The Colorado Avalanche made a strategic move on Tuesday by adding former Seattle Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol to their coaching staff as an assistant. This decision aims to strengthen the team's power-play unit, which faced significant challenges during the postseason.

Hakstol joins the Avalanche staff under head coach Jared Bednar, which includes Nolan Pratt, goaltending coach Jussi Parkkila, and assistant/video coach Brett Heimlich. At 56, Hakstol will oversee a power-play strategy featuring stars Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar, who struggled against Dallas in the first round of the playoffs. The team was only 3 of 22 on the man advantage in a series that extended to seven games.

Colorado also conceded seven goals while short-handed in the Stars series. Following the season, the team parted ways with assistant coach Ray Bennett, who was responsible for the power play.

Hakstol, who served as the inaugural head coach for the Seattle Kraken from 2021 to 2024, led the team to the postseason in 2023 and eliminated the Avalanche in a seven-game series. He finished with a record of 107-112-27 with Seattle.

"Dave brings a wealth of knowledge and experience behind the bench and will be a great fit on Jared's staff," said Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland in a statement. "He has an extensive coaching background with a lot of success and will be a valuable addition to our team."

Before his tenure with the Kraken, Hakstol was the head coach in Philadelphia for parts of four seasons, achieving a record of 134-101-42. Prior to the NHL, he spent 11 seasons as the head coach at the University of North Dakota, leading the team to seven Frozen Four appearances.

In international competitions, Hakstol won a pair of silver medals as an assistant coach with Team Canada at the IIHF World Championship in 2017 and 2019. The 2017 squad featured MacKinnon, and the 2019 team included Avalanche goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood.

"This is a proud organization with a lot of talented players," Hakstol said. "I look forward to being a part of this special group and can't wait to get to work and help the team in any way that I can."