New York Sirens pick Czech forward Kristýna Kaltounková 1st overall in PWHL draft
London, Ont.'s Nicole Gosling the first Canadian off the board, picked by Montreal
The New York Sirens selected Colgate University forward Kristýna Kaltounková with the first pick in the 2025 PWHL draft on Tuesday, adding a power forward with a penchant for scoring goals.
Kaltounková became the first European player drafted first overall into the PWHL, and the highest drafted player from the Czech Republic.
"What a great honour representing not just myself, but my country and my teammates," Kaltounková told reporters inside Ottawa's Hard Rock Hotel after the historic pick.
Earlier this year, Kaltounková became the first player from the Czech Republic to become a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award as the top player in college hockey. In her final season of college hockey, she produced 48 points in 37 games.
She is Colgate's all-time leading goal scorer, potting 111 goals over five seasons.
In her world championship debut this past spring, Kaltounková tied for the team lead in points (six in seven games), and turned a lot of heads in the process.
WATCH | Sirens tab Kaltounková with top pick:
The Sirens could slot Kaltounková on its first line alongside Sarah Fillier. That would give the team two bonafide shooting threats on one line, and would fill the hole left by the departure of Alex Carpenter.
The five-foot-nine forward should also be able to help make space for Fillier's skill on the ice.
"Physicality is a big part and a big piece, but I can also bring a lot of leadership, I believe," Kaltounková said. "I like to play with my heart and battle hard, and just always have my teammates' backs."
Kaltounková is New York's second first-overall pick in three PWHL seasons, after GM Pascal Daoust picked Fillier in 2024.
New York made another big splash in the first round, moving top defender Ella Shelton to Toronto in exchange for the Sceptres' first- and fourth-round picks.
The Sirens used the pick acquired from Toronto to pick the other top forward in the draft, the University of Wisconsin's Casey O'Brien.
A centre with high-end vision, O'Brien will add more skill to New York's forward group.
O'Brien won the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Award as the best player in college hockey, after posting 88 points in just 41 games. Along the way, the American passed Hilary Knight as the all-time leader in career points at Wisconsin (274).
"She's the kind of player you can build a team around," said Gordie Stafford, who coached O'Brien in prep school at Shattuck-St. Mary's.
To put her time in college in perspective, only seven players in NCAA women's hockey history have amassed more career points, and no one has had a more prolific offensive season since Carpenter put up 88 points with Boston College in 2016.
O'Brien captained the Wisconsin Badgers to a national championship this past season, her third title in five seasons.
"Her vision while skating is really, really good," O'Brien's longtime skills coach, Paul Vincent, told CBC Sports. "She has great lateral mobility, the ability to cut and turn on a dime. And she's fast."
First round draft picks:
- New York Sirens: Kristýna Kaltounková, forward, Colgate University
- Boston Fleet: Haley Winn, defender, Clarkson University
- New York Sirens (acquired from Toronto via trade): Casey O'Brien, forward, University of Wisconsin
- Montreal Victoire: Nicole Gosling, defender, Clarkson University
- Ottawa Charge: Rory Guilday, defender, Cornell University
- Minnesota Frost: Kendall Cooper, defender, Quinnipiac University
- PWHL Vancouver: Michelle Karvinen, forward, Swedish Women's Hockey League (SDHL)
- PWHL Seattle: Jenna Buglioni, forward, Ohio State University
Top defenders taken early
Just about every team, other than the Sirens, needed to add a top-four defender, and there was a clear divide between the top handful of defence prospects and the rest of the field at the position. Four defenders were selected in the first round.
Winn was the second-highest scoring defender in the NCAA last year. Only Wisconsin's Caroline Harvey bettered Winn's 46 points.
She is a two-time world champion with Team USA, and should be a big piece of the American blue line at the Olympics next year.
Clarkson head coach Matt Desrosiers described Winn as "the full package."
"[She's] a pretty dynamic defenseman that's really good on the offensive side, but equally as strong on the defensive side," Desrosiers told CBC Sports before the draft.
Winn's defensive partner at Clarkson, Nicole Gosling, became the first Canadian taken in the draft when the Montreal Victoire selected her with the fourth pick.
The 23-year-old from London, Ont. is an intelligent two-way defender with a high hockey IQ. She'll help make up for the loss of Cayla Barnes on the Victoire's blue line, and could share power play duties with Erin Ambrose.
Gosling became a world champion with the Canadian team in 2024, and will now get to play alongside several national team players in Montreal as she works to make the Olympic team.
The Ottawa Charge picked Cornell University defender Rory Guilday with the fifth pick. The Charge love defenders who have a bit of snarl to their game, and five-foot-11 Guilday will fit right in with the likes of Jocelyne Larocque and Ronja Savolainen.
Quinnipiac University defender Kendall Cooper became the fourth and final defender taken in the first round, going sixth to the reigning champions, the Minnesota Frost.
Finnish veteran becomes first Vancouver draft pick
With the team's first draft pick in history, PWHL Vancouver opted for experience in Finnish forward Michelle Karvinen.
The 35-year-old has done just about everything in a lengthy career, playing in several leagues across Europe and earning her first Olympic medal, a bronze, with Finland in Vancouver in 2010.
Karvinen pointed to her history playing in Sweden, where she's competed on two different teams built from scratch, as something she'll draw on when helping to build Vancouver's culture.
"On the ice, I've pretty much been through any situation because I've played for [such] a long time," she said.
Seattle rounded out the first round by picking forward Jenna Buglioni out of Ohio State University.
Trade market active on draft night
As GMs made 48 picks over six rounds, PWHL special advisor and women's hockey legend Cassie Campbell-Pascall popped up on stage three times to announce a trade, to the delight of the Ottawa fans.
New York GM Daoust was able to turn his riches on defence into nine picks in the draft via trade.
In addition to adding Shelton, one of the best defenders in the world, the Toronto Sceptres sent goaltender Kristen Campbell to Vancouver.
Campbell will have a fresh start in Vancouver, where Emerance Maschmeyer will be the starter. It's a clear sign that the Sceptres plan to run with a tandem of Elaine Chuli and Raygan Kirk next season.
The Montreal Victoire also added forward Abby Roque from New York in exchange for forward Kristin O'Neill. In Roque, the Victoire get a player with size and faceoff prowess. She had the best faceoff winning percentage last season among players who regularly took draws.
Combined with players like Shiann Darkangelo and Hayley Scamurra, who joined the team in free agency last week, the Victoire now look deeper at forward.
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