Jessica Campbell's roots behind the bench can be traced back to B.C.
Before making history and becoming the first woman to be hired as an assistant bench boss for an NHL club, the 32-year-old had two separate coaching stints in the Okanagan.
Campbell was hired Wednesday, July 3, by the Seattle Kraken, seven years removed from working at Kelowna's Pursuit of Excellence (now-called RINK Hockey Academy) and later at Penticton's Okanagan Hockey Academy (OHA).
Seattle's addition means Campbell will be the first woman to work behind the bench of an NHL franchise.
"I'm humbled to be in this position," Campbell told reporters on July 4. "Although I'm honoured to be the first, I don't want to be the only and I honestly don't feel like I'm not the only one in this organization.
"There's a long list of incredible women doing phenomenal jobs in management, scouting, and in player development, so I'm just excited to do my part now behind the bench."
Campbell served in the same assistant coaching role with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, the Kraken's AHL affiliate, from 2022 to 2024.
“During our tenure in Coachella Valley, I saw firsthand Jessica’s commitment to player development,” said Seattle head coach Dan Bylsma, who worked with Campbell in the AHL. “I’m looking forward to continuing to work with her at the NHL level.”
Campbell, a Saskatchewan-born forward who played at Cornell University and on Canada's women's national team, coached U18 players in Kelowna from 2017 to 2019. She also suited up at the academy as a player during the 2009-2010 season, where she posted 104 points in 41 games.
She was then hired by OHA in Penticton as an assistant coach in April 2019.
It was in the Peach City where Campbell joined the female prep team's coaching staff within the Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL).
The league flagship tournament, which features close to 100 student-athlete teams from across North America, is held in Penticton every spring.
Representatives from the CCSHL, as well as from Kelowna's RINK and Penticton's OHA, took to social media on July 3 and congratulated Campbell on her new job.
