PWHL Power Rankings: Sirens making noise heading toward Olympic break
We’re just a couple of weeks away from the PWHL breaking for the 2026 Winter Olympics, and teams are both establishing themselves as contenders, while others are looking more and more like pretenders.
Ben Steiner, Scott Maxwell and Tyler Kuehl come together to lay out where they believe the eight teams land after a massive week for the league.
1. Boston Fleet
Record: 8-1-2-2, +10
Last Week: 1st
Ben’s Rank: 1st
Tyler’s Rank: 1st
Scott’s Rank: 1st
Ben: The Boston Fleet have been nothing short of exceptional in the depths of winter, and goaltender Aerin Frankel is a big reason for that, with a .950 save percentage that only compares to some of her best form with Northeastern University.
This week, she had two outstanding showings with 56 saves on 58 shots across a regulation 2-1 win against the Toronto Sceptres and a shootout 2-1 victory over the Seattle Torrent. For a team that isn’t producing much offensively — they sit third among goals scored, and don’t have any players in the top six in scoring, her abilities between the pipes have been MVP-calibre
The Fleet won’t play this week, giving them some time to reset before facing the New York Sirens on home ice on Jan. 28, their final game before the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympics.
Tyler: The Fleet got back on the winning track by not necessarily lighting up the scoreboard, but using the stellar play of Aerin Frankel (again) to come away with wins over the Sceptres and Torrent. When the Green Monster is rolling, she’s the best goaltender in the world. If she keeps playing at this level, it spells trouble for everyone playing in Milan next month.
I will say, I do have concerns about the power play, mainly because it only seems to work through Megan Keller. In that win against Toronto, Boston seemed like it was forcing the play over to the captain, and the Sceptres were able to read that. If the Fleet wants to continue to have one of the best power plays in the league, they need to create a little more versatility.
The Fleet have a nice break, as they are off until the 28th, when they take on the Sirens.
2. Minnesota Frost
Record: 5-2-2-3, +11
Last Week: 2nd
Ben’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler’s Rank: 3rd
Scott’s Rank: 3rd
Ben: If it weren’t for Frankel’s outstanding goaltending with Boston, the Minnesota Fleet would stand a good chance of being top of the PWHL, given that four of the top six highest scoring forwards are wearing purple and white this season.
It took them a little while to get going, but it seems as though they’ve finally hit full stride. The past week saw them play only one game, as they picked up a 3-2 win over the Sirens to extend their back-to-back wins, following a 6-2 victory over the Seattle Torrent.
Led by Kendall Coyne Schofield, who had a goal and two assists in the week to bring her to a league-leading nine goals and 14 points, the Frost are likely to be the team carrying the most momentum into the Olympic break. How scary will they be when their Team USA stars return with gold-medal confidence as well?
Tyler: The defending champs are just doing their best to stay the course, seemingly eyeing consistency rather than the roller-coaster seasons that Minnesota has experienced over its first two seasons of operation. You have to like how the big guns continue to produce. Captain Kendall Coyne had a pair of points, including the OT winner against the Sirens last Friday, and she’s tied with teammate Britta Curl-Salemme for the league lead with 14 points. Taylor Heise and Kelly Pannek are right behind them with 12 points apiece.
Also, big game out of Nicole Hensley, making 24 saves against New York in her first start in well over two weeks. After such a down 2024-25 campaign, the former Team USA member is showing what makes her a valuable piece to the Frost.
The Frost begin a three-game homestand this week, taking on the Victoire on Wednesday.
3. New York Sirens
Record: 7-0-1-5, +2
Last Week: 3rd
Ben’s Rank: 3rd
Tyler’s Rank: 2nd
Scott’s Rank: 4th
Tyler: Keep spreading the news, the Sirens aren’t going away.
Two games against two of the best teams in the league and New York came away with four of a possible six points. Though they came up short in overtime against the Frost on Friday, the Sirens stymied the Victoire’s best weapons, and by the Sirens, I mean Kayle Osborne. The second-year netminder is quietly establishing herself as one of the top netminders in the league and proving why she was named to Canada’s Olympic roster.
With a couple of key games, prior to the Olympic break, New York has an opportunity to create an immense amount of momentum heading into February.
Ben: The New York Sirens are playing some of their best hockey in franchise history, sitting second in the PWHL standings with 22 points after a week that saw them pick up a point in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Frost and secure a 2-1 win over the Montréal Victoire.
It was a quieter week for Kristýna Kaltounkova, who only found the back of the net once in the win over Montreal, but with her eight goals, she needs to be in the MVP conversation, let alone the Rookie of the Year race.
The biggest storyline for the Sirens this week, though, was last year’s top pick, as Sarah Fillier put up three assists across the two games, bringing her to a goal and six assists on the season, as she picks up form ahead of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympics with Team Canada.
The Sirens are back in New Jersey on Tuesday night when they host the Ottawa Charge.
4. Montreal Victoire
Record: 5-2-0-5, +6
Last Week: 4th
Ben’s Rank: 5th
Tyler’s Rank: 5th
Scott’s Rank: 2nd
Tyler: I sit here in mid-January having the same stance I had last month – I want more from the Victoire. Sure, this is a team that generates more chances than any team in the PWHL, and their Corsi For Percentage is above the rest, but the lack of finish at times with this stacked roster is what has plagued this group for the past few years. Marie-Philip Poulin and Abby Roque remain the only two players who have hit 10 points so far this season, with Poulin being the only member of the team to have five goals.
Defensively, Montreal is on point. Offensively? Kori Cheverie might need to think of shaking things up.
Ben: The Montréal Victoire pushed back into the top four and the Walter Cup Playoff spots with a 2-1 win over the Ottawa Charge this week, but then followed that generally positive performance up with a 2-1 loss to the New York Sirens in front of a record crowd in Washington, D.C.
While the Victoire have potent attacking players like Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, they simply haven’t had that outstanding edge in 2025-26 and have struggled to link wins together, even when things start going well.
If draft picks were tradeable, they’re totally a team I could see dealing this year — their star players are entering their final Olympics, and the time is ticking on the legitimate contention window. Or dare I say, maybe the time has already passed?
They’ll look to turn things around and push up the standings with matchups against the Toronto Sceptres and Ottawa Charge before the Olympic tournament.
The Victoire visit the Frost on Wednesday night.
5. Ottawa Charge
Record: 3-4-0-6, -2
Last Week: 5th
Ben’s Rank: 4th
Tyler’s Rank: 4th
Scott’s Rank: 6th
Ben: The Ottawa Charge remains a challenging team to assess, and their outlook will change significantly after making a six-player trade with the Vancouver Goldeneyes on Sunday night, highlighted by the addition of two-time Walter Cup champion Michela Cava.
On paper, they probably won that deal by taking Cava, alongside fellow forward Brooke McQuigge and defender Emma Greco, but only time will tell how they fare compared to now former forwards Anna Meixner, Mannon McMahon and 2025 second-round pick Anna Shokhina.
Outside of the massive deal on Sunday night, the Charge played just once this week, suffering a 2-1 loss to the Victoire, snapping their franchise-record six-game win streak with a performance that only saw them muster 18 shots against Ann-Renne Deesbiens.
As my colleague Scott Maxwell pointed out last week, after they won their sixth straight, they’re simply not that good, consistently being outchanced, as they were in their loss to Montreal, where their 18 shots compared to Montréal’s 29.
Tyler: Yes, the Charge’s six-game win streak came to an end last Tuesday in Laval, but the way they battled against the Victoire shows this team has the fight that made them runners-up last season. Gwyneth Philips is still at the top of her game, though having a healthy and capable Sanni Ahola behind her is crucial for the team’s long-term success.
I know people were agast by the magnitude of players involved in the trade between the Charge and Goldeneyes, but you have to like what Ottawa is getting in the deal. A proven winner and secondary scorer in Michela Cava, giving the team a much-needed boost up front. I’m excited to see what kickback the Charge received from the deal.
Scott: I’m not going to act like I predicted the Charge’s streak to end with my blurb last week, but I wasn’t surprised to see the Victoire of all teams end it either, considering the two teams are opposites of each other in terms of their on-ice performance being so different from their records. Montreal outplayed Ottawa and generated a lot more in front of the net in the game, and while Gwyneth Philips tried her best, the Victoire finally got the bounces they needed to end the streak. We’ll see how the Charge rebound this week.
The Charge remains on the road as they pay a visit to the Sirens on Tuesday.
6. Toronto Sceptres
Record: 4-1-3-5, -8
Last Week: 6th
Ben’s Rank: 6th
Tyler’s Rank: 6th
Scott’s Rank: 5th
Scott: The Sceptres may have escaped the week with two points, but their offensive problems continue to persist. They’ve scored more than two goals in a game three times this season. Yes, the PWHL still hasn’t become a high-scoring league, but that still feels like an alarmingly low total, particularly for a team that should be good and one that generates as many chances as they do. Even in the 2-1 win over the Goldeneyes, it felt like Toronto had the puck most of the time but just weren’t really doing anything with it. If there was a team in need of a big move to add up front, it’s the Sceptres.
Ben: Daryl Watts, what a night. The star forward, bound for her first Olympics, scored an outstanding overtime winning goal against the Vancouver Goldeneyes at the Battle on Bay Street to pick up a 2-1 win for the Sceptres and vault her season tally to six goals and nine points.
Yet, the game also continued to showcase their poor ability to create high-quality chances under head coach Troy Ryan’s system. Even with the energy of the home crowd, few of their 44 shots came from threatening areas, and they fell victim to poor conversion rates against a solid performance from Emerance Maschmeyer for the Goldeneyes.
Ending the four-game skid was critical and a step in the right direction for the team, but the same problems persisted, and their power play scored just once on five opportunities, putting their conversion percentage at 9.7%, second last in the PWHL.
Tyler: I’m a little on the fence right now about the Sceptres. I still believe this group has enough firepower to be among the league’s best, but the way Toronto has performed is concerning. They overpowered the Goldeneyes for most of the game on Saturday at Scotiabank Arena, but they were almost goalie’d by Emerance Maschmeyer. Before that, they only found the back of the net once against the Fleet in a losing effort.
If they play with the same level of vigor as they did against Vancouver, the goals will start for the Sceptres. However, if they fall back and play at their opponent’s level, it might be tough for Toronto to break into the top four.
The Sceptres hit the West Coast this week, facing the Torrent on Tuesday before visiting the Goldeneyes on Thursday.
7. Seattle Torrent
Record: 3-1-2-5, -7
Last Week: 7th
Ben’s Rank: 8th
Tyler’s Rank: 7th
Scott’s Rank: 7th
Tyler: Even though they were at home, I was still very impressed by how the Torrent gave the Fleet everything it had on Sunday night. The only difference between Seattle and its first win in three games was Frankel. I like the pressure the team put on the best team in the league, something the Torrent can do more often if it simply executes. I want to see more of Cayla Barnes. The American rearguard finally got her first point with the expansion team on Sunday night, and needs to find some confidence to be the true difference-maker she can be.
Ben: The Seattle Torrent weren’t doing too well or too badly, until recently. Now, it’s just bad, as they suffered a third straight loss with a 2-1 shootout defeat against the Boston Fleet, after losing 6-2 to the Minnesota Frost last week.
In many ways, keeping the first-place Fleet to 1-1 through 60 minutes is admirable, but to see their losing streak extend to three is rough, and they’re quickly falling out of Walter Cup Playoff contention, alongside their expansion cousins up the I-5.
At least Julia Gosling scored in the loss to bring her to five goals and 10 points this season, keeping her in good form heading into the final three games before she heads to her first Olympics with Team Canada.
The Torrent hosts Toronto on Tuesday before heading to Denver for a Takeover Tour game against…
8. Vancouver Goldeneyes
Record: 3-1-2-7, -12
Last Week: 8th
Ben’s Rank: 7th
Tyler’s Rank: 8th
Scott’s Rank: 8th
Ben: The Vancouver Goldeneys have been fixed to the bottom of these Daily Faceoff PWHL Power Rankings for a little while now, but I’m giving them a bit of credit this week, after a 42-save showing from Maschmeyer in a 2-1 OT loss to the Sceptres, which saw their winless streak extend to three.
Despite the loss and being outshot 44-24, they looked better down the middle with Sarah Nurse back in the lineup — and the former Sceptre even found a goal against her own team in a valiant effort in front of a hostile Scotiabank Arena crowd.
Then, on Sunday night, they made a franchise-altering trade to bring in a trio of forwards in Anna Meixner, Mannon McMahon and 2025 second-round pick Anna Shokhina, which is a clear sign of intent that they aren’t pleased with how things are at the moment.
Luckily for them, this insane road trip is coming to an end. Despite massive hype in their local market during an inaugural season, they have not played a home game since Dec. 20, and their next game is back at the Pacific Coliseum on Sunday, looking for revenge on the Sceptres.
Scott: The good news: the Goldeneyes have gotten points in every game Sarah Nurse has played in, and the center has goals in every game she’s played this season. The bad news: she’s only played in two games this season. As someone who thought the Sceptres leaving her unprotected wasn’t the best choice, especially for a team in need of offense, it was great to see her burn her former team with a goal, even if the rest of the Goldeneyes couldn’t help her out. It’ll be interesting to see if her return can spark the team in the second half of the season.
Tyler: In trying to put a positive spin on what has been a very disappointing inaugural season in Vancouver, the team isn’t getting annihilated like it was earlier in the season. In this recent three-game losing skid, only the loss to the Charge a couple of weeks ago was by more than one goal, and that came from an empty-net goal. So, the Goldeneyes are certainly playing closer hockey, but how they were outplayed by the Sceptres this past Saturday shows this team is far from a playoff contender.
The Goldeneyes host the Sceptres on Thursday before heading to the Mile High City.