Kraken Should Consider Promoting Jessica Campbell to Head Coach

This is a Kraken team that is looking to take the next steps forward as an organization. The front office has made key moves, such as signing Brandon Montour and Chandler Stephenson to long-term deals. They have the pieces in place, they just need to find the right tuning to get them to go further. That’s where Campbell comes in. 

There was a reason that when Bylsma was hired for the job that he brought Campbell along with him. The two coached together with the Coachella Firebirds, which is the Kraken’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate team. Campbell broke down that barrier too, being the first female coach in the AHL, and the two were able to bring the Firebirds back-to-back Calder Cup Final appearances. Evidently, there is something there and a reason she’s made her way to the NHL level. 

Campbell has served as a skating coach and a skills coach during her coaching career. She has a way of helping to guide players and develop them as they continue their hockey careers. It is something she values. In an interview last season, she discussed what it means as a coach developing these players and working with them. 

“As a coach and as a person leading athletes through their journey, wherever they’re at in their playing journey, I think it’s really important that they know that we’re in the trenches with them, and then from there, learning how they like to be coached. For me, I try to really spend time with them figuring out ‘What do you need?’ ‘Do you need extra reps on the ice?’ ‘Do you need a pat on the back?’ You kind of navigate that, and you learn the player along the way of how they take feedback; how they apply feedback; if there’s someone who’s a visual learner or not. Some guys need a little bit more tough love.”

That is a coach everyone should want to play for. That’s a coach who cares about the players and invests time in those players. In fact, after the Bylsma dismissal, the front office has made sure she stays in the fold, even as an assistant. But they shouldn’t stop there. They should promote her. 

Be Different, Seattle 

One thing that Ron Francis has preached is being different and doing something that is out of the ordinary. When he was going through the interview process with Seattle in 2020, he was told that business as usual shouldn’t be the approach, and instead they should be different. A perfect quote by Francis rings loudly in this scenario. 

 “Don’t just do the norm because that’s the norm. You have an opportunity to think outside the box. Don’t be afraid to do that.”

It’s clear, the organization believes in Campbell for her abilities, and Bylsma has even gone on to say that she reminds him of himself during the early stages of his coaching career. That’s a powerful endorsement. 

Promoting Campbell makes sense for the Kraken as a whole. On an organizational standpoint, she’s worked with the prospects in the AHL, and the players have a sense of familiarity with her. For example, a player like Shane Wright is a player who, if he takes his game to the next level, the Kraken are in overall great shape. He had a successful first season with the club, having 44 points in 79 games. If he can take it up a notch and Campbell can continue to help develop him at the NHL level, look out. 

Players on the club view her coaching presence as positive, and her understanding of the game is enormous. She comes prepared and is a coach, but also a student of the game. For this Kraken team, keeping a familiar face and someone who knows these players and the system is better than a new face. They’d have to start over. Be different, Seattle. 

Campbell Is Worth the Promotion

Campbell has worked hard to get to where she is. She was a player and then worked her way up as a coach, and not only earned her role, but deserves her role. Given what she’s done just within the Kraken system, she’s worthy of the promotion and would be a perfect fit. She has already broken down the barrier, so pressure will not be an issue. This team needs to trend upward, and she is the perfect person to lead the way. Be different, promote her from within.