Why the Kraken’s firing of Dan Bylsma and reported reassigning of Ron Francis are necessary

It was John Wooden who said, “Never mistake activity for achievement.” In other words, it’s impossible to know whether the Kraken actually improved their chances of returning to playoff form with their reported moves Monday. 

But this activity also seemed necessary. This season couldn’t have gone much worse, and there was little evidence that things were going to get better. 

In a Monday semi-stunner, the team fired coach Dan Bylsma after just one season on the job. The ouster comes after Seattle finished the season 35-41-6, and fell 20 points short of a wild-card spot. Additionally, reports surfaced that Kraken general manager Ron Francis is to be reassigned, replaced by assistant GM Jason Botterill. 

Hey, we’re four years into a franchise whose results have disappointed, save for one shocking second-round playoff run in 2023. The last month in each of the past two seasons has been irrelevant for a team starving for star power. 

Bylsma’s style failed to reinvigorate the Kraken, who gave up more goals than all but eight teams. And Francis’ dealings never delivered a fully equipped arsenal that could shoot the Kraken toward the top of the standings. Could the latter have been given another year as the primary decision-maker? Maybe. But results matter in the top hockey league in the world, and Francis hasn’t provided them. This feels like the appropriate call. 

So now the spotlight turns to owner Samantha Holloway and CEO Tod Leiweke, as critics will begin to evaluate their evaluation acumen. And, of course, we’ll see if Botterill — who was the GM of the Sabres from 2017-20 — can be the executive who moves players and the needle. Because fans are tired of waiting … and aren’t going to wait forever. 

On Saturday I asked Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer about the importance of entertaining fans in addition to winning. He responded by saying it was “critically important” due to all the other teams in Seattle, leading the list with the prospective return of the Sonics. Mind you, this is the Sounders coach, not somebody who would share an arena and the same October-thru-April timeline with an NBA team. 

The Kraken need to recapture the city’s attention in a hurry. The old way wasn’t working. 

Some might say the biggest mistake was removing then-Kraken coach Dave Hakstol after the team’s slide in Year 3. Hakstol, after all, was at the helm when the Kraken jumped from 60 points in Year 1 to 100 in Year 2, all while knocking off the defending champion Avalanche in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. Perhaps the problem wasn’t the man wearing the suit behind the bench but the man signing, trading and drafting the players. 

In Francis’ defense, he was tasked with turning an expansion team into a winner rather quickly. And for those saying the Vegas Golden Knights had no problem doing that just a few years earlier, executives learned from that expansion draft and made it harder for Francis. 

But there were also some questionable deals. 

Goalie Philipp Grubauer and winger Andre Burakovsky were given sizable contracts that produced middling (if not subpar in Grubauer’s case) results. The need for a reliable scorer was never met through free agency, trades or the draft (at least not yet) — and players such as Ryan Donato and Morgan Geekie watched their stats surge once they left Seattle … albeit to play with better teammates. 

Matty Beniers, the No. 2 overall draft pick in 2021, has tailed off noticeably since his rookie season, and Shane Wright, the No. 4 overall pick in 2022, has yet to truly break out. Hard to say whether Francis could have picked anyone better, but these selections haven’t changed the course of the franchise. 

So the brass felt it better to leave Seattle’s draft capital in new hands. And it felt that one borderline disastrous season under Bylsma was a large enough sample size. One can blame Kraken leadership for making these hires in the first place while also commending its action to break ties when change seemed necessary. 

Of course, the future is all going to come down to the players. That’s who wins in professional sports.

Last week, Leiweke said for fans to expect an offseason full of activity in regard to personnel. Fans can only hope he meant more than just the coach and GM.

In the meantime, good on the higher-ups for making moves. Here’s to a lot more of them in the near future.