The Seattle Kraken have their third head coach in the franchise’s four-year history, announcing Thursday that they have hired former New York Islanders head coach Lane Lambert.
Lambert, who spent this season as an associate coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs, replaces Dan Bylsma, who was fired in April after one season. Dave Hakstol was head coach for the Kraken’s first three seasons.
“After conducting an extensive search, we’re thrilled to announce Lane as our new head coach,” Kraken general manager Jason Botterill said in a statement. “We cast a wide net for suitable candidates. Lane impressed us throughout the interview process with his strategy and vision for the team.”
Lambert’s hiring comes amid a series of changes for the Kraken. In April, the team fired Bylsma after a 35-win season in which it finished 20 points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot. The Kraken won 34 games in 2023-24.
Shortly after firing Bylsma, Seattle promoted Botterill from assistant GM to GM and Ron Francis from GM to team president.
“I’m so excited to become the head coach of the Seattle Kraken,” Lambert, 60, said in a statement. “When it came time to writing a new chapter, I couldn’t think of a better fit.”
With the Kraken hiring Lambert, the Pittsburgh Penguins are the only team still searching for a head coach after Mike Sullivan left to take the New York Rangers job.
Lambert played 283 NHL games before he entered coaching in 2002. He was a head coach in major juniors and the AHL before becoming an assistant coach with the Nashville Predators in 2012. He was part of Barry Trotz’s staff for three years before following Trotz to the Washington Capitals, where he was part of the group that helped the franchise win its first Stanley Cup in 2018.
When Trotz left the Capitals to take over the Islanders, Lambert went with him and continued to develop as one of the top assistants while waiting for his first NHL head-coaching opportunity. Lambert was an associate for four seasons before he was hired to take over the Islanders at the start of the 2022-23 season.
He finished with a 42-31-9 mark and guided the Islanders to the playoffs, where they lost in the first round. A season later, he was fired after winning 19 of 45 games.
With the Kraken, Lambert joins a team that is expected to go through even more changes this offseason.
PuckPedia projects the Kraken will have more than $20 million in available cap space this season to improve a roster that finished 16th in goals per game but was 24th in goals allowed per game.
