Whenever time allowed for it, Pav loved helping to coach. He was a natural when it came to working with kids and motivating them. He focused on work ethic.
His mom, Anne Pavelich, remembers a time when Mark returned home after another season with the New York Rangers.
Stiff from sitting in his black jeep for too long, Mark needed to stretch. He spotted an outdoor rink along the way and decided to strap on his skates and “take a few laps”. As he laced up, a high school hockey player approached him. “Mister, do you want to go one-on-one with me?” The boy didn’t know that Mark had just left the Big Apple. Mark never told him.
However, when big-hearted Mark arrived home, he was feeling guilty and said to his friend, “Maybe I should have let him go by me at least once.”
She replied, “It’s okay, Mark. The kid either quit hockey or he worked harder.”