Dave Hakstol Joins the Avalanche Coaching Staff
The Colorado Avalanche have brought in Dave Hakstol, former head coach of the Seattle Kraken, as an assistant. His main goal will be to revitalize the power play unit, which struggled in the postseason. Hakstol joins the Avalanche coaching staff, led by coach Jared Bednar, which includes Nolan Pratt, goaltending coach Jussi Parkkila, and assistant/video coach Brett Heimlich. Hakstol, 56, will be in charge of running the power play, which features key players like Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. However, the team struggled against Dallas in the first round of the playoffs, scoring only 3 goals in 22 power-play opportunities in a series that went to seven games. Colorado also allowed seven goals in the series against the Stars while shorthanded. After the season ended, the team parted ways with assistant coach Ray Bennett, who was in charge of the power play. Hakstol was the first head coach in Kraken history, leading the team from 2021 to 2024. In 2023, his team reached the postseason and eliminated the Avalanche in the first round in a series that went to seven games. His record with Seattle was 107-112-27.Previously, Hakstol was head coach in Philadelphia for parts of four seasons, with a record of 134-101-42. Before reaching the NHL, Hakstol spent 11 seasons as head coach at the University of North Dakota, leading the team to seven Frozen Four appearances. In international competitions, he won two silver medals as an assistant coach with Team Canada at the IIHF World Championship in 2017 and 2019. The 2017 team featured MacKinnon and the 2019 team had Avalanche goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood.Dave brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from the bench and will be a great addition to Jared’s team. He has extensive coaching experience with much success and will be a valuable addition to our team.
Chris MacFarland, General Manager of the Avalanche
This is a proud organization with many talented players. I look forward to being a part of this special group and can’t wait to get to work and help the team in any way I can.
Dave Hakstol
