Seattle Kraken to name Dan Bylsma as head coach

Coachella Valley Firebirds head coach Dan Bylsma

Credit: © Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK

It looks like one of the teams out west has its new bench boss.

According to Daily Faceoff insider Frank Seravalli, the Seattle Kraken will be introducing Dan Bylsma as the second head coach in franchise history.

The Kraken put out a statement saying that there will be a special announced Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. PT/1:30 p.m. ET.

#SeaKraken set to introduce 2009 Stanley Cup winning coach Dan Bylsma as their second head coach on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Bylsma’s @Firebirds will open the Calder Cup Western Conference Final against @mkeadmirals.

Bylsma went 7 full seasons between NHL head coaching gigs. https://t.co/aO1h0HDcE8

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 27, 2024

Bylsma is currently coaching the Kraken’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. The team is set to start the Western Conference final against the Milwaukee Admirals, the Nashville Predators’ primary affiliate, on Wednesday night. The Grand Haven, Michigan native has been the head coach in Coachella Valley for the team’s first two seasons, going the Firebirds to the Calder Cup final in the franchise’s first season last spring, ultimately losing to the Hershey Bears.

The 53-year-old has been coaching in the professional ranks since hanging up his skate in 2004. He first broke into the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the middle of the 2008-09 season, after the Penguins let Michel Therrien go. Bylsma would coach Pittsburgh to its first Stanley Cup in 27 years. Bylsma was the head coach for the Penguins for five more seasons, winning the Jack Adams Award in 2010-11. He was fired by general manager Jim Rutherford shortly after he was hired in June 2014.

Bylsma went on to coach the Buffalo Sabres from 2015 to 2017, before he was fired after missing the playoffs in both seasons. He joined Jeff Blashill’s staff with the Detroit Red Wings as an assistant from 2018 to 2021. Bylsma made a quick stop as an assistant coach with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers during the 2021-22 season before moving to Palm Springs.

Bylsma also had a long playing career. Across 12 seasons of pro hockey, he played for the Los Angeles Kings and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, among other minor-league teams. In 429 NHL appearances, he scored 19 goals and 62 points. He was also on the Mighty Ducks team that advanced to the Stanley Cup Final in 2003, losing to the New Jersey Devils in seven games.