"I've had other NHL opportunities to get back into hockey," Granato told the Seattle website. "Seattle is the right fit for me and an exciting organization to join. It lined up as the perfect opportunity.
"What a time in sports right now, seeing all sorts of ceilings shattered by women. If I can inspire someone to become a scout or work in an NHL front office, that's amazing."
Granato, a forward, was captain of the United States women's hockey team when it won the gold medal at the 1998 Nagano Olympics. The two-time Olympian played in every IIHF Women's World Championship from 1990 to 2005 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010. Her brother, Tony Granato, played 13 NHL seasons, coached the Colorado Avalanche from 2002-04 and in 2008-09, and is coach of the men's hockey team at the University of Wisconsin. Her husband, Ray Ferraro, played 18 NHL seasons, including seven for the Hartford Whalers with Seattle general manager and Hockey Hall of Famer Ron Francis.
Granato joins Ulf Samuelsson, Stu Barnes, Dave Hunter and John Goodwin as pro scouts for Seattle, which begins play in the 2021-22 season. Samuelsson played 16 NHL seasons and won the Stanley Cup twice with the Pittsburgh Penguins (1991, '92). Barnes played 16 NHL seasons.
