New York selects Princeton, Canadian national team forward Sarah Fillier with 1st pick in PWHL draft

New York filled a necessary need on offense by selecting Princeton and Canadian national team forward Sarah Fillier with the first pick in the Professional Women’s Hockey League draft on Monday night.

Regarded by PWHL scouts as a “generational player,” Fillier is a three-time Patty Kazmaier college player of the year finalist. She graduated with a degree in psychiatry and completed her four-year career at Princeton ranking sixth on the school list with 93 goals and fourth with 193 points in 120 games.

From outside of Toronto, Fillier won gold at the 2022 Beijing Games, where she finished second in the tournament with eight goals, and was also a member of three Canadian world championship teams.

Fillier, who turned 24 on Sunday, was projected to be the No. 1 pick and joins a New York franchise in flux, with Colgate’s Greg Fargo taking over as coach after the team went 9-12-3 to finish last in the standings. Fargo replaces Howie Draper, who reached a mutual agreement to stay on as a special advisor while returning to coach at the University of Alberta.