When Seattle general manager Jason Botterill was hired a month ago, he immediately embarked on a purposeful, in-depth search for the next Kraken head coach. Botterill didn’t rush the process. He started with a lengthy list of possible coaches that he whittled down to interview and re-interview the top candidates. He stayed patient, he learned a ton, and on Thursday, he found his man in Lane Lambert. The 60-year-old Toronto Maple Leafs associate coach becomes the Kraken’s third head coach in franchise history, and along with it, reunites with players Chandler Stephenson, Andre Burakovsky and Philipp Grubauer as members of the 2018 Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals.
“After conducting an extensive search, we’re thrilled to announce Lane as our new head coach,” said Botterill. “We cast a wide net for suitable candidates. What impressed us throughout the interview process was Lane’s strategy and vision for this team. He was an integral part of the Capitals winning the Cup and the Islanders advancing to two straight Eastern Conference finals. We have full confidence in Lane to lead this team behind the bench.”
This will be Lambert’s second time as an NHL head coach. He took over behind the New Islanders bench for the 2022-23 season, guiding a team that missed the playoffs the previous spring to a 42-31-9 record and a .567 winning percentage, good for the top wild-card spot in the highly competitive Eastern Conference. The Isles lost a tight six-game first-round series to Carolina in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In 2023-24, NYI was off to a 19-15-11 (.544) mark when he was replaced by Patrick Roy midseason. His overall record with the Islanders was 61-46-20 with an overall win percentage of .559.
Lambert’s most recent role in Toronto manifested as 2019 Stanley Cup-winning coach Craig Berube rebuilt his coaching staff when hired by the Maple Leafs last summer. It’s important to note Lambert was hired by Berube as an associate coach and carried more responsibility than typical assistant coaches, overseeing a Toronto defensive effort improved from 21st in goals-against to eighth as the Leafs won the Atlantic Division for the first time in franchise history, totaling 108 standings points.
“I’m so excited to become the head coach of the Seattle Kraken,” said Lambert. “When it came time to writing a new chapter, I couldn’t think of a better fit. Seattle is an incredible sports town, and I’ve been impressed by the energy of the fans every time I’ve been there as a visiting coach. This team has a talented group of young players poised to take the next step and a core group of veterans with great leadership qualities. I’d like to thank Samantha Holloway, Ron Francis and Jason Botterill for this opportunity. I can’t wait to get started.”
Successful NHL Connection with Trotz, Lamoriello
Lambert has worked as an NHL coach since 2011, including 11 seasons as the top assistant with head coach Barry Trotz, first in Nashville, then Washington (for a historic Cup run with Stephenson, Burakovsky, Grubauer, Alex Ovechkin and company) and next the Islanders, reaching the Stanley Cup Playoffs eight times and always winning at least one series each spring. Lambert served as Trotz’ associate coach with more responsibility during the four years together on Long Island and replaced Trotz when the Islanders finished out the 2022 playoffs. Even with being ousted, Trotz was publicly emphatically happy for his long-time coaching partner, telling Lambert directly he was “thrilled” about the move.
“Lane’s got a really tremendous understanding of the game,” said Trotz to the Detroit Free Press in 2020 when the Red Wings were looking for a new coach. “He’s passionate. He’ll listen. I think he’s a demanding teacher, and he is all in on winning. There’s no agenda. You talk about the ultimate team player — that’s Lane.”
Trotz’ observations of the new Kraken coach’s four seasons as head man with Nashville American Hockey League affiliate Milwaukee, where he coached Nashville’s 2020 Norris trophy winner Roman Josi and all-time goaltending great Pekka Rinne among others, sealed the deal of promoting Lambert to become his top NHL assistant. “I saw how our young players improved, saw how detailed and prepared they were coming up. He really has a good understanding of all facets of the game, and he speaks from the heart.”
During the 2021-22 season, Trotz took an 11-day leave to attend to his mother’s funeral and related family matters. The Islanders won two of three games with associate coach Lambert in charge. Lou Lamoriello, the legendary Cup-winning NHL general manager then running the Isles, took it upon himself to sit in on coaching staff meetings during Trotz’ absence.
“When put in that role, [Lambert] had no questions in his mind as far as his decision-making, no insecurities in the conversations I had with him,” Lamoriello said to The Athletic when announcing Lambert’s move to head coach. “The homework he did prior to making some of the decisions that were put upon him, whether it be a line change, mixing the lines, the systemic parts of the game … He was totally comfortable in his own skin to make decisions that had to be made.”
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
