Name: Seattle Kraken need a coach, and Bruce Boudreau is beyond interested
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Seattle Kraken need a coach, and Bruce Boudreau is beyond interested

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Feb 22, 2021Let’s go ahead and get this out of the way. is extremely interested in the prospect of becoming the first head coach in history.Figuring out who will be the first coach in franchise history is one of the most prominent questions the expansion team must solve.Boudreau’s aim is that he can be the answer in what is expected to be a sizable pool of candidates. Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke told 950 KJR-AM last week they could possibly wait until the current NHL regular season has concluded in May so they as some coaches currently under contract become available. In November, Kraken assistant general manager Ricky Olcyzk to hire a head coach at any time.“As a coach, you want to coach,” Boudreau told The Athletic. “That is what we have done our whole lives and that is what we want to do. The thing about that job is it would be great to start with a team that is starting fresh and to be the builder of something. I think that is a real exciting thing. Even though it was in the minors, I got a chance to start a team in a new league in Muskegon and in Mississippi, too. It was in an older league and I got the same chance with a new franchise in Manchester, New Hampshire, as well. Every one of them was fun and it was exciting for people in the area. It is exciting for you because it is something brand new.”One of the items that makes Boudreau a possibility to get the Kraken job is what he has achieved. He worked his way through the minor leagues before landing his first NHL job with the in the 2007-08 season. Boudreau led the Capitals to four straight playoff appearances before being fired 22 games into the 2011-12 campaign. That same year, he was hired by the and guided them to four consecutive postseason runs until he was fired and resurfaced with the ahead of the 2016-17 season.The 66-year-old is not behind an NHL bench this season after being dismissed by the Wild last season, having reached the postseason in his first two campaigns in Minnesota.Things are quiet now from a few teams.&nbsp;Boudreau said that he looked into the possibility of being an assistant with the . He admitted, however, his personality might be better suited to that of a head coach given his vocal nature.Exactly what is Boudreau up to these days? He’s currently serving as an analyst for both NBC Washington during Capitals games and for the NHL Network. Much of his job means spending countless hours evaluating players and teams. It’s a chance to talk hockey. But it is also an opportunity to remain sharp should the Kraken or another team call.“If you are lucky, one person asks you or you get a chance at one job,” he said. “It’s not, ‘I don’t think the question is what excites you about the job.’ First of all, it is the NHL and it is the greatest league in the world. Anybody that has done this wants to be coaching in the greatest league in the world if they can. It is new. It is fresh. It is a new team and I think the whole idea is exciting. It’s not like you sit there and say I do or do not want this job because it is a West Coast type thing. If someone offers you a job, it is an amazing thing. Especially with the success Vegas had. It is not like an expansion team in 1967. You knew then you were not going to be very good or have the dregs of every team.“The way they have gone about it now, Seattle is going to start off with a pretty good team.”Boudreau has a bit of understanding of the Kraken’s landscape. He’s aware that some of the young players who have become cornerstone pieces with the were drafted and developed under ’ time in Raleigh. Boudreau said those talents Francis drafted share common traits in that they possess speed and work ethic.Boudreau is also already familiar with a few members of the Kraken’s front office. David Baseggio, the club’s director of professional scouting, overlapped with Boudreau’s time in Anaheim. Baseggio was the Ducks’ assistant GM during two of those years. Boudreau was the head coach of the Wild at the same time Alexandra Mandrycky, , was an analyst with the team. Plus, he did have a few interactions with Oak View Group president Tim Leiweke back when he was president of the and Boudreau coached the club’s AHL affiliate in Manchester.Even with his interest in the job, Boudreau said he would not call the Kraken or any potential employer out of respect.“If there is anyone thinking about making a change, they have already done their due diligence and know what coaches are out there,” Boudreau said. “A lot of them don’t have to look further than their own system. … &nbsp;I have been lucky. Quite frankly, when I got into the NHL and got let go by Washington, I got a call an hour later. I got let go by Anaheim, I got a call from a couple teams within a day. This is a different situation. I think I got let go near the end and nobody was looking for another coach and with this pandemic and everything else, things are different.“I gotta keep my routine. Who knows if the call will ever come? I don’t want to get the call and say I am not ready and I don’t know what I would do and I don’t want to feel that way. This is the only thing I have ever known my whole life. Luckily, I have a wife who loves watching the games with me.”Boudreau and his wife, Crystal, moved back to Hershey, Pa., where they lived for three years when he coached the Capitals’ AHL affiliate the Hershey Bears. The couple purchased a junior team that will play in the United States Premier Hockey League during the 2021-22 season. It will be their second venture into owning a junior team as , which also play in the USPHL.Usually, this is a busy time of year for Boudreau with games, meetings and flights. Now? He spends his time learning the nuances of being an analyst. It’s a juxtaposition going from a coach who would be subject to what is said by talking heads to becoming one of those talking heads himself.What Boudreau has learned is that there is a process that comes with being a television analyst. He wants to remain honest while not being overly critical. Part of that goes back to knowing there is a possibility he could coach a player he’s analyzing and does not want to fray any potential relationships. He is starting to feel more comfortable in his current role.But he is open about the fact he cannot predict the future. He could get a call from the Kraken or any NHL team needing a head coach. There is also the chance that call may never come. Either way? He’s ready.“I have to go about it the way I would normally work to keep up the knowledge you are going to need,” Boudreau said. “That if you had to coach somewhere right away, you don’t want to be behind the eight ball and not know who the players are. I know Montreal is not going to move . Use that as an example. You still want to know who is on Montreal’s team and what lines they are using and how they play. What is their defensive strategy? What are their strengths? Sometimes, you don’t see a team as much as you like. I can still have a conversation and talk about certain players. That makes me feel like I am still involved.”(Photo: Brace Hemmelgarn / USA Today Sports)

Feb 22, 2021Let’s go ahead and get this out of the way. is extremely interested in the prospect of becoming the first head coach in history.Figuring out who will be the first coach in franchise history is one of the most prominent questions the expansion team must solve.Boudreau’s aim is that he can be the answer in what is expected to be a sizable pool of candidates. Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke told 950 KJR-AM last week they could possibly wait until the current NHL regular season has concluded in May so they as some coaches currently under contract become available. In November, Kraken...

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Ryan S. Clark

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Seattle Kraken need a coach, and Bruce Boudreau is beyond interested

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