New York Sirens Duo Share Excitement Leading Up to The PWHL Season

By Victoria Befumo | September 28 2026

For the New York Sirens, the excitement of the upcoming season has only just begun. The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) team hosted an Interactive Season Ticket Member Event this past Saturday, September 26, 2026, at Essex County Codey Arena, the team’s practice facility in New Jersey. Media got the opportunity to speak to veteran player Elle Hartje and rookie Makenna Webster. 

Elle Hartje and Makenna Webster

Hartje and Webster were asked how they are feeling with preseason being around the corner, with a start date of November 18, 2026, and what their outlooks are now that they have a definite start date. 

Hartje replied, “We still are a bit of a ways out, but it's really fun to just drum up the excitement in the offseason. And I think our team specifically does a great job of keeping that ball rolling from the success of last year.” She said, “Us players are just so excited to be back and being in Codey right now; we just want to get on the ice and get going.. I think, to start the year, we know we have a really special group this year, so we're excited for everybody to see it.” 

Webster shared Hartje’s idea of excitement and reiterated how they have a great group of girls who are ready to play. They both mentioned how “amazing” it is to see the amount of season ticket holders and the kids who come to events like this one. 

When asked about playing in a market with such deep community ties, the duo reflected on what that local connection signifies to them personally.

“Obviously, Makenna is new and it's amazing that she gets to show up and there's hundreds of season ticket holders. Which has just grown so much from even my first year,” Hartje said. She and the Sirens’ staff are very passionate about getting into the community to form connections and continue drumming up the excitement for the upcoming season. 

Hartje explained the growth that she personally has seen throughout her time with the Sirens. “I'm going into year three, but I actually think that's so special that I've gone to see the growth, like with my own eyes,” she mentioned. “So from my year one, to now my year three of the sirens, you can just see that growth and we play in such a special area. It’s been so much fun for me,” she said. 

Webster, being new to the professional sports world, explained that the community around the Sirens has been amazing thus far. She continued on to say, “It's just so cool to see, like, how women's sports and especially how like New York, us as a team, we have New Jersey as well. I've said it's kind of like having two states as one. We get people from all over; it’s really cool.”

Hartje emphasized the significant impact Webster and the rest of the newcomer class have made through active community outreach. “I think that stems from just the precedent that's been set,” Hartje remarked. “And so when people get drafted here or they're new, they just hit the ground running and kind of buy into it that way.”

With this being Webster’s first time living in the New York/New Jersey area, she is still getting acclimated to the new environment. “I'm definitely getting the lay of the land,” she said. Being from the suburbs, she explained the difference of environments as “zero to one-hundred.”

The Sirens forwards were asked to comment on how their training has been going, and what their outlooks are now that they have a date training camp-wise.

“Yeah, I think it's all about, like breaking it up into phases…We know what we want our team to look like, this year with systems, and we know what we need to work on specifically,” responded Hartje. “I think it's just ramping that up and we're still like a month and a half out [from training camp]. It's this final push, I would say, where we really dial in the fitness level”, Hartje said. 

She (Hartje), along with the other veteran players have been in the gym honing in on their skills and continuing to work hard. They want to hit the ground running when they get to training camp.  

The community within the Sirens team is only growing stronger, with the new draft picks bringing a good energy to the group. 

“I actually had the ability to be at the draft this year and meet the girls afterwards. We had a little post-draft party and we were playing ‘New York, New York’ at dinner and Emma Peschel and her brothers were dancing to it,” shared Hartje. “I just think that everyone really buys into what we're trying to do here in New York. Pascal [Daoust] always talks about how this is a family, and I think they can really feel that right when they join,” she continued. 

Webster added to that idea of community being built within the team, “I felt that the moment I was drafted. The staff, the girls on the team, and the captains, reaching out was just unbelievable.” She said that the team is, “truly a family, and it's just an atmosphere that I love and I'm excited to be in for the next three years.”

Hartje mentioned the growth and change happening within the league itself, specifically with the new addition of the All-Star game. “I think that the talent level is so high in this league and people love coming to our games because the level of hockey is so high. The All-Star game will be fun for the fans. I think it's a fan experience, fun for the girls, too, to kind of show that we have the skills,” she said. 

Hartje continued, “I think, with the broadcast deal that we now got in the U.S and with the All-Star game, everything's growing and I just can't wait to see what it's going to look like 20 years from now, you know? We're still so new, which is hard to believe with all of the growth that's already happened, but it’s just another step.” 

Webster shared that sentiment by emphasizing that their league has, “so much talent.” Webster also expressed her excitement for the girls who have, “allowed this league to be successful.” Webster continued and said, “To be able to really show off what these girls can do in front of everyone while bringing them all together, I think it's going to be so awesome.”

It is easy to say these two Sirens forwards are both eager to get onto the ice with their team for training camp. Both of them expressed their gratitude for all the Season Ticket Members who showed up at this event. These Season Ticket Members have a shared excitement for the opening of the PWHL season and for the Sirens’ games to officially start.