Kraken Goalie Joey Daccord's Dad On Seeing Son Reach "The Pinnacle"

First Of Two Stories Featuring Goalie Coach Brian Daccord

Philipp Grubauer will start in net Thursday when the Seattle Kraken rematch with Anaheim Ducks at Climate Pledge Arena.

Though Joey Daccord (above photo) was only called upon to make 12 saves in his 4-0 whitewash of the Ducks on Tuesday, many of them were sparklers.

Daccord's third shutout of his breakout NHL season gives us an excuse to share more stories from his father Brian Daccord, from The Rink Shrinks podcast.

Dad, a former goalie himself, owns the “Stop it Goaltending” school, serves as Boston University goalie coach, and has worked with multiple NHL teams.

"We're pretty good about that now. It's more like a father-son talk. Occasionally, if something happens, 'Hey, let's watch a clip.' 

"He's got a great goalie coach, Steve Briere - I worked with Steve when I was with the Maple Leafs. That's really Steve's job. 

"The last thing I want to do is start muddying the water. I just talk more about the mental part of the game, making sure he's sharp."

"Joey was at ASU. He plays on a Saturday night in Lehigh Valley (Pennsylvania) in the NCAA Regionals. He flies home the next day to Arizona. He flies to Ottawa on Monday to sign, gets in at two o'clock in the morning. 

"Three days later, he's playing his first game ever. It's the last week of the season, they're in last place, and they're playing in Buffalo on Jack Eichel bobblehead night. 18,000 people. 

"There was a sense of relief. As hockey parents, we have so many decisions to make with our kids. We're pulled in so many directions; that tournament, that skills thing, play for that team, go junior or stay in prep school. 

"I can live with making a bad financial decision when it comes to hockey, but you're always stressed because you want to give your kid a chance. You want to give them the best chance to succeed. You're always questioning yourself. 

"When you have a pinnacle moment, like his first game in the NHL, or that Winter Classic, it's a feeling like, 'Hey, I didn't screw up as a dad.' He had his day in the sun."

Editor's Note: In a second story dropping later today, Brian Daccord talks about wondering if his son was good enough to play goal, and what Dad did about it.