Daigle was considered one of the most promising prospects of his generation. In junior hockey he had set new records and some writers compared him to Wayne Gretzky with the added bonus of a mean streak. The Ottawa Senators were even accused of deliberately losing late in the season to draft him. When the expansion team finished last, they drafted Daigle over future NHL superstars Chris Pronger and Paul Kariya. He also uttered the infamous comment "I'm glad I got drafted first, because no one remembers number two." He also received the largest starting salary in league history (five-year, $12.25 million), which lead to the introduction of a rookie salary cap a few years later.

Daigle never measured up to his potential. He was outshone by Russian centre Alexei Yashin, and was frequently criticized for lack of effort and motivation. After several disappointing seasons, the fans and management in Ottawa turned against him and he was traded. He bounced around the league, playing for the Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the New York Rangers until quitting the league in 2000 to pursue a career in Hollywood. He returned to hockey for the 2002-03 season, signing with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played for the Minnesota Wild, where he tied his career high in points (51) to lead the team in scoring in 2003-2004. During this season he was also Wild's nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, given annually to an NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverence, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. On the 6th of March 2006, Daigle was waived by Minnesota and reassigned to their AHL affiliate Houston Aeros. Daigle did not play a game for the Aeros, and was subsequently loaned to the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL on the 13th of March 2006 in exchange for forward Brendan Bernakevitch. On the 5th of May 2006, Daigle inked a two-year deal with Swiss top team HC Davos.