SAN JOSE, CA (June 6, 2026) – PWHL San Jose today announced that forward Anne Cherkowski has been signed to a two-year Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) Standard Player Agreement ahead of the team’s inaugural 2026-27 season. Cherkowski, who was under contract with the New York Sirens, joins PWHL San Jose on a new deal through the 2027-28 campaign and becomes the third of five players to be added to the team during Phase 2 of the PWHL’s Expansion Roster Distribution Process.
Cherkowski was selected by New York with the 13th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 PWHL Draft. The 23-year-old recorded nine points (2G, 7A) in 28 games and her seven assists were tied for the second-highest total among Sirens rookies. The native of Coldstream, British Columbia, won a pair of medals (one gold, one silver) competing for Canada at the 2019 and 2020 IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship. Cherkowski played collegiately at Clarkson University where she skated in 168 games and tallied 147 career points (60G, 87A), earning ECAC First-Team All-Star honors her final season.
The addition of Cherkowski by PWHL San Jose follows earlier Phase 2 signings of goaltender Corinne Schroeder and defender Rory Guilday, each to two-year contracts.
Phase 2 of the Expansion Player Distribution Process, which began Friday at 12 p.m. ET and continues until Monday, June 8 at 1 p.m. ET, allows each expansion team to build the foundation of its roster by acquiring five players through signings and, if necessary, a player selection process. Only players identified on an expansion team’s initial 20-player Exclusive Negotiation Target List are eligible to be signed during Phase 2. Existing teams can lose a maximum of three players who are under contract for the 2026-27 season during this phase. Read the full rules here.
A complete list of player signings and transactions is available on the official PWHL Transactions Page. To see the full overview of the status of PWHL player contracts ahead of Phase 2, visit the PWHL Contract Guide here.
ABOUT PWHL SAN JOSE
PWHL San Jose is one of 12 teams in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), which was founded in 2023. The PWHL began its inaugural season in January 2024 and features the best women’s hockey players in the world. PWHL San Jose was officially announced as one of the league’s four new expansion teams on May 19 and will debut at SAP Center in the fall. Fans can place a time-stamped deposit here, opens in a new tab to secure priority access to season tickets for PWHL San Jose’s historic inaugural season, once ticket packages are released. To learn more and stay up to date, visit PWHLSanJose.com, subscribe to PWHL San Jose’s newsletter here, opens in a new tab, and follow the team on Facebook PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab, Instagram @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, X @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, TikTok @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, YouTube PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab, Threads @PWHL_SanJose, opens in a new tab, Bluesky @PWHL-SanJose, opens in a new tab, and LinkedIn PWHL San Jose, opens in a new tab.
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