Lane Lambert

Lane Douglas Lambert (born November 18, 1964) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL). Drafted 25th overall in the second round of the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, Lambert played 283 games in the NHL for the Quebec Nordiques, New York Rangers, and Detroit Red Wings between 1983 and 1989.

Lane Lambert
Born	(1964-11-18) November 18, 1964 (age 60) Melfort, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position	Forward
Shot	Right
Played for	Detroit Red Wings New York Rangers Quebec Nordiques Düsseldorfer EG HC Ajoie
Current NHL coach	Seattle Kraken
Coached for	New York Islanders
NHL draft	25th overall, 1983 Detroit Red Wings
Playing career	1983–2001
Coaching career	2002–present

Coaching career

Lambert was hired as the head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL) in July 2007,^[1][2] a position he held until he was promoted as an assistant coach for the Nashville Predators on June 9, 2011.^[3] He was also an assistant coach with the Washington Capitals during their 2018 Stanley Cup run, however he signed with the New York Islanders after head coach Barry Trotz signed with the team in 2018.^[4]

After Trotz's firing following the 2021–22 season, on May 16, 2022, Lambert was promoted to head coach of the Islanders.^[5] The Islanders fired Lambert on January 20, 2024, after the team started the 2023–24 season with a 19–15–11 record and were out of playoff contention at that time.^[6][7]

On June 5, 2024, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced that Lambert had been hired as an associate coach.^[8]

On May 29, 2025, the Seattle Kraken named Lambert the third head coach in the franchise's history.^[9]

Awards

• WHL Second All-Star Team – 1983

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1980–81	Swift Current Broncos	SJHL		55	43	54	97	63		—	—	—	—	—
1981–82	Saskatoon Blades	WHL		72	45	69	114	111		5	1	1	2	25
1982–83	Saskatoon Blades	WHL		64	59	60	119	126		6	4	3	7	7
1983–84	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		73	20	15	35	115		4	0	0	0	10
1984–85	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		69	14	11	25	104		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		34	2	3	5	130		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		45	16	25	41	69		16	5	5	10	9
1986–87	New York Rangers	NHL		18	2	2	4	33		—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	New Haven Nighthawks	AHL		11	3	3	6	19		—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	Quebec Nordiques	NHL		15	5	5	10	18		13	2	4	6	30
1987–88	Quebec Nordiques	NHL		61	13	28	41	98		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Quebec Nordiques	NHL		13	2	2	4	23		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Halifax Citadels	AHL		59	25	35	60	162		4	0	2	2	2
1989–90	Düsseldorfer EG	GER		6	2	6	8	4		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Canadian national team	Intl		54	28	36	64	48		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	HC Ajoie	NLB		36	40	45	85	82		10	11	7	18	30
1990–91	Canadian national team	Intl		4	1	0	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
1991–92	HC Ajoie	NLB		35	51	38	89	125		9	10	5	15	14
1992–93	HC Ajoie	NLA		25	22	16	38	28		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	HC La Chaux-de-Fonds	NLB		36	39	29	68	62		5	5	2	7	8
1994–95	SC Langnau	NLB		36	37	44	81	60		7	5	4	9	33
1995–96	SC Langnau	NLB		33	39	40	79	64		8	7	4	11	14
1996–97	Cleveland Lumberjacks	IHL		75	24	20	44	94		13	4	5	9	21
1997–98	Cleveland Lumberjacks	IHL		39	4	10	14	60		3	0	0	0	0
1998–99	Cleveland Lumberjacks	IHL		36	8	10	18	61		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	Houston Aeros	IHL		9	2	1	3	4		19	4	1	5	26
1999–00	Houston Aeros	IHL		77	21	9	30	88		7	2	1	3	10
2000–01	Houston Aeros	IHL		66	10	12	22	70		7	0	1	1	11
NHL totals				283	58	66	124	521		17	2	4	6	40

Head coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season						Postseason
		G	W	L	OTL	Pts	Finish	W	L	Win %	Result
NYI	2022–23	82	42	31	9	93	4th in Metropolitan	2	4	.333	Lost in first round (CAR)
NYI	2023–24	45	19	15	11	49	(fired)	—	—	—	—
Total		127	61	46	20			2	4	.333	1 playoff appearance

Personal life

Lambert was born in Melfort, Saskatchewan. His wife died on September 16, 2015, from breast cancer.^[10] They had one daughter together and Lambert has another daughter from a previous marriage.^[11]

Lambert has two brothers, Dale and Ross, who also played ice hockey.^[12] His nephew Jimmy played for the University of Michigan,^[13] while his other nephew, Brad, was selected 30th overall by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.