In a series of tongue-in-cheek videos, Philipp Grubauer, goaltender of the National Hockey League (NHL) team the Seattle Kraken, suits up in his ultra-padded uniform and blocks shot after shot – then rushes off the ice when IT teams blare security sirens and cautions a colleague, “don’t click that link. It looks like a phishing email.”

All the while, an announcer booms: “On the ice, the speed of attack is relentless and the stakes are high. Every second is crucial. You must be focused, agile, powerful. You also need a great team in front of you. But if an adversary evades your team’s defense, you are the last stop.”

Using a creative metaphor, the announcer pivots: “Off the ice, IT security pros are the last stop of defense against cyberattacks. They defend their organization’s people and data against an ever-changing threat landscape.”

The videos represent the NHL newbie team’s partnership with Seattle-based WatchGuard Technologies – the security company being its goalie, of sorts.

“Protecting digital assets is top of mind for our team,” Sean Rawlins, Kraken’s director of IT, told SDxCentral. “We need robust, multi-faceted security to protect sensitive data and proprietary information. Another top priority is to ensure the security of fan data and online experiences.”

Protecting a sprawling threat landscape for players, staff and fans Sports teams have unique cybersecurity challenges. Players and staff are on the road half the season, and team scouts travel the world to find fresh talent. All have various devices that connect to networks in different areas with varied threat environments and risks.

What’s more, fans flood the stadium for home games, bringing devices that pass through firewalls to connect to Wi-Fi systems. Then there are considerations around visiting teams, vendors and software supply chains.

As such, Kraken’s IT department needs to be diligent and vigilant in protecting players, staff, fans and anyone else the team interacts with. However, its resources are limited: As the NHL’s newest team – they just began playing in the 2021-2022 season – Kraken relies on a small IT department of six people, just one of whom is a full-time cybersecurity professional.

This lean group has wide-ranging responsibilities in cybersecurity and beyond. They manage and protect more than 260 people and their devices at home and on the road, along with servers, private team networks and other equipment. The Kraken Community Iceplex, which houses the team’s offices, IT equipment and ice rinks, also has a Wi-Fi network that sees traffic upwards of 1,000 visitors per day.

“Ensuring guest safety on our public Wi-Fi is just as crucial as protecting our employees from threats,” Rawlins said.

Adding to this, developers built and maintain a fan-facing app featuring player stats and other team info, and they oversee and update software and other critical systems.

“We must protect the team and staff from daily threats, including phishing and smishing, ransomware attempts and more,” Rawlins said. “That creates a need for strong network and endpoint security, as well as correlated threat detection and response.”

Endpoint detection and response (EDR), XDR, simplified management To help protect this broad threat landscape and address unique security needs, Kraken recently deployed WatchGuard’s unified security platform. The platform consists of five elements: a portfolio of endpoint, multifactor authentication (MFA) and network security tools and services; direct API access, out-of-the-box integrations and tools; automation capabilities; centralized security administration and advanced reporting; and an identity framework with an extended detection and response (XDR) approach to detection and remediation.

Typically, Rawlins explained, the IT team prefers to undertake major initiatives in the off-season. However, due to the critical nature of cybersecurity, they began implementing WatchGuard in the first half of the 2023-2024 season.

“Despite the potential for disruption with a mid-season transition, our implementation of WatchGuard’s platform offerings went smoothly and was completed within hours,” said Rawlins.

Kraken’s IT deployed WatchGuard Firebox firewalls, EDR tools and WatchGuard ThreatSync XDR. They use these along with antivirus tools and device and patch management across all environments, Rawlins explained. Further, WatchGuard’s VPN manages Wi-Fi traffic and provides safe remote access to help protect employee and fan data.

Rawlins explained that previously, Kraken used firewalls and other components from another vendor, as well as a variety of identity management tools that created sprawl. “We didn’t have a single, unified interface with visibility across our network,” he said.

Since implementing WatchGuard, “our cybersecurity posture has seen a significant improvement,” he said. The platform has helped enhance threat detection through simplified management, which is critical to safeguarding sensitive data and proprietary information.

“With our small IT team, this simplified management is crucial,” said Rawlins.

He noted that WatchGuard’s tool offers fast configuration and management of devices and policies and “at-a-glance access” to critical threat information. And, its management console helps streamline day-to-day threat monitoring so the team can prioritize and address security threats.

WatchGuard’s platform “puts the information we need onto a single screen and enables us to maintain vigilance in monitoring for and defending against emerging threats,” said Rawlins. “It makes everyone’s jobs easier.”

Next up, Kraken plans to replace its “current set of disparate identity management solutions” with additional components from WatchGuard, including single sign-on and identity security incorporating MFA, password management and dark web monitoring for compromised credentials. The team is particularly excited to implement zero trust risk policies based on time and location, Rawlins noted.

“These steps will reduce breach risks and boost overall productivity,” he said. They will “add depth to our security measures and ensure comprehensive protection against emerging threats.”