The Seattle Kraken have shattered another glass ceiling.
On Wednesday, the club announced that Jessica Campbell and Bob Woods have been added to the staff of new head coach Dan Bylsma, as assistant coaches.
The hiring makes Campbell, 32, the first woman ever to hold a full-time assistant coaching position in the NHL. It comes after she spent the last two years working alongside Bylsma with the Kraken’s AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. That team reached the Calder Cup Final in both seasons.
A native of Moosomin, Saskatchewan, Campbell’s playing career began with a gold medal for Canada at the Women’s U18 World Championship in 2010, where she served as captain and was named most valuable player after putting up a tournament-leading 15 points in five games.
From there, she spent four years at Cornell University, also serving as captain in her final season.
Following three seasons with the Calgary Inferno of the now-defunct CWHL, Campbell started to move into coaching, working as an assistant for women’s prep school programs Pursuit of Excellence and Okanagan Hockey Academy in British Columbia.
In the 2019-20 season, she wrapped up her playing career with the Malmo Redhawks in Sweden. That led to an opportunity to serve as the skating coach for Malmo’s men’s side in Sweden’s top league one year later.
Campbell became a skills coach with the Nurnberg Ice Tigers in Germany’s top men’s league in 2021-22. She was promoted to assistant coach at mid-season, then joined the bench of Germany’s national team as an assistant at the 2022 men’s world championship — overseeing a roster that included top talents including Moritz Seider (Detroit Red Wings), Tim Stutzle (Ottawa Senators), Lukas Reichel (Chicago Blackhawks) — and goaltender Philipp Grubauer of the Kraken.
“There was a moment when I realized that I was coaching NHL players on our team and competing against NHL players,” Campbell recalled when she joined the Firebirds staff less than two months later. “My words were welcomed, and I was respected. I realized, I can do this.”
Two successful seasons with Bylsma in Coachella Valley and familiarity with the Kraken’s prospect pool made Campbell a good fit for Seattle.
“She has an interesting background not only with skating, but skill development,” GM Ron Francis told ESPN.com on Wednesday. “That’s been a big part of what they’ve been able to do with Coachella Valley. She runs the power play, works with the forwards, and works with everybody on helping improve their skating, their skill development.”
Campbell’s hiring continues Seattle’s commitment to diversity on its staff. Before the club played its first game, the organization hired current Vancouver Canucks assistant general manager Cammi Granato as the NHL’s first female pro scout in 2019. Seattle also brought in Alexandra Mandrycky as the team’s director of hockey strategy and research, and promoted her to assistant GM in 2022.
As the Kraken head into their fourth NHL season, Bylsma takes over as the second head coach in franchise history. His predecessor, Dave Hakstol, coached the club to a record of 107-112-27 over three regular seasons. After a 40-point improvement from their first to their second season, Hakstol was named a finalist for the 2023 Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s coach of the year, and guided the Kraken into the second round of the 2023 playoffs thanks to a first-round upset of the defending champion Colorado AvalancheAvalanche 0.0%.
Woods, 56, is a long-time NHL assistant, most recently with the Minnesota Wild. He was part of Bylsma’s staff with the Buffalo Sabres during the 2016-17 season.
“I got a good familiarity with how Bob worked with our defensemen and him being able to relate to different types of players,” Bylsma said.
The Kraken have also retained two members of Hakstol’s staff: assistant coach Dave Lowry and goaltending coach Steve Briere.
Historic Hire: Seattle Kraken Hire Jessica Campbell As NHL’s 1st Woman Coach
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Via Forbes, a report on the NHL’s first woman coach:
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