DETROIT, MI (March 16, 2025) – The New York Sirens cruised to a 4-1 victory over the Minnesota Frost on Sunday night, as a record-breaking crowd at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena celebrated the league’s one-millionth fan milestone at PWHL Takeover Tour™ Detroit Presented by Ally—the eighth of nine stops on the tour. The game also broke the U.S. attendance record for a professional women’s hockey game, previously set at the Denver stop of the Takeover Tour™.
Minnesota opened the scoring six minutes into the game with a power play goal from Grace Zumwinkle to give the Frost an early lead. New York’s offense found their footing just a few minutes later with an equalizer goal from Jaime Bourbonnais mid-way through the first frame, then Paetyn Levis found the twine just five minutes later to put the Sirens ahead 2-1 heading into the first intermission. After gaining the lead, the Sirens didn’t look back, as Jessie Eldridge added another marker three minutes into the second to extend New York’s lead to 3-1. Sarah Fillier sealed the win for the Sirens with an empty-net goal in the game’s final minutes, marking a second consecutive win for New York after coming off a nine-game losing streak.
Corinne Schroeder earned her eighth win in her 16th start of the season for the Sirens with 33 saves on 34 shots, while Nicole Hensley stopped 20 of 23 shots at the other end of the ice for the Frost. New York improves to 27 points in the league standings with the win, now only three points behind fifth-place Ottawa with seven games to go in both teams’ schedules. Minnesota remains in the league’s final playoff spot despite the loss, trailing third-place Toronto by a single point.
QUOTES
Sirens Forward Taylor Girard on playing in Detroit Takeover Tour™ Game: “I think this game exceeded all expectations. We just broke the U.S. record and that’s so special. I had chills skating out there and to see all the little girls in the stands wearing their home jerseys – it was a special touch. I wish I got to experience that growing up, but I am proud to be a part of it today, so happy.”
Sirens Assistant Coach Josh Sciba on seeing the support from Michigan hockey fans: “I think you look at the crowd out there and that alone speaks volumes to what hockey means in ‘Hockeytown’. It’s a special opportunity that we get to participate in the game here and just to be around these players every day and to see how they interact with young girls that are at these games is special. To see and feel the passion here in Detroit and hear the chants – it’s an incredibly special opportunity.”
Sirens Forward Abby Roque on the game growing in Michigan: “I was sitting in Joe Louis Arena 15 years ago and probably was waiting around for Michigan or Michigan State to get a team–– and I think a lot of people were waiting around. But I think now there’s this professional level to look up to and be able to watch, it’s really special. There’re outlets for kids to look up to and there’s a huge benefit to having the PWHL – which is great to see and we’re just going to continue growing.”
Frost Head Coach Ken Klee on getting back on track: “We just need to get back to playing our style. Every game is contested, every game is tight, we have a lot of overtimes. One to Six [in the standings] any given night, anyone can beat anyone, so it’s not like there’s a huge difference in the teams–– and there is tremendous parody. Now it’s just about the small details. We have five left and if we win three out of five basically that’s our first series and we get to move on.”
Frost forward Kendall Coyne Schofield on the atmosphere in the building and the Frost’s recent long road trips: “It was not the outcome that the Minnesota Frost wanted but it was another big win for the sport globally, so I think it’s important to tip our hockey helmet to Detroit, who showed up tonight. This has been a really tough stretch for us and it’s important to acknowledge that it's hard to be on the road for the duration we've been on, but we can’t control that. So, we’re looking forward to getting home and playing in front of our great fans and getting back in the win column.”
Frost defender Mellissa Channell-Watkins on playing in her home state: “It means a lot; I never thought growing up that I would be able to play in professional women's hockey game in my home state, so it was kind of a dream come true. Little Caesars Arena showed up. Everybody here has been so welcoming, and it's been such a great opportunity. And I know just seeing all the girls in the stands wearing their youth hockey jerseys, they can see it and now they know that they have something to look forward to.”
NOTABLES
The PWHL has officially welcomed 1,001,648 fans in just over 14 months since the league’s launch on Jan. 1, 2024. Tonight’s crowd of 14,228 fans also set a new U.S. attendance record at a professional women’s hockey game – the fourth time a PWHL game has broken this record, including most recently at the PWHL Takeover Tour game in Denver, where 14,018 fans were in attendance at Ball Arena.
New York has won back-to-back games for the first time in two months, with their last win streak coming on Jan. 12 and 15 against Toronto and Minnesota, respectively.
Sarah Fillier scored her 10th goal of the season and has set a new league record for the longest goal streak with markers in five consecutive games. Also notching her 15th assist of the campaign, Fillier has tied the single-season assist record set during the inaugural season by teammate Alex Carpenter and Emma Maltais (TOR) in one less game (23). She moves into sole possession of the league lead in scoring with 25 points (10G, 15A) and is riding a six-game point streak for the second time this season.
Corinne Schroeder earned her eighth win in her 16th start of the season for the Sirens, surpassing her seven-win tally through 15 starts from the inaugural season. The New York netminder has wins in back-to-back starts and has allowed two goals or less in both contests.
Jessie Eldridge scored her eighth goal and 12th assist of the season in her sixth multi-point performance this campaign. Her eighth goal surpasses the total she scored in the PWHL's inaugural season (7). The Sirens forward sits sixth in league scoring with 20 points (8G, 12A).
Abby Roque tallied her 10th assist of the season to extend her point streak to a career-high five games. She ranks fourth in team scoring with 15 points (5G, 10A) through 23 games.
Grace Zumwinkle scored her fourth goal of the season for her first marker since returning from a Jan. 2 injury. The Frost forward now has six points (4G, 2A), through 17 games.
Jaime Bourbonnais scored her second goal for her fourth point of the season (2G, 2A) and has points in back-to-back games for the first time this campaign after tallying an assist in New York’s 3-2 overtime win over Montréal on Mar. 12.
Sophie Jaques tallied her 14th assist of the season and sits second among league defenders in scoring with 18 points (4G, 14A). The helper also ties Jaques with teammate Claire Thompson for most primary assists this season (10).
Brooke McQuigge recorded her third assist of the season and is riding a four-game point streak (2G, 2A) for the first time in her career. The Frost forward sits tied for fifth among rookies in scoring with 10 points (7G, 3A).
Paetyn Levis scored her third goal for her sixth point of the campaign, doubling her point total from the inaugural season where she tallied three points (3A) in 23 games. The Sirens forward has points in back-to-back games for the first time in her career, after notching an assist in New York’s 3-2 overtime win over Montréal.
Micah Zandee-Hart recorded her eighth assist of the season and sits second among Sirens defenders in scoring with nine points (1G, 8A).
Lauren Bernard notched two assists in her first multi-point game of her career, during her first game in a Sirens uniform. The defender signed with the Sirens on Mar. 10 and had previously recorded one assist in 15 games this season with the Toronto Sceptres.
Brooke Hobson tallied her first assist for her second point of the season. Both of the Sirens’ defender’s points this campaign have come against the Frost, the first being a goal in Minnesota’s 4-3 shootout win on Dec. 22.
Ella Shelton, New York’s top scoring defender, missed tonight’s game with a lower-body injury.
The Sirens won for the first time this season in regulation after conceding the first goal. Their record in such games now stands at 1-1-3-8. Meanwhile, the Frost scored first for a league-high 15th time this season, but their record in these games now drops to 5-4-2-4, which includes the most regulation losses in the PWHL.
New York’s starting forwards were all Michigan natives, including Taylor Girard (Macomb), Elle Hartje (Detroit), and Roque (Sault Ste. Marie).
SCORESHEET RECAP
Minnesota 1 0 0 - 1
New York 2 1 1 - 4
1st Period-1, Minnesota, Zumwinkle 4 (Jaques, McQuigge), 6:08 (PP). 2, New York, Bourbonnais 2 (Eldridge, Roque), 9:59. 3, New York, Levis 3 (Fillier, Bernard), 14:11. Penalties-Hartje Ny (holding), 6:03; Thompson Min (tripping), 10:16; Jaques Min (hooking), 19:55.
2nd Period-4, New York, Eldridge 8 (Hobson, Bernard), 3:25. Penalties-No Penalties
3rd Period-5, New York, Fillier 10 (Zandee-Hart), 17:37 (EN). Penalties-Cava Min (interference), 0:44; Girard Ny (hooking), 3:00; Downie-Landry Ny (holding), 3:43.
Shots on Goal-Minnesota 8-13-13-34. New York 8-11-5-24.
Power Play Opportunities-Minnesota 1 / 3; New York 0 / 3.
Goalies-Minnesota, Hensley 4-3-1-0 (23 shots-20 saves). New York, Schroeder 8-6-1-1 (34 shots-33 saves).
Attendance-14,288
THREE STARS
Jessie Eldridge (NY) 1G, 1A
Abby Roque (NY) 1A
Lauren Bernard (NY) 2A
STANDINGS
Minnesota (7-5-4-9) – 35 PTS – 4th Place
New York (5-4-4-10) - 27 PTS – 6th Place
UPCOMING SCHEDULES
New York: Wednesday, March 19 at Toronto at 7 p.m. ET
Minnesota: Wednesday, March 26 vs Montréal at 8 p.m. ET