Kraken Coaching Search: Firebirds' Byslma Speaks On "Energy Change"

One of the names bandied about to be the next Seattle Kraken coach is already a part of the organization: Dan Bylsma, who's about to lead the Coachella Valley Firebirds into the second round of the AHL playoffs.

Bylsma was a midseason coaching replacement for Pittsburgh back in 2009, jump-starting the Penguins to a Stanley Cup.

"Changing the coach hits the players in a unique way," Bylsma recently told The Score . "I think they all feel some responsibility in the fact that they were the demise of the coach. I think that slap in the face is felt throughout the room, and - whether you call that a reset or not - it gives them some perspective about how they have to change as well.

"I think you get a response from the players because, to a man, they feel somewhat responsible for the situation the team is in with the coach. That's a reflective moment."It's up to the new bench boss to do his part to capitalize on that energy change.

"You're charged with guiding them and getting them into the playoffs," Bylsma said. "It was a difficult situation, but one I was prepared for."

The man nicknamed "Disco Dan" is among a handful of familiar coaches currently without an NHL bench to boss. They include recently let go Todd McClellan (by Kings), Craig Berube (by Blues), Gerard Gallant (by Rangers), and Dean Evason (by Wild).

Sportsnet columnist Eric Engels says not to expect an immediate announcement about a successor. "Touching bases with sources around the league, my sense is the Kraken will take time to see how the coaching market develops before naming a replacement."

Mike Rupp of NHL Network knows who he'd pluck off the unemployment line. "The interesting thing with Craig Berube, you need an identity. I don't know if we know who they are. This is still a young franchise. Maybe that's the thing that caught up with Dave Hakstol and that group there."

The hard-nosed, no-nonsense Berube coached the Blues to a Stanley Cup in 2019.

The Hockey News editor-in-chief Ryan Kennedy suggests going back to the college coaching well, which is also where Hakstol got his start.

"With Hakstol gone, I’d love to see Seattle bring in a young coach the Kraken could grow with - David Carle, for example." Carle just led the University of Denver to the 2024 NCAA hockey championship. "Be bad for a couple years, build around Beniers, Wright and other kids. No point being just OK for the foreseeable future.

"(The Kraken) need to decide: are they happy just getting into the playoffs, or do they want to be a contender within the next five, six years? If it's the latter, they probably need to take a step back first."