Exclusive Look: Progress being made on Kraken’s AHL Affiliate new home in Coachella Valley

It’s almost like re-watching Climate Pledge Arena and the Kraken Community Iceplex take shape. That’s what’s happening in Palm Springs, where the Kraken’s brand new minor league affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, are building their new home.

"It’s EXACTLY what the Kraken went through the last few years," Firebirds president Steve Frasier told us on an exclusive tour of the arena construction this month. "For us, in the next ten months, it’s gonna be here and we’ll have our first game, just like the Kraken did this past fall."

Fraser gave us a tour of the new complex, which will seat 10,000 fans for hockey games, and 11,000 for concerts starting this Fall. The building will also house a practice facility that will double as a community ice rink.

It’s a game-changer for the Kraken, whose minor league players this season have been playing all the way in Charlotte, North Carolina.

"Having the prospects being able to come here, train, get their skills developed, learn new systems, fully integrating into the Kraken system, and then be able to showcase that up for the fans at Climate Pledge – it’s just a really exciting time," Fraser said.

And not just for the team.

 "It’s really cool to see the excitement from the Seattle Kraken fanbase, and I think there are gonna be a lot of fans that are either currently season ticket holders of the Kraken or are on that waiting list being very interested in what we’re doing down here and making a weekend or vacation out of it," Fraser said. 

The building is similarly arranged as the Kraken’s home ice, walking in at ground level, and going down to find your seats; although the roof is brand new, weighing 800 tons. 

The Firebirds name, logo and colors were announced last November, a mythical creature like the Phoenix, that plays Yin to the Kraken’s Yang. 

Said Fraser: "It’s so amazing to just kind of see the difference. And that’s kind of one of the themes between the Kraken and the Firebirds has been this Fire and Ice, and Sky and Sea and desert and those things. It’s just kind of interesting how it all kind of ties together."

Due to the arena construction timeline, Fraser said he expects the season to begin with a number of road games, similar to the Kraken’s NHL start this season. While nothing has been finalized, Fraser says they’re in discussions to play a few Firebirds games at Climate Pledge Arena as well.