By Shayna Goldman, Rob Rossi and Pierre LeBrun
The Seattle Kraken will announce Dan Bylsma as the organization’s new coach on Tuesday, according to league sources.
The Kraken shared Monday that they have a “special announcement” Tuesday morning, but have yet to provide any information on the announcement.
The Seattle Kraken will make a special announcement tomorrow around 10:30 a.m. PT.
Media interested in attending can find more information in their inbox or contact Kraken’s PR department.
– Seattle Kraken PR (@SeattleKrakenPR) May 27, 2024
Bylsma has coached the Coachella Valley Thunderbirds, Seattle’s AHL affiliate, since 2022. His last NHL head coaching experience was with the Buffalo Sabers in 2016-17, when his team posted a record of 33-37-12, the team’s second straight losing season.
The Kraken fired Dave Hakstol, the only coach in the franchise’s brief history, on April 29 after Seattle failed to qualify for the playoffs. Hakstol led the Kraken to just one playoff appearance during his three-year tenure in Seattle.
Bylsma spent six seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins before joining the Sabres. He led the Penguins to the Stanley Cup in his first season at the helm in Pittsburgh in 2009 and won the Jack Adams Coach of the Year Award in 2011.
Bylsma is 320-190 as head coach with a .615 winning percentage.
Why Bylsma is a good choice
Bylsma makes sense for the Kraken for several reasons. First and foremost is his relationship with the franchise as coach of the Coachella Valley Firebirds the past two seasons. There, he developed a relationship with young players in Seattle’s pipeline who are vital to his long-term success.
And Bylsma’s coaching style seemed to appeal to those players, given the Firebirds’ success over the past few seasons — a run to the Calder Cup final last year and (so far) a trip to Western Conference final this year, which kicks off. Wednesday.
Another reason for his interest at the NHL level likely has to do with his championship experience with a Stanley Cup victory in 2009 in his first season with the Penguins. — Shayna Goldman, national hockey writer
How Bylsma prepared for this
Bylsma took the Kraken’s AHL job because he wanted another chance to lead an NHL bench and “it (was) obvious that the American League is the best route.”
He said he learned “a lot about today’s players” while he was an assistant in Detroit following his short tenure as head coach in Buffalo. One thing he learned is “there’s more than one way to play” — a nod to criticism that his system became stale in Pittsburgh after he won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2009 .
Bylsma always favors an offensive style that allows experienced skaters to make plays. He also always prefers wingers who can create space with speed and physicality.
But the stretch passes that were his trademark in Pittsburgh — and never worked with Buffalo — are no longer the main element of his offense. His teams at Coachella varied their attacks based on personnel, a sign that Bylsma is less rigid.
A former player who left his career as an NHL role player, Bylsma’s strength with the Penguins was his enthusiasm and communication. He got buy-in from Sidney Crosby, who had some of his best points-per-game seasons with Bylsma as head coach. — Rob Rossi, Penguins senior writer
What he must prove
Bylsma stands out from other recycled coaches in that he hasn’t held an NHL head coaching job in seven years. He’s not someone who was fired a few weeks ago and then gave himself another chance behind someone else’s bench.
Since coaching the Sabers in 2016-17, he was an assistant in Detroit before moving to the AHL. Still, the stakes are high, especially with the rapid turnover rate in the NHL.
The average tenure for NHL head coaches is about 2.3 years, the lowest of the four major leagues. Byslma, like any other coach, will have to demonstrate that he can hold a head coaching position in the NHL. His record in Pittsburgh, after their championship run, is not sparkling.
And his two-year tenure in Buffalo was also flawed. So the big question will be what he learned from those two experiences, as well as his time spent in different positions over the past seven years, to make this one more successful. — Golden Man
Bylsma’s relationship with Kraken
Bylsma has a strong relationship with Kraken associate general manager Jason Botterill, who was in the same role in Pittsburgh when Bylsma was hired to cover its AHL affiliate.
Bylsma’s promotion to the Penguins in February 2009 sparked a turnaround during the season that ended with them exiting the playoffs to win the title that season. Botterill and Bylsma worked together until Bylsma was fired in June 2014.
Botterill was hired by the Buffalons as general manager during Pittsburgh’s 2017 Cup defense. -Rossi
Seattle’s greatest need
Bylsma’s biggest task with the Kraken will be finding a way to strengthen its offensive attack. Roster construction and lack of elite star power up front obviously has something to do with their disappointing offense this year.
But some individual stumbles and power play failures appear to be the fault of the coach. So now with a head coach in the fold, the next question is who will fill out the rest of the staff in Seattle, since assistant Paul MacFarland who was running the power play was also let go along with Hakstol. —Goldman
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