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<\/p>\nTORONTO \u2013 Lane Lambert knows mistakes were made. Lessons were also learned.<\/p>\n
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His first opportunity as an NHL head coach came when the New York Islanders handed him the reins after 11 seasons in a supporting role with three different organizations.<\/p>\n
Lambert would only last 127 games in the top job on Long Island following four campaigns as an associate under Barry Trotz. Having dusted himself off and taken some time to reflect, he\u2019s hoping for a much longer runway in his new gig.<\/p>\n
Lambert was hired by the Seattle Kraken in May \u2014 the franchise\u2019s third bench boss in five campaigns since entering the league \u2014 and has the club off to a solid start in 2025-26.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just experiences,\u201d Lambert said when asked how he\u2019s a different coach this time around. \u201cThere\u2019s certain things that maybe you\u2019ve done in the past where you say, \u2018Oh, gee, if I had that over, I would do it differently.\u2019 Won\u2019t expand on what those are, but certainly experience would give you the opportunity to do things, I guess, better.<\/p>\n
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\u201cUnless arrogance keeps you from doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seattle started the schedule 3-0-2 for its best-ever opening five-game stretch before consecutive regulation road losses to the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals this week on a back-to-back. The Kraken wrap up a difficult road trip Thursday against the Winnipeg Jets.<\/p>\n
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\u201cCompete and work,\u201d Lambert said of his message since training camp. \u201cWe\u2019ve paid pretty close attention to our details and our structure and our defensive game, and piggyback the offence off of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
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One of eight NHL head coaches in new surroundings, Lambert replaced Dan Bylsma after his one season in charge.<\/p>\n
The 60-year-old from Melfort, Sask., who played 300 combined NHL games in the 1980s and won the Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with Washington in 2018, has impressed early on in Seattle.<\/p>\n
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\u201cLove his intensity,\u201d Kraken defenceman Vince Dunn said. \u201cWhen he\u2019s going through video, when it\u2019s something positive, he\u2019s just as intense as when it\u2019s something negative. You feel that energy at all times when he\u2019s behind you and leading a group that definitely needed that.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been great to connect with the guys, and he\u2019s very personable. Having that aspect and then having him play that role in the dressing room, it\u2019s been a really good balance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lambert spent 2024-25 as an associate on Craig Berube\u2019s staff with the Toronto Maple Leafs after getting fired by the Islanders. He helped the Original Six club make the second round of the playoffs last spring before falling to the Florida Panthers, who would go on to win their second straight Stanley Cup.<\/p>\n
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Kraken captain Jordan Eberle was in New York when the club made back-to-back conference finals in 2020 and 2021 with Trotz in charge and Lambert by his side.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s intense, he\u2019s direct,\u201d Eberle said of the Kraken\u2019s new coach. \u201cHis message is really non-negotiable \u2014 this is how we\u2019re going to do things, and that\u2019s what I love.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seattle centre Chandler Stephenson said Lambert\u2019s attention to detail and competitiveness stand out.<\/p>\n
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