On August 29, 2023, the PWHL revealed that one of its first six charter franchises would be located in the New York metropolitan area.[2][3] The league announced on September 1 that Pascal Daoust, the former general manager for the QMJHL's Val-d'Or Foreurs, would be the team's inaugural general manager.[4][5] On September 15, Howie Draper was named as the team's first head coach, taking a leave of absence from his position as head coach of the University of Alberta program to take the position.[6][7] Each PWHL team was permitted three signings during the free agency period ahead of the 2023 PWHL Draft. On September 8, the team announced the signing of its first three players, United States national team members Alex Carpenter and Abby Roque, and Canadian national team member Micah Zandee-Hart.[8] The draft was held on September 18; New York's first selection, at fourth overall, was defender Ella Shelton.[9]
In November 2023, it was revealed that New York's colors would be turquoise, navy blue, and white.[10] On November 28, the team announced that it would play its home games at Total Mortgage Arena.[11] On November 30, the team announced it would also play four games at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.[12] On December 21, the team announced that Zandee-Hart would be its first captain, and that Carpenter and Shelton would be serve as alternate captains.[13]
New York played in the league's first ever game, a 4–0 victory over PWHL Toronto on New Year's Day 2024. Shelton scored the first goal in league history, and Corinne Schroeder recorded the league's first shutout.[14] The team hosted its first home game on January 5, losing a rematch to Toronto by a score of 3–2.[15] New York would be the first team eliminated from playoff contention on April 24.[16][17] The team secured the first overall pick at the 2024 PWHL draft with a victory over PWHL Ottawa on April 30.[18] At the draft, New York used the first overall pick to select Princeton standout Sarah Fillier.[19] At the end of the season, the team announced that it had agreed to part ways with coach Draper; in June, New York hired former Colgate Raiders coach Greg Fargo as its new head coach.[20]
New York, like all PWHL charter franchises, operated without unique branding for the league's inaugural season—the team was known as PWHL New York and wore a league-wide jersey template that featured the city's name diagonally on the front.[23] The team did have its own colour scheme, featuring turquoise and black. In October 2023, the league registered a trademark for the name New York Sound.[24] However, in September 2024, when the PWHL unveiled franchise nicknames, New York was given the name Sirens, which the league stated was in reference to New York City's "vibrant sights and sounds".[25] A report from The Hockey News stated that other names in contention for New York included Rush and Odyssey.[26] The team added orange to its color scheme, and also unveiled a logo featuring stylized "NY" initials and the team's nickname.[25]
^Kennedy, Ian (November 23, 2023). "PWHL Releases Jersey Designs". The Hockey News. Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
^Ibrahim, Abdulhamid (January 2, 2024). "PWHL sorting out missing pieces like team names and logos as it goes along". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on January 18, 2024. Retrieved January 18, 2024. However there are some missing pieces, such as names and logos for the six teams. "I don't, I don't," PWHL advisory board member Stan Kasten said Monday on whether he has a timeline for those key elements to be included.
