PWHL Expansion Draft Predictions: New York Sirens

PWHL expansion is upon us, and with it, the dreaded expansion draft. Teams that fans have grown to love for the past two years will look extremely different come the beginning of the 2025-2026 season. This will be difficult for fans of the New York Sirens, who have largely been unable to cheer for things like “wins” and “playoff berths” over the past two years and thus have become especially attached to their players. 

Initial Protections

Alex Carpenter

Carpenter is probably the most obvious player on this list. Break down the entire roster, ship everyone out but one player, and Alex Carpenter is that one player. She is one of the best players in the world. She scored 11 goals in 26 games played this past season, and finished 3rd on the team in points (20) despite missing several games due to a broken jaw. Her importance to the team was especially highlighted when the Sirens lost all four games she missed with the injury.

She was one of the team’s three free agent signings in the lead-up to the inaugural season, and will be a crucial part of this team for a long time. 

Ella Shelton

With your most important forward covered, next up is the most important defender. Shelton was selected third overall in the inaugural PWHL draft, and she has more than delivered on the high expectations that came with that. She was 5th on the Sirens in points this year with 16 and 4th in goals with 8, despite getting injured in the first game of the season and only playing 24 games. She is the best offensive blueliner in the PWHL, having led the league in goals by a defender for two years running. In the Sirens’ first season, when their defense struggled significantly, Shelton was a rare bright spot. 

Sarah Fillier

This one might be risky, and I think it largely depends on how confident New York is that they can lock her down long term as her contract comes up this summer. If they don’t think she will choose to stay with the Sirens once they no longer own her rights, it’s possible they’ll choose a path that involves leaving her exposed.

That said, Fillier’s showing this past season makes it nearly impossible not to protect her. She is good enough that one year of her may well be more valuable than three of whoever might take her place. She tied for the league lead in scoring this year with as a rookie, racking up 29 points, and perhaps even more importantly, factored in on more than 40% of the Sirens' goals. That is an absence that would be sorely felt.

The Exposed

The most significant consequence of these three initial protections is that New York will not be able to protect Corinne Schroeder. Schroeder has been stellar for the past two seasons behind a sometimes less-than-stellar team, and there is a chance that she will be the best goaltender left exposed in the expansion draft. 

Among defenders, it will leave names like Jamie Bourbonnais, Micah Zandee-Hart, and Maja Nylen-Persson exposed. Forwards would include Jessie Eldridge and Abby Roque. Any of these would represent a significant loss for the Sirens, but given the aggressive format of the expansion draft, it's unavoidable.

First Selections

This will depend largely on the order of the expansion draft, who each team might have already signed in leading up to the draft, and a number of other factors. But without knowing that, my guesses would be:

Corinne Schroeder

Schroeder was a finalist for Goaltender of the Year last year and likely should have been this year. She led the league in shutouts with five and posted a .919 save percentage, and would be a phenomenal backstop for either expansion team if they are able to select her. If she is available, I don't see a world where she doesn't get selected.

Micah Zandee-Hart

Something about Zandee-Hart getting selected in the expansion draft seems inevitable. She’s an excellent defender, and for Vancouver she is a local daughter with the potential to be a franchise staple. Despite only scoring one goal this season, she had 9 assists, demonstrating her ability to make plays. Her defensive prowess and leadership abilities are also not to be taken lightly.

The Final Protection Slot

Once two selections are made, teams will have the opportunity to select one final player to protect from expansion. If Schroeder and Zandee-Hart are drafted in the first round, I predict New York will choose to use their last additional protection slot on Jessie Eldridge. Eldridge scored 24 points this year, which was good for second on the Sirens and 7th in the league. She has quietly been one of the Sirens’ best players not to mention an important locker room presence, and her ability to play up and down the lineup is important. While she occasionally played on the top line with Carpenter and Fillier, she was also used to strengthen the second and third lines when necessary.

No matter what happens, the expansion draft is sure to have earth-shaking effects throughout the league. If there’s one comfort, it is that every one of the inaugural teams will be going through the same thing; no one team will be the only one to deal with the growing pains.