Hakstol fired as Kraken coach, no replacement named

Dave Hakstol was fired as coach of the Seattle Kraken on Monday. No replacement was named.

The Kraken (34-35-13) failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, finishing sixth in the Pacific Division, one season after advancing to the Western Conference Second Round, a seven-game loss to the Dallas Stars.

"It's never an easy day, it's never an easy decision," Kraken general manager Ron Francis said. "We let a guy who's a good coach and a really good person go, and it's not easy. But, you know, we're looking at our organization and just looking at the season, I thought we were a little more inconsistent than we had been, a few too many losing streaks, and losing streaks of significant numbers. And so, we just felt it was time to try a new voice here."

Hakstol was named the first coach in Kraken history June 24, 2021, and was 107-112-27 in three seasons. He was a 2023 finalist for the Jack Adams Award, which is given to the NHL coach of the year, and is 241-213-69 in 523 games with Seattle and the Philadelphia Flyers.

Kraken assistant coach Paul McFarland will also not return next season.

"If you know Dave, he's very thorough in his approach, he's very detailed," Francis said. "... He's the kind of guy that's going to roll up the sleeves and work and not complain, and I think he did that. But, just, we felt it was time to go in a different direction.

"It wasn't until we got to the end of the season and took some time and thought about it, and honestly, I didn't make my final decision until yesterday morning.

"He's a terrific person. There's a lot of sacrifice that was made by not only him, but by his wife and his family, and it's never easy to make a decision like this and tell somebody that you're relieving them of their duties. So, it's an extremely sad day in that regard."

Hakstol is the 10th NHL coach fired this season, joining Jay Woodcroft (Edmonton Oilers), Dean Evason (Minnesota Wild), Craig Berube (St. Louis Blues), D.J. Smith (Ottawa Senators), Lane Lambert (New York Islanders), Todd McLellan (Los Angeles Kings), Lindy Ruff (New Jersey Devils), Don Granato (Buffalo Sabres) and David Quinn (San Jose Sharks).

NHL.com independent correspondent Darren Brown contributed to this report.