Sirens general manager Pascal Daoust gave captain and star defender Micah Zandee-Hart a potential out this summer. 

After New York missed the playoffs and finished in the Professional Women’s Hockey League cellar for the second consecutive season, changes were inevitable. 

Daoust wanted to take the team in a younger direction and rebuild through the draft. Zandee-Hart, 28, had the potential to go home to Vancouver and be with her family — including her cat. 

Rumors swirled about Zandee-Hart’s future in New York, but she ultimately chose to stay because she wants to see this rebuild through. She wants to help the Sirens make the playoffs and beyond. 

Micah Zandee-Hart of the New York Sirens skates during PWHL training camp on November 11, 2025 at Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange, New Jersey. Getty Images

Reigning Rookie of the Year and Forward of the Year Sarah Fillier sees the same potential in this group as Zandee-Hart does. 

“I signed a two-year extension because I think we have something good here that we can build and hopefully go chase after a championship,” Fillier said. 

When the Sirens open their season Saturday night in Ottawa, they’re going to look completely different. 

They’re younger, faster and perhaps more skilled than a year ago — and desperate to change the narrative around a team that’s yet to reach the postseason. 

“Everyone in that locker room, and staff included, feels like everyone’s hungry for more than last place this year,” Fillier said. “And I think our draft class really has hopped on that, too, just being hungry to hunt down teams and scrap for points. But yeah, I think we have high expectations for our group.” 

New York Sirens’ Sarah Fillier takes a shot as Toronto Sceptres’ Kali Flanagan defends during the third period of a PWHL hockey game in Toronto, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. ( AP

Added defender Jaime Bourbonnais: “We are able to set our bar pretty high. … I do feel like we’re really big contenders this season.” 

The Sirens went a completely different direction with their roster this summer. Only 13 players return from the previous season. 

The Sirens lost two of their top forwards, Alex Carpenter and Jessie Eldridge, along with No. 1 goalie Corinne Schroeder to Seattle in the expansion draft. Vancouver selected forward Gabby Rosenthal in that draft. 

Daoust also traded defender Ella Shelton to Toronto for the No. 3 pick in this year’s draft. 

The Sirens selected Colgate forward Kristýna Kaltounková first overall in this summer’s draft. They also drafted forward Casey O’Brien out of Wisconsin with the No. 3 pick and led off the second round by taking forward Anne Cherkowski from Clarkson. 

New York Sirens forward Kristýna Kaltounková (98) and center Casey O’Brien (26) react on the ice during the third period of scrimmage, against the Minnesota Frost, Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025 in West Orange, New Jersey. Noah K. Murray for NY Post

The trio joins Fillier, the top pick in the 2024 draft, to form the Sirens’ young core. 

Zandee-Hart again will serve as the team’s captain and respected stateswoman. 

The Sirens didn’t just overhaul their roster, though. They also retooled their identity and the way they want to play under head coach Greg Fargo. 

“We want to play a really aggressive game,” Fillier said. “We have a ton of speed. We don’t have the biggest or tallest forward group out there, but we have a ton of speed, a ton of skill. … So just playing aggressive, with an edge and just being relentless on the forecheck, and hopefully we can put a bunch of pucks into the back of the net.” 

Bourbonnais said those traits have come alive on the ice during training camp. 

“The pace is high,” Bourbonnais said. “We got a lot of really good draft picks, got a lot of good players like [forward Kristin O’Neill and defender Jincy Roese], so it’s going to be really cool to see everyone come together and jell. So, I have really high expectations for this group and I think fans should be excited.”