Two Leagues, 'Same Page'

As the Firebirds prepare for their inaugural season in the American Hockey League, their coaching staff is looking not just to build a successful team, but a squad that aligns with the identity of the Kraken.
For the past month, the AHL affiliate Coachella Valley Firebirds have been sharing the Kraken Community Iceplex with their NHL partner as they wait for their new arena to be completed in Coachella Valley. But that's not the only thing the two teams share. The two organizations intentionally implement a degree of connectedness between the coaching staffs to make sure players can move between the two rosters as seamlessly as possible.

"I view [the Kraken and the Firebirds] as one big organization, not two separate entities," said Dan Bylsma, Coachella Valley head coach. "The players and our team need to be coached in conjunction with the NHL big club and ... what systems we're going to play.
"How we want the players to play has to be on the same page throughout the organization. So players that get the opportunity to come to Coachella are coached with the same way to play [as the Kraken] in mind. It's about the organizations working as one in sync."

How does this work? Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol says the synergies between the two teams come from constant communication between the coaching staffs. Hakstol and Bylsma already built a solid working relationship last season as the latter spent time as an assistant coach with Charlotte's AHL team. That's where the burgeoning Kraken prospect pool made its temporary home for the 2021-22 season, sharing a roster with the Florida Panthers.
Now, with a full AHL roster aligned with the Kraken organization, Hakstol says the continued communication will be even more important.
The two staffs worked together through development camp in the summer and into pre-season training camp. They focus on coaching the same systems and delivering similar messaging about how to play. Developing these working relationships can be about everything from using the same terminologies to the details of what happens on the ice.
"We're working together and pulling together on the same rope as what the Kraken organization is trying to accomplish for developing prospects and for developing a future club," Firebirds assistant coach Jessica Campbell said. "That comes down to understanding the language of the tactics, the systems, the play, the style. That communication, it's all messaging.
"For me, the biggest thing is putting the emphasis on development and ensuring that we are instilling the qualities and characteristics of a Kraken player well, so that system is a model that is constantly pushing what the Kraken can accomplish not just now but in the future. It's part of the overall development model."

Bylsma added some conversations may also involve Kraken assistant general manager Jason Botterill and/or Firebirds director of business and hockey operations, Troy Bodie. The goal is to discuss the evolution of different players' games and help each achieve their greatest potential. When it comes to deciding which players to move between the two clubs, that conversation often includes Kraken GM Ron Francis.
"You want to know for sure a few things," Hakstol said. "You want to take into consideration, number one, what type of player do we need? What fills our need the very best? What style or what type of player is also a consideration. Who's doing a good job for Dan in Coachella Valley? That always has to be taken into consideration. That's a big part of it."
After this weekend's games versus Abbotsford, the Firebirds will head south to their new home and training center. The team's 4-2-0 start currently has them in fourth place in the Pacific division. They will work toward continued success as they play the next 12 games on the road until the Dec. 18 home opener at Acrisure Arena.
Though the two teams will no longer be in the same building, they'll still be in the same time zone and one flight away from one another. It allows players to move between the two with as little strain as possible, plus increases the efficiency of communication between the coaching staffs as they manage the individual paths of each player in the Kraken system.
"We're all on the same page of what we see in the players, what their foundation is, and how they need to play to be successful," Bylsma said. "I view the NHL players the same way. They're developing as well. Even at the highest level they need to be in constant development of their game and who they are as players and people. That carries down to us as a development league in the American League. That development plan is an organizational plan."