NEWARK — New year, same result for the surging New York Sirens, who defeated the Montreal Victoire 4-3 at Prudential Center on Friday. It was the third straight win for the Sirens (5-0-0-5), who are now tied with the Minnesota Frost for third place in the PWHL standings at 15 points apiece.
Sirens goalie Kayle Osborne continued an impressive stretch of play in her 10th consecutive start this season. After shutting out the Vancouver Goldeneyes in a 2-0 win Wednesday, Osborne made a career-best 42 saves against Montreal.
The Victoire outshot the Sirens 45-21, but New York put four goals past Montreal’s backup goalie Sandra Abstreiter and rode an inspired effort from Osborne to their first win of 2026.
“We’ve been on the other side of that shot number more times than not this year. We’ve also been in that situation where we outshoot a team and lose a game,” coach Greg Fargo noted postgame. “But I just thought our team did a really good job today of just sticking with it and not getting too high or too low. Obviously, Kayle came up big for us in net.”
The Sirens were aided by the return of star forward Sarah Fillier, who slotted back into the lineup after she missed the previous game with an upper-body injury.
It was a different kind of return for two familiar faces — Abby Roque and Jade Downie-Landry — who each made their first appearance at Prudential Center since departing New York for Montreal during the offseason.
New York already had a chance to play against Roque on Nov. 25, when the veteran forward scored a goal and had three points in the Victoire’s 4-0 win over the Sirens at Place Bell.
Downie-Landry, meanwhile, made her Victoire debut Friday. She spent the first seven games on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) after sustaining an upper-body injury in the offseason.
Chief on New York’s to-do list Friday was slowing down one of the best forward lines in the PWHL: Marie-Philip Poulin, Laura Stacey, and Roque.
Fargo took advantage of last change on home ice, stapling his top defensive pair of Micah Zandee-Hart and Maja Nylen Persson, and forwards Kristin O’Neill, Maddi Wheeler, and Taylor Girard, to the Victoire’s fearsome forward trio.
But there’s a saying that’s often used with the best of the best — you can’t stop them, you can only hope to contain them. Sure enough, Montreal’s top line struck early in the first period.
With O’Neill, Wheeler, and Girard overcommitting on the forecheck, Poulin led the Victoire rush and dropped the puck back teammate Kati Tabin. The Montreal defender sent a soft pass ahead to the net front for Stacey, who wrapped it around Osborne at 3:47 for her second goal of the season.
Despite sustained offensive pressure from Montreal in the opening frame, New York managed a response. Fargo sent out rookie Anna Bargman — listed as New York’s 13th forward on Friday — for a shift on the third line with Casey O’Brien and Anne Cherkowski.
Bargman only logged 1:40 of ice time against the Victoire, but that was enough to net her first career PWHL goal. Corralling a fluttering pass from Cherkowski on the rush, Bargman spun towards the net and fired a shot that slipped through Abstreiter’s five-hole at 16:16 of the first period
The fifth-round pick (No. 33 overall) recorded points in consecutive games after notching her first professional point Wednesday against Vancouver.
“I don’t think it’s felt too different in the sense of, every day, just trying to bring the most I can to the team,” Bargman said postgame. “I think it was just a product of everyone around me doing great things, and I just happened to be there and put it away.”
O’Neill, who played two seasons with the Victoire, gave the Sirens a 2-1 lead early in the second period, thanks to a costly turnover from Abstreiter outside of the crease. The goalie’s pass, intended for Tabin, instead found the stick of Wheeler. She quickly slid it into the high slot for O’Neill, who released a quick shot that once again beat Abstreiter five-hole at 3:46.
Montreal tied it back up at 6:37 of the second, converting on their only power-play opportunity of the afternoon. Poulin tallied her second point in the game, firing a one-timer from the right circle for her third goal of the season.
New York reclaimed the lead at 13:24, thanks to a dazzling play from two of its star rookies. O’Brien, the No. 3 overall pick, dangled the puck across the ice toward the left circle and slid a firm pass back across to a wide-open Kristyna Kaltounkova, who deposited a laser into the net.
Kaltounkova’s scored in back-to-back games and ranks second in the PWHL with five goals. Of course, O’Brien deserves flowers for a nifty play that drew the attention of two Victoire defenders and left New York’s No. 1 overall pick unguarded at the right dot.
Not to be deterred, Montreal tilted the ice in the third period. Through the first 10 minutes, the Victoire out-shot the Sirens 8-1. An equalizer seemed inevitable.
Instead, the Sirens got some much-needed insurance. Fillier cruised through center ice and set up Paetyn Levis for a one-timer in the left circle. Levis fired it past Absreiter at 10:20 of the third, giving the Sirens a 4-2 lead on just their second shot of the period.
It proved to be the difference at the final buzzer.
With the extra skater on the ice, Montreal cut the deficit to one at 19:35, when Natalie Mlynkova deflected a long shot by Roque. Osborne, though, stood tall in the final period, stopping 19 of 20, while her teammates managed just three in the same span.
Poulin and Roque each tallied two points apiece, and Stacey recorded a season-high eight shots on goal. Montreal’s 45 shots on goal are the most by any PWHL team this season.
Kaltounkova paced the Sirens with five of their 21 shots, and also recorded a season-high six hits in a game marked by consistent physicality. New York and Montreal both recorded season-high totals in hits; the Sirens owned a slight 25-24 edge.
New York’s third consecutive regulation win ties a franchise record. It’s a remarkable turnaround for a team that carried a four-game skid into their Takeover Tour game against the Seattle Torrent on Dec. 28. Five days later, the Sirens sit in a playoff spot and ride a season-best three-game winning streak.
“I think it takes time. Culture takes time to build. Confidence takes time to build,” O’Neill said of New York’s recent good fortune. “Getting to know your teammates takes time. And I think time is what we’ve had. We’ve already established a culture that we really love. It just took us a little bit of time to gain that confidence that we needed.”
Key takeaways after Sirens win third straight game
1. Osborne’s confidence reaching ‘whole other level’ in 2025-26
For proof of that confidence, look no further than Osborne.
New York’s No. 1 goalie appeared in her 10 consecutive game and earned her fifth win of the season, tying Aerin Frankel of the Boston Fleet for the most in the PWHL.
Osborne made a career-best 42 saves, and withstood a major surge by the Victoire in the third period. She allowed just one goal at 5-on-5, with the other tallies on the power play and 6-on-5.
It was a brilliant showing, made all the more impressive by her doing so on just one day’s rest — and without a game off all season.
“As a goaltender, you kind of feed off the confidence that your team has in you. As this season has gone on, Kayle’s become more comfortable with being the starting goalie here,” Fargo explained. “She can feel that confidence that our team has in her, and that’s been pretty cool to see.”
Osborne appeared in 10 games as a rookie in 2024-25, backing up Corinne Schroeder. She matched that total on Friday, and won three consecutive games for the first time in her career.
“She’s confident in herself, but when you feel that from your teammates, it can hit a whole other level,” continued Fargo. “I think we’re seeing what Kayle can do on a daily basis for us, and it’s been a lot of fun to watch.”
Friday marked the last time the Sirens play on one day’s rest this season. If Fargo wants Osborne to play all 30 games, the avenue is certainly there.
2. Unfamiliar territory
New York’s made a habit of outshooting opponents in 2025-26. The Sirens won the shot battle in each of their first eight games this season — a streak that ended Wednesday when the Goldeneyes outshot them 27-26.
The Victoire gave the Sirens a taste of their own medicine Friday, more than doubling their shot total.
“If teams are going to throw a lot of quantity at the net, that number is going to be high,” explained Fargo. “To me, it’s less about what they did to us in our D-zone, and more probably about us being able to extend some plays offensively, play in the offensive zone more — I just felt like today in particular, we were a little slower getting to some pucks first, or having the kind of support that we want around the puck.”
Despite the gaudy shot total, Fargo appreciated how the Sirens defended in front of Osborne.
“I think our group in front of her did a really nice job to let her see a lot of pucks today and try and minimize the second attempts.”
Nevertheless, surrendering 45 shots isn’t a recipe for success. Fargo and his group know that can’t become a trend.
“It wasn’t the prettiest of games for us,” Fargo acknowledged. “But it’s our third game in a short period of time. We knew we’d have to kind of hold the fort a little bit.”
3. Fillier ‘really effective’ in return to play
After an injury scare last week and missing one game, Fillier returned to the lineup Friday — and didn’t miss a beat.
“She just looked like her,” Fargo said postgame. “Sarah had a really good game today. I thought she was really effective. Used her speed really well, made a really great play on the [Levis] goal to put it away for us.”
Fillier got the primary assist on Levis’ game-winning goal, carrying the puck into the zone and putting it on a tee for her linemate.
She also filled in at center, and won key face-offs for the Sirens in the third period. Kaltounkova began the day centering Fillier and Levis, but the rookie struggled in the face-off dot, where she was 1-for-10 on draws. Fillier took her place, and won 7-of-12.
Though Fillier has just one goal this season and her drought extended to six games Friday, she’s such an important player in all areas for the Sirens. So, her return to the lineup was a big boost against the Victoire.
4. Touching tribute for two former Sirens
The Sirens honored Roque and Downie-Landry with tribute videos during a break in the first period. Roque amassed 12 goals and 30 points in 54 games with New York across two seasons. Downie-Landry also played for the Sirens the past two seasons, notching 12 goals and 19 points in 54 games.
Downie-Landry signed a one-year contract with Montreal in the offseason.
“It was special. I’m not gonna lie, I got a little emotional when I saw [the video],” Downie-Landry said with a smile. “I was part of the Sirens for two years, and I have nothing but gratitude for the the organization and the fans. So it was definitely really special, and something that I’ll hold on to for a long time.”
It was also a big deal for the 30-year-old forward to play her first game with her current team.
“It’s been a long seven games without playing,” she acknowledged. “I was happy to be back, especially with the group that we have.”
Roque, who was traded to the Victoire during the 2025 PWHL Draft for O’Neill and a fourth-round pick, made sure to take it all in during her return to Prudential Center.
“It’s always great to see friends and teammates. A lot of them become kind of like a family,” Roque remarked. “And also just in warmups, seeing all the signs for us and people who came down to our end of the ice just to say hi or pay homage to our first time back. It was really special, and I do appreciate it a lot from fans and from the Sirens for giving us that tribute.”
Roque picked up a pair of assists Friday, extending her point streak to four games. She’s tied with Poulin for the Victoire scoring lead with eight points (three goals, five assists). Roque has five of her points (one goal, four assists) in two games against her former team this season.
Downie-Landry and Roque face the Sirens again on Jan. 18, when the two sides meet for a Takeover Tour matchup in Washington, DC.
