^ Posted by Patrick Williams
Hershey, Pennsylvania. … Jessica Campbell He checks a lot of firsts this season.
Coachella Valley Firebirds first assistant coach. The first female assistant coach in the American Hockey League. First AHL season.
Campbell, who will turn 31 on June 24, has been doing quite a few hits.
Last season she became the first coach in the history of the IIHF World Men’s Championship, serving as an assistant with Germany. She was an assistant and skills coach with the Nürnberg Ice Tigers of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga team. All this work behind the bench followed a distinguished playing career, first at Cornell University and later with the Calgary Inferno of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. She also launched her own business, JC Powerskating, working with a variety of skill levels, including professionals, in Kelowna, BC
Here’s another first: This spring, Campbell is witnessing all that comes with Calder Cup Playoff hockey, the highs and lows.
The women’s game, both collegiate and professional, does not feature extended playoff formats like AHL games. But Campbell and the Firebird have been playing post-season hockey for two months, and they sit two wins away from the Calder Cup tournament.
“It’s been a journey,” said Campbell. “I think the playoffs, it felt like a whole season in itself. The guys were showing up every day, approaching each day with ‘one day at a time, one game, one practice,’ and that was the message all season.
“It’s never been perfect. We don’t expect it to ever be perfect. But we’re trying to progress toward who we are every night, and they’ve brought that, so it’s fun to see as a coach.”
When it comes to hockey, passion is paramount.
“I mean, you can feel everything, right?” Follow Campbell. “You go to the rink and you check in, and when you check out it’s sometimes in the middle of the night, and you do it again the next day. Loving what you do, that’s really what fuels the adrenaline at this point. I’ve come to realize that playing hockey in June – Although it sounds very strange and it’s a first for me, for sure – it’s the best time to play. It means you’ve been successful all year.”
When parent Seattle Kraken was building an expansion operation in the Coachella Valley, they first hired the head coach Dan Bielsma in the place. Bielsma spent 12 seasons in the National Hockey League as a coach, and was a Stanley Cup champion and Jack Adams Award recipient with the Pittsburgh Penguins. With only two NHL draft picks at their disposal so far, the organization has largely relied on bringing in free agents to create the Firebirds 2022-23 roster.
The 52-year-old Bielsma has repeatedly stated that having an up-and-coming coach like Campbell to workEth made him feel young, and Campbell gave him a lot of responsibilities. That portfolio included a huge role in helping to run the power play, which went 5-for-18 (27.8 percent) against Hershey over four games of the Finals.
She also complements a fellow assistant coach Stu Bicklea former AHL defenseman.
What drew me to Jess [is she is] Young and energetic,” Bielsma summed up. “They want to do anything they can to help the players, train them and give them the tools. Our team’s journey coincides with that of Jessica and Stu and their coaching methods, coaching abilities and coaching careers. I wanted coaches who pushed me in this regard. I try to help them along the way, but they really help me on my journey.”
This opportunity piqued Campbell’s interest. After all, the AHL is all about development. Take raw talent, work with it, and shape it into an NHL-ready player. Do this job often and successfully enough, and the parts of the NHL contender will fall into place. With Campbell’s playing background as well as her work teaching the intricacies on the skiing and skill side, the fit made sense for her and the Seattle institution.
“Looking at the AHL, I’ve known to focus on development and being the best development league in the world,” said Campbell. “It really encouraged me knowing that the young prospects, the veterans, they all continue to improve and work on their game and focus on getting one step further. The competition, the level of skill, the level of ability and experience, it’s something really special. It’s a very special league.
“Now that I’m in it, I realize how close it comes to emulating the schedule and demands of the National Hockey League.”
But like any new coach on the team, Campbell also had to stand up to these players for the first time and sell her message. She saw it, Bielsma saw it, and so did the Coachella Valley locker room. That confidence extended to training camp last fall with Seattle.
“I felt the respect she had from the players she had worked with in the past,” said Bielsma. “It was indicative for me the respect they give her as a coach and what she’s trying to do, and the message she’s trying to get across to them, and that was right from day one — even in training camp with an NHL team.
“She is respected by the players because she has the knowledge and the ability to bring it to them. And that was really evident before she opened her mouth.”
novice sniper Ty Karti He was among the Firebirds who worked closely with Campbell during this long season. Skating is a major focus of enabling Kartye to break through Seattle into a full-time role, and that’s Campbell’s specialty. The work paid off for both the Firebirds and Kartye, who was named AHL Rookie of the Year and went on to play 10 Stanley Cup games with the Kraken before returning to the Firebirds for the rest of that trip.
“It was great for me,” Carty said. “Whenever I want to do something, I tell her. She pulls me to the side. We try to get it done, and she’s always there to help.”
Campbell worked to let her knowledge and skills speak for her. By the time she was 30 years old, she had started her own business and was hired by the NHL organization, among many other accomplishments.
“I think with any team, with any new job, respect is always earned,” Campbell emphasized. “It was never delivered – at least that’s what I’ve always felt and expected of myself. But for me, my confidence in my ability as a coach came from setting out on my own to start my own business and working with professionals on my own. I had to figure it out, what separated me. And my passion comes from During my talk, my introduction to the game, to the players and their development.
“Passion usually speaks loudest, and I love what I do.”
Patrick Williams has been in the American Hockey League for nearly two decades for outlets including NHL.com, Sportsnet, TSN, The Hockey News, SiriusXM NHL Network Radio, and SLAM! Sports, and she is currently the co-host of Hockey news on the “A” podcast. He was awarded the James H. Ellery Memorial Award from the AHL for his excellent coverage of the league in 2016.