Command (Hockey) Performance

Kraken director of sports performance Nate Brookreson joined the franchise ahead of the 2021-22 inaugural season, seven months before the team signed its first player. He served as the point person for building out the workout space at Kraken Community Iceplex in his role as head strength and conditioning coach for Seattle’s first five NHL seasons.  

This summer, general manager Jason Botterill elevated Brookreson to a newly created position and job title. Brookreson now oversees a sports performance group that has added a third strength and conditioning coach plus a full-time nutritionist. Former assistant strength and conditioning coach Jake Jensen has been promoted to head coach.  

“We have seen our players’ dedication for being in the gym and engaging with Nate and Jake,” said Botterill. “We appreciate the players’ work ethic and how they understand the rigors on the body during an NHL season. Our younger group of players [including 40-plus prospects] has shown a willingness on their own to put in the work during their seasons and summers. We are always looking to maximize our efforts on the ice.”

Aligning with Sportsology Review 

For his part, Brookreson, one of the first to arrive each workday at the Iceplex and among the last to leave, said the moves “feel like an organic evolution of how our department has grown and how our reach has grown.” Both Brookreson and Botterill emphasized the upgrades are aligned with the offseason outside review performed by the Sportsology consulting firm. 

Joining Brookreson’s staff are newly hired assistant strength and conditioning coach Brandon Wickett and lead dietician Madison Yerigan. In related hires, physical therapist Mike Funyak and director of mental performance Matt Brown were added to the team’s support staff, all in the pursuit of winning hockey games.   

“Players nowadays know that with much more parity in the league, we will explore every angle possible to help their performance,” said Botterill. “With Nate’s new role and adding Brandon, we keep two coaches on the workout floor but provide more flexibility for Nate to have more interaction with Lane [Lambert] and the coaching staff, plus myself.  There are also amazing touchpoints between the sports performance staff and our research and development analysts.” 

Wickett is new to the Kraken but not the organization. He served as head strength and conditioning coach for the AHL Firebirds in 2023-24 and 2024-25 before moving to a performance coach position with the Philadelphia Flyers last season. When Brookreson and Jensen are on road trips with the team, Wickett will stay in Seattle with injured Kraken looking to return to play, plus keep in touch with prospects from draft choices to Coachella Valley. Wickett has strong bonds with a number of the Kraken’s young NHL core and many more likely AHL call-ups this season.

Brookreson said interacting with players in the workout space is more vital than ever because the new collective bargaining agreement has eliminated several testing protocols formerly used to mark progress from training camp to the playoffs.  

Instead, Brookreson and his staff will double down on building 1-on-1 relationships with Kraken players to help them succeed on the ice.

Embracing an 84-Game Season 

Another outcome of the Sportsology review is hiring Yerigan into the full-time nutrition-forward role. There are many facets to her efforts, such as helping players maximize strength and endurance throughout the season by consuming enough calories to maintain weight and keep an extra gear of energy for, say, a long road trip with back-to-back games. Recovery measures are another example, with Yerigan now at the forefront of ensuring players stay hydrated and follow diets that encourage proper rest and sleep.  

Yerigan will oversee meals and menus, recovery drinks, supplements and all things nutrition at the team’s Northgate training center, Climate Pledge Arena, and on the road (both arenas and hotels) while advising players’ food habits and meal planning at their Seattle-area homes. She will set up players on individual plans and travel with the team on road trips of three games or more to maintain continuity. 

Brookreson and Yerigan will stay on top of all details to strike a competitive edge, including making sure there are ample ingredients for customized post-game smoothies after road games and connecting with hotel food services before each road stop.  

“Madison will be a liaison with all of the different entities and elements to keep our nutrition objectives in line,” said Brookreson. “On top of that, she needs to be able to reach each player at the individual level as a resource and reference. Some players might approach her to set up an in-season meal service or chef who is able to come to the home. They might be looking to improve their hydration going into games. She will work on the big picture for the team all the way down to individual player meetings that might be 20 to 30 minutes long. It’s exciting to have her in a full-time role.” 

Brookreson said he “cast a wide net” in his search for a dietitian. Yerigan comes by way of her performance dietitian work for University of Washington athletics.  

“What really, really stood out about Madison to me is she is somebody who has set up a lot of SOPs, or standard operating procedures,” said Brookreson. “For example, she has a plan for vitamin D supplementation, hydration testing and sweat testing so that once you set these SOPs, not only do the players understand what the process is, but the people around you and in your life do as well. It makes it easier, not having to re-create the process day to day.” 

Botterill is equally persuaded by the choice of Yerigan: “To their credit, our players are looking for the nutrition information, whether it’s the veterans or prospects. They want to recover better and have more energy on the ice. Madison has the knowledge and personality to deliver that.”