Kraken fire head coach Dan Bylsma after 1 season, reportedly promote Jason Botterill to GM

The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dan Bylsma on Monday, ending his tenure after one season that concluded far out of playoff contention.

And that's not the only change coming after the Kraken failed to qualify for a second consecutive year.

Seattle is expected to move longtime general manager Ron Francis into another role and promote assistant Jason Botterill to replace him, according to a person with knowledge of the decision. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the change had not been announced.

A source also confirms ESPN that assistant GM Jason Botterill will be promoted to GM while assistant coach Jessica Campbell, the first woman behind the bench in NHL history, will be retained. <br><br>Campbell joined last season and has a year left on her contract. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SeaKraken?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SeaKraken</a>

The Kraken regressed after Bylsma took over for Dave Hakstol, who coached them for their first four seasons of existence and got them to the playoffs in 2023. They finished 35-41-6 for 76 points — 20 back of the second and final wild-card spot in the Western Conference — after 81 the previous season.

"We thank Dan for his commitment and the energy he brought to our organization over the past four years at the NHL and AHL levels," Francis said. "After a thorough review of the season and our expectations for next year and beyond, we've made the difficult decision to move in a different direction behind the bench. Dan is a great person and a respected coach. He played an important role in the development of many of our young prospects and was a big part of our early success in Coachella Valley. We sincerely wish him and his family nothing