New York state of mind: Pascal Daoust using transparency to create PWHL buzz in a busy market

When some people get married, they like to be driven away in a fancy car or nice limousine.

PWHL New York GM Pascal Daoust? He and his wife took off in a New York City taxi cab.

It goes to show that moving to the biggest sports market in the world was an easy choice for the Blainville, Quebec native.

“Ever since I was born, I’ve thought about New York,” Daoust admitted. “It was the market I dreamed of.”

According to Daoust, the opportunity to work in the Professional Women’s Hockey League came out of nowhere. He received a text while vacationing with his family at Disney World in Orlando in late July.

“It said, ‘Hey, would you be willing to go back to women’s hockey?’ I was not aware of what that would mean.”

Not too long after that, Daoust sent in a resume, and a couple of phone calls later, he was offered the job as general manager of PWHL New York.

“For me, it was, ‘Of course, I’m coming to New York.’ Building something from scratch today is not only a privilege, but it’s unique in history. I was more than excited.”

Daoust admitted that he did have an offer to join the development staff with an NHL team, but that getting to work in the new league, despite not knowing exactly what role he would be cast in, was enticing.

“I was not even aware that the league was calling me for a GM proposal. [At the Univ. of Montreal] I was running the sports department, but also…running all of the events. I was thinking the [PWHL] was looking for someone to create that department. At the end of the first conversation, I could tell they were at looking at me for ‘hockey guy.'”

Daoust has been helping train and develop players for three decades, working both in management and on the bench. He served as assistant coach for the Univ. of Montreal’s women’s team for six seasons, seeing the Carabins win two USports national championships. Daoust also worked as an assistant coach with Les Canadiennes (formerly the Montreal Stars) of the defunct Canadian Women’s Hockey League.

In 2016, he became the general manager of the Val-d’Or Foreurs of the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League, but he was fired in February of last season.

Daoust assures all of his past experience helped groom him for this gig.

“The experience and the challenge you face working, coaching and managing, CHL or USports, there is nothing that you do in your past that you know that you are going to use in your future. For sure, everything I’ve done in my past is now very helpful.”

New York is facing a challenge that no other team in the PWHL is – playing home games in two different states. Most of their home affairs occur at Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport, Connecticut, with a few also being held inside UBS Arena, the home of the New York Islanders. It’s not just a logistical battle for the franchise to operate out of different buildings but also growing the team’s reputation in two different markets.

“It’s not easy to get the same fans to come to both arenas. Probably the biggest challenge against us is that we’ve only had three home games. We’re going to be playing six [home] games in our last seven at the end of the season. Hopefully, we use that time to spin something, get New York people excited, curious to see what we have in-person.”

Like many of the teams in the PWHL, Daoust and company are going above and beyond to get their name out to the public, doing so in a jam-packed major sports market.

“We’re doing everything we can to get players into the community so people have access to [the team]. I’m making myself available anytime, 24/7, if someone needs to reach out. We know it’s a big market, but it’s a big opportunity. It’s a big challenge, but challenge is also opportunity.

“As soon as we play a couple of games in a row in our market…it can make a big difference, not only on the product, but also what we’re trying to create in the long-term for New York, and for the generation coming up to have a team to look up to.”

A noticeable trait of New York’s GM is that he is very upfront. Unlike some managers in professional hockey, Daoust does not hide from the spotlight. He has been seen at just about every team event, as well as appearing on broadcasts periodically throughout the season. For Daoust, it is not just about doing his part in promoting the team, it is about being transparent, keeping everyone in the know about his club.

He admits that his work with Val d’Or and the influence of what goes out on social media pushed him to be a front-facing GM in order to inform the masses accurately.

“I prefer transparency, I prefer to be open-book. I like to be transparent with media, my players and my staff. I think everything can be shared, but it’s how you do it. I’m not scared to discuss or receive any questions, and to share as much as I can.”

In his transparency, Daoust doesn’t hesitate to discuss his team and how they were put together. After he put pen to paper, he got to work in trying to build a winning team. While acquiring talented players is important, Daoust says making sure players buy into the team’s values and culture was vital to whether or not he would want to sign them.

He even asked free agents Alex Carpenter, Abby Roque, and captain Michah Zandee-Hart for their input on who he would target in the draft.

“I told them, “I would like to hear from you about players you would like to play with, and…players you don’t like to play against.’ When you don’t want to play against someone, which means something, because it means that you’d want them in your dressing room.”

Despite the team sitting in fifth place during the IIHF break, Daoust likes how his team is constructed, but understands that things might change throughout the season.

Some might consider making a trade simply to add more talent to the roster, but Daoust does not see it that way.

“I wouldn’t move a player, just to move a player. A good dressing room is very important when you compete at the end of the year. If we have to trade, it’s because the move can definitely help us [on the ice], but also help the dressing room. We’ll see how it goes over the next couple of weeks.”

While he the majority of his focus is on finishing out this season, Daoust is excited for the future of the franchise.

“The league will be better and better, from year to year.”