Dawn Braid was barely out of her teens the first time she coached hockey players. It was 1984 when her late father, then owner of the Vaughan Raiders, reached out in hope of improving the skating skills of players on his Junior B team.
His daughter had not only competed in three Canadian national figure-skating championships, but had just begun working as a novice coach at a Toronto-area club.
"My dad felt skating was important," says Braid, who grew up as one of 11 kids in the Toronto suburbs. "He was looking at it, and he thought [coaching] was something I could pursue beyond figure skating."
The gig with the long-defunct Raiders was the first in a series of appointments that led to her being hired this summer as the first female full-time coach in the National Hockey League. Beginning this week, Braid will serve as the skating instructor for the Arizona Coyotes. She previously worked as a part-time consultant for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames.
"It is quite an honour," Braid, 52, says. "To become the first female coach in the NHL is not something I ever pursued, but I am proud of that. It is something that should be exciting to all women.
"I guess over the years I imagined it, but did I foresee it ever happening? No I didn't."
With the exception of the few years she took off to raise her two now-grown sons, Braid has been teaching hockey players the fine art of skating for three decades. The fact that she never played hockey has not proven a hindrance as she has mentored players from peewees to pro.
She has worked as John Tavares' offseason training instructor since the New York Islanders captain approached her at age 17. Dallas centre Jason Spezza and New Jersey left wing Mike Cammalleri are among her other disciples, along with dozens of players in the Ontario Hockey League, including Ryan Merkley, the first pick in April's priority selection draft.
Dawn Braid, a member of the coaching staff with NHL’s Arizona Coyotes is photographed following a training session with a hockey player in Toronto on Tuesday August 30 2016.
Chris Young/Chris Young for The Globe and Mail
"We feel that Dawn can provide a real competitive advantage to our team," says John Chayka, the Arizona general manager. "She is at the top of her field, so we thought it was imperative to hire her. Players work hard for her and respect her knowledge. The bottom line is that she gets results. That's the key thing."
Braid has worked with NHL players since 2005, when the Leafs brought her in to oversee the skating portion at a development camp. She joins Kathryn Smith, hired last year by the Buffalo Bills, among the few full-time female assistant coaches in men's pro sports. The NBA broke the gender coaching barrier in 2014, when Becky Hammon was introduced as an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs.
Braid was director of skating development at the elite Athlete Training Centre in Mississauga when Tavares came to her in the months before he was the chosen in the 2009 NHL draft. A prodigy along the lines of Sidney Crosby, Tavares had worked out at the facility since he was 13 and already played three seasons in the OHL, but knew he needed help.
"The way I skated was always kind of the knock against me," Tavares says. "After I went to Dawn, it opened my eyes to what a benefit it could be. It's funny. She still has videos of me from that first summer, and now they make me cringe. I can't even watch."
Tavares, who turns 26 on Sept. 20, says Braid corrected deficiencies in his forward stride so that he can now generate much greater speed. She has also corrected his posture to enable him to skate more effortlessly, and has helped him learn how to pivot more effectively and to be more deceptive.
"It started off very simply, and from the point there has been constant growth," Tavares says. "Now, for me, it's about putting a lot of little things together. My skating has really come a long way."
Tavares says his biggest worry when Braid was appointed to her full-time position in Arizona was securing off-season practice time with her. He already has her booked for next summer.
"When I heard she had been hired as a full-time coach, I couldn't have been happier for her," Tavares says. "It couldn't happen to a better person. It was more than overdue."
In the hours immediately after her hiring, Braid received a long, congratulatory note from Tavares. Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice and Ryan Strome, a forward with the Islanders, also sent her messages.
"The response has been overwhelming," Braid says. "I am confident in what I do, but I am quiet as a person. I stay a little bit under the radar.
"I have never advertised my business, or even one of my skating schools. Everything has happened by word of mouth. I am proud of that. I didn't ask for this recognition."
Married for 27 years, Braid runs schools with help from her oldest son, Mackenzie. He played in the OHL for three seasons for the Barrie Colts, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds and Sudbury Wolves.
She has spent most of this summer doing individual training sessions with pro players.
"My opening statement to them is that I know they are elite hockey players, and have a ton of respect for that," she says. "But then I also point out that they have come to me by choice because they want to get better.
"We spend our time tweaking habits and movement patterns that have developed over years. To me, it can be quite boring, but the players never seem to feel that way. They tell me, 'When we are getting better, we can see it coming out in our game. That's why we are here.'
"That is the part that is exciting to me. Players follow my lead and go with it."
Her mastery of skating, and her relationship with players has secured for her a place in history. Other women have been hired by NHL teams as skating instructors, but she is the first to do it full time.
Chayka called hiring her "a no-brainer." Tavares, who has gone from a No. 1 pick to one of the NHL's top players in a few short years, is celebrating her arrival. So, too, doubtlessly, are innumerable women who are trying break through ceilings elsewhere.
"I am just thrilled about the opportunity and very excited to work with Dave Tippett and his coaching staff and the great players in Arizona," she says. "I just can't wait to get started."
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