Elliotte Friedman: Toronto Maple Leafs set to hire Lane Lambert

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James Connelly
June 4, 2024 (4:32 PM)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have been heavily linked to former New York Islanders head coach Lane Lambert and recently Elliotte Friedman has shared it is inevitable.

Last season, the New York Islanders fired coach Lane Lambert in the middle of the year and hired Patrick Roy as his replacement.

#Isles News: New York Islanders President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Lou Lamoriello announced today that Lane Lambert has been relieved of his coaching responsibilities. Patrick Roy has been named Head Coach of the New York Islanders.

Since then, Lambert has been one of the best coaching options around the NHL and insider Elliotte Friedman has shared that it is only a matter of time for the Toronto Maple Leafs to hire him.

It appears former Islanders head coach Lane Lambert will join the Leafs as an associate coach, which is seen as a slight step up from assistant coach. �It's only a matter of time,' said Elliotte Friedman. Lambert made two conference finals under Barry Trotz in that role with the Islanders.

If Lambert is an associate coach rather than an assistant coach, then he will be Craig Berube's number-two guy and will be next in line if anything happens to Berube.

We still await an official announcement on Lambert and the Leafs but currently all signs point towards their partnership being inevitable.