Lou Orlando
The New York Sirens edged the Toronto Sceptres 1-0 in a tense overtime battle Tuesday night — but there was little cause for celebration. By failing to win in regulation, New York was eliminated from playoff contention for a third straight season.
The Sirens are the only member of the PWHL’s Inaugural Six that has not appeared in the postseason in the League’s three-year history. New York finished dead last in its first two seasons.
Allyson Simpson scored the game-winner with a wrister between the circles at 2:42 of overtime, just minutes after New York’s playoff fate was sealed in somber fashion.
It was the lone goal scored by either side. The Sirens led 33-21 in shots, but Sceptres goalie Raygan Kirk kept New York off the board in regulation, making 32 saves in 62:42 en route to Second Star honors. Kayle Osborne stopped all 20 shots she faced to notch her fourth shutout of the season.
The Sirens needed six points in their final two games to have a chance at challenging Toronto and the Ottawa Charge for the No. 4 seed. They improved to 36 points (9-3-3-14) with their third overtime win of 2025-26, but the 40-point mark is now out of reach with one game remaining.
It marked New York’s first road win since Jan. 6, snapping an eight-game losing streak. The Sirens have the second-worst road points percentage at .214.
The Sceptres remain in fifth place with 38 points (10-1-6-12), trailing the fourth-place Charge by one. Ottawa can clinch a postseason berth Wednesday with a regulation win over the Boston Fleet.
“I think we showed a lot of belief today, not even late in the game, but right from the drop of the puck,” Sirens captain Micah Zandee-Hart asserted postgame. “I think you saw that the energy we came out with — we wanted to win. You look at the shot totals, we were getting a lot of good opportunities. We didn’t get a bounce going our way, but we had a lot of belief right from the get-go.”
New York outshot Toronto 8-1 past the midpoint of the first period and appeared to open the scoring at 14:29, when Maja Nylen Persson beat Kirk blocker side with a point shot on the power play. Officials immediately waved it off, ruling that Sarah Fillier interfered with Kirk outside the crease.
The Sirens failed to convert on four power plays, and nearly surrendered their fourth jailbreak goal in three games when the Sceptres broke in on a 3-on-1 shorthanded rush against Osborne.
Still scoreless late in the third period, Sirens coach Greg Fargo pulled Osborne at 18:40, but New York only generated two shots on goal at 6-on-5.
“We knew going in the situation — if we were tied, we would have to pull the goalie. Would have loved to have gotten her out a little sooner,” Fargo noted. “We had a tough time there coming up with possession in the offensive zone. It took us a little bit to get her out of the net, but I thought we did a great job once we got her out.”
Toronto gained momentum from a Maddi Wheeler tripping penalty at 11:11 of the third, sparking a forecheck that prevented New York from pulling its goalie with more time on the clock.
Even with their playoff hopes officially dashed, the Sirens’ intensity didn’t waver in overtime.
“We wanted to win. We’re all competitive,” Fillier stated postgame. “When there’s a chance to win a game, and no matter what’s at stake, what’s on the line, you’re going to want to win.”
Casey O’Brien collected a rebound off a Fillier shot and fed a trailing Simpson, whose wrister trickled through Kirk’s five-hole. Fillier extended her points streak to three games and led all skaters with seven shots.
She declined to take solace in the victory.
“Not really. We knew what was at stake. We knew we needed a regulation win,” Fillier said postgame. “Nice to get rewarded in overtime, but it’s too late for us.”
New York can accumulate draft points when it visits the Boston Fleet on Saturday. The No. 1 overall pick is off the table, however, after the Vancouver Goldeneyes defeated the Montreal Victoire 4-3 in regulation Tuesday.
Key takeaways after Sceptres dash Sirens’ playoff hopes in overtime
Sirens lament missed opportunities: ‘We had so many chances’
The Sirens couldn’t break through against Kirk in regulation, though they certainly had plenty of chances.
“Really just needed a bounce to go our way,” said Fargo. “Right from the drop of the puck, I liked our game. I thought we got to a lot of pucks first. We established a good forecheck and really got on them right away. The O-zone time was there. We had some opportunities.”
Denisa Křížová sprung free for a second-period breakaway but lost the puck at the last second. Later in the frame, Fillier nearly broke in alone after stripping Sceptres defender Renata Fast at the blue line, but Fast recovered quickly and erased the chance. In the third, a turnover created a 2-on-0 for Fillier and Wheeler, but Kirk turned it aside.
Jaime Bourbonnais had a golden opportunity to give the Sirens a 1-0 lead in the final seconds of their fourth power play, staring at an open net on a one-timer feed from Anne Cherkowski. Instead, she misfired, sending the puck harmlessly into the corner.
“We had so many chances,” Fillier lamented. “I had so many chances on my stick, just to bury something early. I thought we had great chances all game, and I just think we deserve better.”
Toronto weathered a strong New York attack behind a brilliant outing from Kirk in net.
“Our process was really good tonight,” Fargo insisted. “Needed a bounce, certainly, but they deserve some credit for keeping us off the board, too.”
New York excited to build on 2025-26 campaign, despite ‘disappointing end’
The Sirens were in playoff position as late as March, but they couldn’t hang on through an inconsistent second half.
Unfortunately for New York, the lows outweighed the highs. The Sirens went 2-3-0-8 in 13 games after the Olympic break and struggled mightily on the road. Long-term injuries to top scorers Kristyna Kaltounkova and Taylor Girard, alongside uneven play from Osborne, only contributed to the second-half malaise.
“It’s obviously disappointing,” said Zandee-Hart, nearing the end of her third season as New York’s captain. “It’s not where we want to be.”
After a 2025 offseason that brought in an influx of young talent, New York set its sights on a playoff berth. It fell short of that goal, though optimism prevails within the locker room.
“This season specifically, we were a brand new team. We had a lot of new players. We had a lot of injuries. We had a lot of new players coming in the mix,” Zandee-Hart explained. “For me personally, it’s disappointing as a captain to not help the team get into the playoffs for the first time, but I’m really proud of this specific team and what we were able to build towards at the end of the season.”
The Sirens lost nine of 10 games (1-0-2-7) from Jan. 20 to March 28, but managed to claw back into the playoff race nonetheless, fueled by an inspired stretch of play from Fillier. Their playoff odds took a major hit Saturday in a 5-1 loss to the Charge, but New York still had a narrow lane to the postseason entering play Tuesday.
“Just proud of our group,” Fillier said afterward. “We believed we were going to get in — and we played like we believed that too.”
In theory, a promising rookie class headlined by Kaltounkova, O’Brien, and Wheeler should breed optimism for the future. But an impending expansion — with exact details still unknown — could make it difficult for New York to build upon a promising campaign.
Gold Plan update: Sirens fighting for No. 2 overall pick
New York is officially out of the running for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 PWHL Draft, but there’s still plenty to play for heading into the regular-season finale against Boston.
University of Wisconsin star Caroline Harvey is widely considered to be the top prize this summer after leading all skaters in plus-minus at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics. But with fellow Wisconsin defender Laila Edwards and University of Minnesota forward Abbey Murphy also headlining a deep draft class, any pick in the top three could net the Sirens an instant star.
The No. 2 overall pick would theoretically give New York its choice of Edwards or Murphy — a particularly beneficial luxury for a team that desperately needs an elite playmaker on its backend. Of course, landing that pick won’t be easy.
The Seattle Torrent sit second in the Gold Plan standings with one draft point and two games remaining. The Goldeneyes rank first with three points and locked up the tiebreaker over New York with a regulation win Tuesday. The Sceptres could potentially join the race as well if they are eliminated from playoff contention Wednesday.
The Sirens will fall out of contention for the No. 2 overall pick if Seattle exceeds three draft points.
