This time last season, the New York Sirens were on their way to their second straight last-place finish. Despite plenty of talent on the roster, the club had just suffered nine consecutive losses — a skid spanning the entire month of February — and had yet to string together more than two wins in a row.

The 2025-26 squad looks like a whole different team. And in many ways, it is. And as they prepare to hit the ice against the Ottawa Charge on Sunday (noon ET / 9 a.m. PT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+), the Sirens are very much in the mix with a big opportunity to leapfrog Ottawa and land themselves in playoff position as teams prepare for the stretch run to come. 

The successful climb up the standings we’re seeing in New York now is a direct result of a series of bold moves made by general manager Pascal Daoust, who pulled off a rapid rebuild almost entirely in one evening back in June. 

Here’s a closer look at the chain of events that led the Sirens into relevance. 

Looking at the Sirens’ top five scoring leaders from last season tells a pretty interesting story. Sarah Fillier led the way in her rookie season — her 29 points in 2024-25 not only earned her rookie-of-the-year honours, but the co-lead in league points. Filling out the top five behind her last year are four players who now represent other teams: Jessie Eldridge, Alex Carpenter, Abby Roque, and Ella Shelton. 

Forwards Eldridge and Carpenter were both snatched up by the Seattle Torrent via the expansion process last summer. Losing two players of that calibre can bring seismic shifts to any roster, but for a franchise still struggling to hit its stride two years into its existence, it could’ve marked an ill-affordable setback in team building. Instead, the losses launched New York into a pair of moves that further blew up the core entirely. 

The departures of Roque — who, like Carpenter, was one of three foundational signings made by New York ahead of the inaugural season — and Shelton, the first player selected by New York at the first-ever PWHL draft, soon followed as Daoust set into motion a franchise-altering series of events at the 2025 PWHL Draft.

Expansion losses set stage for draft-night gains

The 2025 PWHL Draft started out with an easy decision. For the second straight year, the Sirens held the first overall pick. And for the second straight year, they targeted an offensive powerhouse. The selection of Czech forward Kristýna Kaltounková at No. 1 last June was a victory in itself, but Daoust doubled down on the strong draft class by trading Shelton to the Sceptres in exchange for Toronto’s third overall pick and a fourth-rounder. The deal marked a win for both sides, with the Sceptres landing a local star to be a leading presence on their blue line while the Sirens used their second first-rounder of the night to bring in another elite forward in Casey O’Brien. The 2025 Patty Kazmaier Award winner was considered a strong contender to go first overall, so landing both O’Brien and Kaltounková was an impressive feat. (The signing of free agent defender Jincy Roese one week prior to the draft immediately helped lessen the loss of Shelton.)

With Toronto’s fourth-round pick, the Sirens selected another forward in Maddi Wheeler. 

All three rookies have more than lived up to their billing. Eighteen games into their respective tenures, Kaltounková leads the league in goals (11) — much the way Fillier took the league by storm in her rookie year last season — and shares the team lead in points with O’Brien. The duo often suit up on the same line. Wheeler’s eight points have her sitting fourth in team scoring, behind Fillier. The fact that three of New York’s top five scorers are rookies has not only raised the scoring ceiling and lowered the average age of the roster, but also transformed the squad’s offensive identity in the process and injected a heavy dose of speed and grit. This is a core that’s only just getting started. 

Not long after the first-round dramatics, Daoust pulled off another consequential trade when he sent Roque to Montreal in exchange for forward Kristin O’Neill and a fourth-round pick. O’Neill’s leadership and strong puck-battle abilities have made her a valuable depth forward on this roster on the rise, while the selection of goaltender Callie Shanahan with the pick brought some insurance in net.

In addition to signing Roese in free agency, Daoust also made sure to solidify the roster with some smart extensions. He re-upped forward Taylor Girard and extended Fillier early on, and further stabilized the blue line in November by extending Jaime Bourbonnais and captain Micah Zandee-Hart. He handed the crease over to Kayle Osborne, who has started all but one game this season and has been excellent, and signed her to an extension that will see her backstop the Sirens through 2027-28.

What’s next for New York?

The Sirens are about to face their toughest tests yet. Sitting in the middle of the standings with a chance to jump above the playoff cutoff line, nearly every game from now on holds playoff implications. The nature of the PWHL’s 3-2-1 scoring system means things can change quickly. Of New York’s remaining 12 games, nine are against opponents either currently in playoff position or a mere two points outside. After a statement-making off-season, the Sirens are now well-positioned to make noise down the stretch.