The Seattle Kraken have fired their Head Coach Dave Hakstol after a disappointing five place finish in the Pacific Division. Last year they were only one spot higher, but it allowed them to make the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs, where they would eventually lose out in the second round. The bar was set high, and the overall negative regression, especially going from sixth to 29th in goals for, led to this decision. The Seattle organization made it known that anything short of the Vegas Golden Knights model of a cup in the first six years, is largely a failure. Therefore, everyone is to be held accountable, and the axe came down on the coach.
The Kraken Head Coach Dave Hakstol is Fired
Hakstol had a terrific year last year, and ended the year with a .610 winning percentage. You might think that type of success gives you a bit of leeway, but no dice. Too many pieces of the roster took at step back and gave reason to believe the coach was part of the problem. For example, the 2022-23 team had six, 20-goal scorers. This year they only had two. This is the second time that Hakstol had been fired, as he was the coach for the Philadelphia Flyers for parts of four seasons. Now with seven years under his belt, he has a respectable .527 win %. Of the six seasons he saw the finish to, he has qualified for the playoffs three times.
What Happens Next
For General Manager Ron Francis and his staff, it seems his post-season evaluations were complete. We at Last Word, reported the suspected rumours of Hakstol, and look what happened. One point to note, is when one door closes, another opens. Teams that are currently in search of a head coach, now have a potentially new candidate. The reason the Ottawa Senators would make sense, is given the University of North Dakota connection. A handful of current, and past Sens played there, including Shane Pinto, Jacob Bernard-Docker, and Jake Sanderson. Hakstol becomes the tenth NHL Head Coach to lose their job this season.
More must-reads: