The Seattle Kraken organization are pleased to announce that Jessica Campbell will become an assistant coach. This is a landmark announcement, as it will be the first time a female will be a full-time assistant coach on the bench of an NHL team. Furthermore, Jessica Campbell is no stranger to being a pioneer in her career. In 2022, when she was named assistant coach of the AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds, it was the first time a woman had held that role at the AHL level. Campbell had worked with the Kraken current head coach, Dan Bylsma, there in Coachella Valley.
THIS JUST IN!
The #SeaKraken have added Bob Woods and Jessica Campbell to Dan Bylsma’s staff as Assistant Coaches → https://t.co/jIqtxOOpIc pic.twitter.com/Vm8C1q5GkR
— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) July 3, 2024
The Seattle Kraken Name Jessica Campbell Assistant Coach
So, how did Campbell progress to such a role at such a young age? The fact that she is behind the bench of an NHL club at 32 years of age is itself noteworthy. Then, combine that with the fact she is the first woman in history to hold down an NHL coaching role on the bench truly is amazing. Campbell used to be a player, with the Cornell Big Red for four years in the women’s NCAA ranks. She went onto play some professionally with the Calgary Inferno and in Sweden, with the Malmo Redhawks. Moreover, she even suited up for the Canada Women’s World Championship team in 2015. After her playing career, she began to focus on the coaching side of the game.
In an interview with the Toronto Star from 2021, Campbell reflected on the importance of her personal success at that time.
“I think for young girls now looking up to any female athlete, the sky is the limit. There’s no barriers stopping them from doing what they love, there’s opportunities and a space for everyone, and a level to challenge themselves to.
This is where her entrepreneurial and leadership really shone through. As owner of the J.C. Powerskating company, she trained some elite players. NHL players such as Tyson Jost and Joel Edmundson, along with Olympic gold medalist women’s player Natalie Spooner, all came under her tutelage. She eventually parlayed her great success into the role with Coachella Valley.
Other Notable Women Pioneers in NHL Hockey Ranks
In honour of Jessica Campbell being hired into this historic role by Seattle Kraken General Manager Ron Francis, just a note on some other female pioneers in the great game of hockey. As Campbell herself mentioned, that the barriers are becoming fewer and fewer. We only have to go back to 2008, to find the first class of women inducted into the IIHF hall-of-fame. The three inductees were Angela James, Gerladine Heaney, and Cammi Granato. For Granato now in particular, she herself continues to pave the way for future women in the NHL, as she currently serves as assistant general manager of the Vancouver Canucks. And of course, how could we forget another legendary pioneer of the sport, the great Dr. Hayley Wickenheiser. In 2003, she became the first women to play professional men’s hockey in a position other than goaltender when she suited up for the HC Salamat in Finland. Currently, Wickenheiser holds down a managerial position at the NHL level. She is the assistant general manager of player development for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Main photo: Taya Gray/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK
