New Kraken GM Jason Botterill announced his first major move late Thursday night, confirming that the club had hired former Islanders coach Lane Lambert as their new bench boss.
“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.”
“You have to have constant communication with your players. I think it’s important that it doesn’t just always come from the head coach. The coach has to delegate, and Lane is deeply familiar with that. The coach has to make sure his assistants are interacting non-stop with the skills coach and strength coach, so you are all on the same page, delivering the same message to the players. You’re looking for the head coach to be the CEO of the locker room.”
Lambert will be a familiar face to several players on the Kraken roster, as the 60 year old previously coached Chandler Stephenson, Andre Burakovsky and Philipp Grubauer when they were all members of the 2018 Washington Capitals. He also coached captain Jordan Eberle while he was with the Islanders.
Most recently, Lambert spent time on the Toronto Maple Leafs coaching staff, helping to turn around a leaky Leafs defensive unit from 21st in goals against to 8th best this past season.
“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.”
Lambert will be tasked with turning around a Kraken squad who underperformed in 2024-25, going 35-41-5, and finishing second to last in the Pacific Division. That performance represented a 5 point step backwards from their 2023-24 campaign where they also failed to qualify for the postseason after making it to the 2nd round of the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2022-23.
With Lambert’s appointment, the NHL coaching carousel is beginning to slow down. The offseason began with a slew of hirings and firings, but as the dog days of summer approach, only Pittsburgh and Boston remain without head coach. Though both clubs are reportedly nearing deals of their own to finalize their new locker room leaders.
Photo: Jenn G. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.