The NHL hit a huge milestone Tuesday night: The league welcomed its first female full-time assistant coach behind the bench.
Jessica Campbell joined the Seattle Kraken in July as an assistant coach. And, while preseason games have been happening for a while now, the Kraken just played their season opener against the St. Louis Blues.
The 32-year-old got plenty of applause and, given her historic position, there are a lot of questions about her. So, who is Jessica Campbell and what’s her background? Here’s what you need to know.
Who is the first female NHL coach?
Jessica Campbell is the first female full-time NHL coach. She’s been coaching since 2017, according to Olympics.com. From 2022-2024, Jessica worked with Kraken coach Dan Bylsma at the Seattle’s AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds.
“During our tenure in Coachella Valley, I saw firsthand Jessica’s commitment to player development,” Kraken coach Dan Bylsma said, per CBS News. “Her ability to establish relationships with her players… was an important factor in this hire. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with her at the NHL level.”
Although October 8’s game was historic, for Jessica, it was just a “normal day” on the job.
“I never want to diminish the things that I’m doing because I’m so focused on the task at hand,” she said, via the Seattle Kraken. “But I also know that being focused on the task at hand has allowed me to get to this moment, and is going to continue.”
Still, Jessica said that she wants to “try to honor what it is, because I… definitely understand that the magnitude and the importance of this moment is really important for our game.”
Where did Jessica Campbell play hockey? What position did she play?
Jessica isn’t “just” a coach—she’s a former player, too. She played ice hockey with boys until she was 17, then was a star player at Cornell University, according to the school.
At Cornell, she played forward, scoring an impressive 46 goals and 54 assists over 131 games. She also served as her team’s captain her senior year.
After graduating from college, Jessica played for three seasons in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League with the Calgary Inferno, according to Elite Prospects. She later played in Sweden from 2019 to 2020.
Jessica, who is Canadian, represented her home country on Canada’s U18 squad at the 2009 world junior championships, where she won silver, and at the 2010 championships, where her team won gold.
What is Jessica Campbell’s coaching experience?
Jessica started her coaching career in 2017 in youth leagues in Canada, before she moved to Sweden, per Olympics.com. She also coached the Malmo Redhawks—a Swedish professional team—for a season.
In 2022, she joined the Kraken’s AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, as an assistant coach, where she remained until 2024.
Who are Jessica Campbell’s parents?
Jessica’s parents are Gary and Monique Campbell, according to Cornell University Athletics. She also has two older brothers and an older sister. Her whole family played hockey growing up or in college—Monique and sister Gina repped the University of Saskatchewan, while brothers Josh and Dion both played for the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Yorkton Terriers. (Dion also played for the University of New Brunswick.)
Jessica’s oldest brother, Josh, was killed in a devastating car crash on October 11, 2002, per CBC. He was 18 years old, while Jessica was 10. Subsequently, Jessica adopted her brother’s jersey number, No. 8.
Jessica is excited for what’s next. “The year ahead is going to be a lot of fun,” she told NHL.com. “But to know and to understand that obviously there’s still at the forefront the thoughts of other women and other people who have the same aspirations as I do. So, to carry that torch every day and keep my focus on being a coach, it definitely puts meaning into the work.”
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
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