With the first pick of the third annual Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) Draft, the New York Sirens selected Kristýna Kaltounková, a 23-year-old Czech forward from Colgate University. She entered the draft as the No. 1-ranked prospect, according to The Hockey News, after impressive seasons in the NCAA and IIHL World Championship.
To build excitement around their new talent, the Sirens hosted a meet and greet on Sept. 28 at Redd’s Biergarten, located across from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Fans were treated to a Q&A with Kaltounková as well as General Manager Pascal Daoust, a raffle, a signing, photo booth and other activities.
The Q&A started with Daoust reflecting on the club’s third year in the league, in addition to the thought process during draft night.
“We’re writing our own story. We started our own book two years ago already. This year, it’s page three,” he said. “It’s a new start, it’s a new page, new character, new challenge, new opportunities definitely, and we’re gonna have a new start here at Prudential.”
After bouncing around stadiums in Bridgeport, CT and Long Island, NY, the Sirens found a permanent home in Newark with the New Jersey Devils.
Daoust also expanded on the challenges the team faced with losing players to the expansion draft in June.
“We had to be creative and ask ourselves, ‘How are we supposed to use the same recipe and hope it is different?’ and we decided to add some salt here and pepper there, but we didn’t need to throw the whole meal in the garbage. We had something great on the table and now we’re just adding some spices here and there so it tastes better.”
Following this, Kaltounková began her segment of the Q&A, going in depth on her early life in Czechia, her experience with the draft and her hopes going into the season.
The rookie forward is known for her fearless and physical play style, which she attributes to playing with boys growing up.
“It was tough because we didn’t have women’s leagues, so I grew up playing with boys until I went to the U.S. at 15 to play high school, and it wasn’t always easy. There was a lot of belief from guys to girls, no one wanted to have girls on their team because it was embarrassing,” she said. “A lot of guys from the opposing team would intentionally go and try to hit us because we were girls, I think that made me stronger mentally and physically.”
Kaltounková will start her rookie year under Head Coach Greg Fargo, who coached the forward during her time at Colgate. She expressed excitement over playing under Fargo, stating comfort and confidence as her main feelings.
“I feel like I can really be confident and play my game under him, so that’s really positive for me,” Kaltounková said.
With her final remarks, Kaltounková sent a powerful message to all young girls aspiring to be professional athletes in the future, encouraging them to keep going no matter what.
“Just keep going, just keep playing. If you think it’s unrealistic, just don’t think about that. Don’t let people discourage you. Women’s sports are growing and it’s for everyone,” she said. “It’s empowering to be a woman and play a sport. It’s such a great fanbase, a lot of support around you, so if you ever feel alone, you’re not.”
The morning of festivities ended with a raffle for game tickets, a booth where fans got to meet Kaltounková, get signed memorabilia and take photos with the star rookie.
