything I have to help the team succeed. I’m looking forward to growing as a player, contributing on and off the ice and helping build something really special in Ottawa.” 
With the signing of the international trio, Ottawa has now secured four of its six 2025 draft picks. The team currently has a roster of 21 players: 11 forwards, seven defenders and three goalies under contract for 2025-26.
Season Ticket Memberships for the 2025-26 season are available via the Ottawa Charge website .
Click here for a full list of PWHL offseason transactions.
