The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) has announced the six general managers who will be responsible for building their team’s rosters for the inaugural season, set to begin in January 2024. The American franchises will be led by Natalie Darwitz (Minnesota), Pascal Daoust (New York), and Danielle Marmer (Boston). The Canadian general managers are Gina Kingsbury (Toronto), Danièle Sauvageau (Montreal), and Michael Hirshfeld (Ottawa).
Natalie Darwitz, a three-time Olympian and former Team USA captain, will lead the Minnesota franchise. Darwitz, a native of Eagan, Minnesota, has spent the last decade coaching high school and college hockey programs in the state. She recently won two NCAA championships as a player at the University of Minnesota.
Danielle Marmer, named GM for the Boston franchise, brings a wealth of experience to the PWHL. She spent the last year as a player development and scouting assistant with the Boston Bruins, becoming the first woman to have an on-ice position in the history of the organization. Prior to that, Marmer was the director of player development at Quinnipiac University and an assistant coach for Connecticut College’s women’s hockey team.
Pascal Daoust, the general manager for the New York franchise, has served as the GM of the QMJHL’s Val-d’Or Foreurs since 2016. He also won two national championships as an assistant coach for the University of Montreal’s women’s hockey team.
Gina Kingsbury, the general manager for Toronto, brings championship experience to the PWHL. She most recently served as the vice president of hockey operations at Hockey Canada and won Olympic gold in 2022 and back-to-back world championships in 2021 and 2022 as the general manager of the Canadian women’s national team programs. Kingsbury also won two Olympic gold medals as a member of Team Canada before retiring in 2010.
Michael Hirshfeld will step into the GM role in Ottawa after seven years as the executive director of the NHL Coaches’ Association. Hirshfeld brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the PWHL.
Danièle Sauvageau, an icon in women’s hockey, will bring her expertise to Montreal. She became the first female coach in QMJHL history and led the Canadian women’s hockey team to its first-ever Olympic gold medal in 2002. Sauvageau has also coached in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League and was a GM for the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association Montreal region. She was also the founding general manager of the University of Montreal women’s hockey team and launched Centre 21.02, the first recognized high-performance hockey center for female athletes in Canada.
“Securing highly qualified general managers was a priority to help build strong foundations in each of our original six PWHL markets and delivering professional standards for all players,” said Jayna Hefford, the PWHL’s senior vice president of hockey operations. “The search process identified a lot of impressive candidates from which we’ve assembled an exceptional group with collective experience across the highest levels of the game both on and off the ice.”
The general managers can officially start signing players when the league’s first free agency window opens on Friday. Each team can only sign three players during the 10-day window, and current or graduating players from NCAA or Canadian university programs are not eligible to sign during this preliminary free-agency period.
The next event on the PWHL calendar is the 15-round draft, which will take place on September 18 in Toronto. The six GMs will also be responsible for hiring their teams’ coaches and filling out the support staff.
With the announcement of these experienced and knowledgeable general managers, the PWHL is taking a significant step forward in its mission to provide professional women’s hockey opportunities and elevate the sport to new heights. The league’s inaugural season is highly anticipated, and fans are excited to see the talent that these general managers will assemble for their respective teams.