Despite a valiant effort Wednesday, the New York Sirens carry a three-game losing streak (0-0-2-1) into the PWHL’s Olympic break. The Sirens took the first-place Boston Fleet to overtime, but lost 4-3 in an eight-round shootout.
Fleet forward Alina Müller dusted off some highlight-reel moves in rounds seven and eight, besting Sirens goalie Kayle Osborne twice. Sirens defender Maja Nylen Persson kept New York alive in the seventh round with a snipe over the blocker of Fleet goalie Aerin Frankel, but Frankel made the stop in the eighth round to secure victory for Boston.
Frankel reached the 30-save mark for the fourth time this season, stopping 30 of 33 shots to improve to 9-2-2 in 2025-26. Boston (8-2-2-2) enters the nearly month-long Olympic break (Jan. 29 to Feb. 25) with 30 points and a two-point edge on first place in the PWHL standings.
The Sirens (7-0-3-6) salvaged a point thanks to Kristyna Kaltounkova’s equalizer at 14:26 of the third period — part of a two-goal effort from their No. 1 overall pick. New York closed out the first half in a playoff spot, sitting fourth overall with 24 points.
Boston gifted the Sirens a golden opportunity less than a minute into the game. Liz Schepers took a hooking penalty at 0:17, and Fleet captain Megan Keller joined her in the penalty box 16 seconds later after cross-checking Casey O’Brien.
But for the second time in three games, a struggling Sirens power play came up empty-handed on a lengthy 5-on-3. Boston showed off its League-leading penalty kill, limiting New York to just two shots on goal in 2:16 of continuous power play time — including 1:44 at 5-on-3.
Boston’s special teams success continued after Kaltounkova was called for roughing at 9:02 of the first period. Setting up shop in front of the net, Fleet rookie Abby Newhook chipped in a feed from Müller at 9:45 to give her squad a 1-0 lead. The power-play marker was Newhook’s first goal since Dec. 7.
“It wasn’t an ideal start,” Sirens coach Greg Fargo acknowledged postgame. “There were some moments, that [5-on-3] being one of them, that we’ve got to find a way to break through. In a close game like that, a goal, there can be the difference. I thought there were a lot of moments tonight where we ran into some adversity, and the group did a really good job to turn the page and focus on the next play.”
New York’s power play vindicated itself in the second period, evening the score with help from a tripping penalty on Hannah Brandt.
Reigning PWHL Rookie of the Year Sarah Fillier had her fingerprints all over the play. After keeping the puck in the zone with a blind backhand pass, Fillier cruised in with a shoulder fake and fired a shot on goal. Frankel made the initial save, but Kristin O’Neill found the rebound and chipped it into the net at 10:19 to tie the game 1-1.
Fillier is third on the Sirens with 10 points (one goal, nine assists). It was just the second power-play goal surrendered by Boston all season. The Fleet still lead the League with a 94.3 percent success rate shorthanded.
Boston had a chance to reclaim the lead at 18:03 when Ella Huber was awarded a penalty shot after being hooked by Micah Zandee-Hart, but Osborne turned the rookie away.
Moments later, Kaltounkova gave New York a 2-1 lead at 18:59 of the second, crashing the net and sliding in a feed from Maddi Wheeler for her 10th goal of the season. It marked the first time all season that Boston trailed on home ice — but it didn’t last long.
Just 57 seconds into the third period, the Fleet punched back. A turnover by Elle Hartje sprung Theresa Schafzahl and Schepers on a 2-on-1. Schafzahl fired a shot on net, and Schepers finished off the rush, crashing the net and jamming the puck underneath Osborne’s pads.
Spurred on with new life, Boston tilted the ice against the Sirens, who struggled to maintain composure in the face of an intense Fleet forecheck. Zandee-Hart took a pair of penalties early in the frame, and while New York killed the first, they couldn’t keep the Fleet quiet for long.
With Zandee-Hart returning to the box for holding at 5:27 of the third, Boston’s power play struck again. Jamie Lee Rattray corralled the rebound on a one-timer from Zoe Boyd, toe-dragged to the goal line, and roofed the puck to give the Fleet a 3-2 lead at 5:47.
The ice remained in Boston’s favor well past the 10-minute mark of the third. The Fleet held a 16-4 advantage in shots at 12:59 of the frame, refusing to let the Sirens gain any momentum on offense. But once again, the pendulum swung.
A diving poke check by Kaltounkova gave Fillier a point-blank look in front of the net. Frankel denied her shot attempt and steered the puck into the corner, but Fillier retrieved it and slid it across to O’Brien, who sent it out to the point for Jincy Roese. Roese quickly fired a shot towards the net that found Kaltounkova’s stick and hopped over Frankel’s blocker.
On the back of her third multi-goal game of the season, Kaltounkova now leads all PWHL skaters with 11 goals, overtaking Minnesota Frost forward Kendall Coyne Schofield.
Despite sustained offensive pressure from New York in the final five minutes of regulation and overtime — including a pair of power plays — Frankel stood tall, forcing the Sirens into their first shootout of 2025-26.
Osborne stopped five of the eight attempts she faced, but went 0-for-2 against Müller in the final two rounds. In Round No. 7, Müller faked a shot at the left dot before engaging in a lightning-quick series of forehand-backhand dekes, ultimately flipping a backhand shot into the net after Osborne prematurely lunged forward. In the eighth and final round, Müller cruised in at the same angle, but this time fired a wrister through Osborne’s five-hole.
Nylen Persson and O’Brien were the only Sirens to score in the shootout; Frankel denied Kaltounkova and Fillier twice.
“There’s not much to say,” Fargo reflected. “We’ve kind of been in this situation a lot lately where we feel like we’re playing really well, we’re doing a lot of good things, we’re getting chances, and yet we find a way to lose in overtime or lose in a shootout.”
New York is the only team in the PWHL that has not won a game in overtime this season (0-0-3-0). Osborne stopped 32 of 35 shots, but fell to 7-6-2 on the season.
Key takeaways after Sirens enter Olympic break with 4-3 shootout loss to Fleet
Sirens can’t close out third period: ‘We’ve got to grow’
The Sirens have the youngest roster in the PWHL, and it showed in the third period.
New York carried a 2-1 lead into the final 20 minutes of regulation, looking to upset a Boston squad that hasn’t lost on home ice in 2025-26. A tall task, no doubt, but not unthinkable. The Sirens displayed excellent defensive poise earlier this month in nearly identical scenarios against the Toronto Sceptes and Montreal Victoire — both times prevailing with sharp, responsible hockey.
It was a much different case Wednesday. Boston’s forecheck completely overwhelmed New York in the first 10 minutes of the frame, culminating in a series of bad turnovers, defensive lapses, and costly penalties.
The Sirens regained their footing after Kaltounkova’s second tally, even tilting the ice in overtime, but it doesn’t change the fact that New York was completely outmatched for the majority of the third.
“We’re fighting our way back into games, but to be the ones to take charge in certain moments is something that we’ve got to grow and learn from,” Fargo stated.
Fight isn’t lacking in New York. If there’s anything Fargo can be certain of, it’s that his team won’t quit. Just last Tuesday, the Sirens erased a three-goal deficit against the Ottawa Charge before falling in overtime.
One week later, they’re left with a similar bittersweet feeling. The Sirens showed great spirit to claw back against the red-hot Fleet, but it’s hard to ignore all of the missed opportunities that fell by the wayside.
“It’s frustrating,” admitted Fargo. “I think everybody in that locker room wants to be the one to make a difference. We’ve got to continue to just find a way to improve — find a way to make a play that makes a difference.”
Great teams find a way to close out games. Boston does that better than any team in the League. A young Sirens squad has yet to master that skill, and they’ll remain below the Fleet’s and Frost’s of the world until they do.
Help is on the way, dear
For the second consecutive game, New York dressed 11 forwards. Defender Olivia Knowles filled in on the fourth line, logging 3:52 against the Fleet as Fargo once again leaned heavily on his top nine.
That top nine missed two notable pieces — rookie Anne Cherkowski (two goals, four assists) and Taylor Girard (five goals, one assist). Cherkowski was scratched for New York’s last two games as the second-round pick (No. 9 overall) recovers from a non-hockey medical procedure. Girard hasn’t played since Jan. 18, still serving a League-issued suspension after leaving the bench to participate in an altercation with the Montreal Victoire.
Fortunately for the Sirens, they should expect both back in the lineup when the PWHL returns from its nearly month-long Olympic break.
Cherkowski is slated to be fully recovered by New York’s next game, a Feb. 26 matchup against Montreal. Girard was initially handed a four-game suspension that would have prevented her from returning until March 5, but after an internal hearing, the PWHL reduced Girard’s suspension to three games, the League announced Wednesday morning. Girard served her third game against Boston and will be eligible to return against Montreal next month.
Sirens should gleam ‘motivation’ from three-game skid
Entering an extended break on a three-game losing streak probably isn’t the way New York drew it up. But if the Sirens take the right message from it, perhaps they’ll find a little extra fuel for the second half of the season.
Overtime losses to Ottawa and Boston — both featuring third-period comebacks — sandwich a lopsided 6-2 loss to Minnesota on Saturday. New York shouldn’t be satisfied with their level of play, but it’s not as if the sky is falling.
“I think no matter what, we just focus on what our group wants to do, and that’s to come back and keep at what we have been doing,” said Kaltounkova. “And that’s playing together, playing the right way, and the way we want to play.”
The Sirens proved they’re good enough to compete with the League’s best, but it’s another thing to be able to beat the best. In four games against the first-place Fleet and second-place Frost, New York is 0-0-1-3.
“Definitely, we don’t want to be discouraged by the loss,” Kaltounkova continued. “I think it’s just more of a motivation.”
It’s not ridiculous to entertain postseason aspirations, especially as New York holds a playoff spot 16 games into the season. However, Boston and Minnesota issued a firm reminder that getting to the dance is only part of the battle. If the Sirens truly want to compete for the Walter Cup, they’ve still got a gap to close.
