Wolfe Islander Greg Fargo head coach in PWHL

 

When Greg Fargo was playing hockey on Wolfe Island, he never imagined that he would eventually be heading to the Big Apple as coach of New York’s professional women’s hockey team.

He’s one of two Kingstonians – the other being Jayna Hefford, the senior vice-president of hockey operations – spearheading the Professional Women’s Hockey League as it begins its second season of play.

While previous efforts to establish women’s pro leagues have fizzled, the PWHL got off to an outstanding start last season, packing in solid crowds and offering entertaining hockey.

“The ownership group wants to do it right by ensuring that the players’ needs are met,” Fargo says.

Indeed, Mark Walter owns the league and all six teams. He is CEO of a privately held global financial services firm with $325 billion in assets under management. Plus, he knows how to put together a winning team – he’s part owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who easily captured the World Series this fall.

Starting in 1999, Fargo tended goal for the Kingston Voyageurs for three years. From there he went on to Elmira College in New York State, with plans to become a teacher. After graduating, he fell into women’s hockey almost by accident.

He coached men’s hockey for a couple of years at Canisius College, with the hopes of moving up the ranks. “I applied for a number of men’s team head coaching positions, but I found I was losing out to applicants who had played at a higher level than I had. Then, the job of women’s coach at Elmira came open and I took it.”

From there, he served as head coach of the Colgate University women’s team for a dozen years. Last June, the New York Sirens came calling and he joined the PWHL.

“Women’s hockey is growing quickly, so from a career standpoint this is a great move,” he said in an interview over the phone from his home in New Jersey. Although the team is officially in New York, it plays at the Prudential Center, across the Hudson River in Newark, N.J.

Fargo is excited by the high skill level of his players and the women’s style of keeping possession of the puck. Fans who watched last year were glad to see that the referees kept their whistles in their pockets and allowed for more physical play – even though the women’s game prohibits body checking.

“The women’s game is getting more physical and the men’s game is getting less physical, with more emphasis on playmaking and skill,” he argues. “The men’s and women’s games are a lot closer than they once were.”

In New York, Fargo has his work cut out for him. Last year, the squad managed just five wins and four OT wins in 24 games. New York finished in last place in the six-team league.

“There’s no reason why New York can’t be at the top this year,” he insists. “We hope that with some new and exciting players and some wins, the fans will come out. New York loves a winner.”

For Jayna Hefford, the initial success of the PWHL is no surprise. “Across women’s sports, we’re seeing investments to raise visibility and accessibility to counter the disparity that exists in terms of how women’s sports can be watched,” she told The Original Hockey Hall of Fame. “The growing demand for women’s sports has been really exciting and encouraging and we’re proud to be part of this movement.”

With an inaugural year under its belt, the challenge for the PWHL is to find a business model that will sustain the league over the long haul. Hefford wants to ensure that talent is deep so that the league can offer an entertaining product.

“We symbolize equality, opportunity, empowerment and the future of the sport,” Hefford says.

Growing up playing hockey in Kingston, Hefford wanted to play in the NHL. While that didn’t work out, she did go on to become the city’s most decorated Olympian. She has won four Olympic gold medals and a silver.

“Now, being able to spend my life helping create those opportunities and grow the sport so that today’s youth won’t know a world without professional women’s hockey is extremely meaningful,” she says.

Across Canada, more than 100,000 women and girls play hockey – providing a large potential audience for the league. Social media is allowing players to build their profiles before they even join the PWHL.

The PWHL is also developing unique partnerships. One is with The Gist, a sports newsletter for women, co-founded by a Kingston entrepreneur, Jacie deHoop. In less than a decade, The Gist has found an audience of more than one million subscribers. Now, it is partnering with the league to create fan-friendly content.

For young female players, the league could spell opportunity. Mikayla Cranney is a second-year forward with the Queen’s Gaels who was named to the OUA’s all-rookie team last spring.

“It’s really exciting for me to have a goal to play after I finish university,” she says. “I went to the first PWHL game in Toronto last year and it was a dream come true for me to be able to be there. It’s really motivating me to work harder to improve my game.”

Sarah Campbell, a law student who plays for the Gaels, doesn’t expect to play in the league but hopes that she could lend her expertise to the operations and management side of the PWHL. Like Cranney, she’s excited by the growing visibility of women’s hockey.

“It’s great to see little girls at the games, with their signs pressed against the glass. The PWHL players give them great role models to look up to.”