Former Maple Leafs assistant coach Lane Lambert says Auston Matthews’ team-first attitude impressed him most

The Toronto Maple Leafs have yet to make any of the headline-grabbing moves that are forecasted for them this offseason, but they’ve made a swap on the bench.

Lane Lambert, who was hired as an assistant coach prior to the 2024-25 season and mostly oversaw the penalty kill, accepted a head coaching job with the Seattle Kraken last week. Former Detroit Red Wings head coach and Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach Derek Lalonde was promptly hired by the Leafs to replace him. Although Lambert is off to greener pastures, he had nothing but good things to say about the two guys who take more heat in Toronto than anybody, Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. He recently spoke to TSN’s Mark Masters and specifically noted that Matthews’ play on both sides of the puck and his presence as a teammate impressed him as a coach.

“There’s a lot of things that impressed me about him, but I was most impressed with his team-first attitude and the fact that he plays a 200-foot game,” Lambert said. “I think he unfairly doesn’t get considered in certain defensive categories or defensive awards in the National Hockey League. I just think that, as we go forward here, he’s going to get more and more recognition. Very responsible.”

Matthews received Frank J. Selke votes for his defensive play in every year of his career besides 2017-18 and 2018-19. The closest he came was in 2023-24, where he parlayed a third-place voting finish with a 69-goal campaign, showing off his elite two-way game. Lambert also praised Marner, who Leafs fans may not want to hear much about, given the decision he’s facing in free agency and the sense that he won’t be returning.

“He sees the game,” Lambert said. “And he wants to be in those situations. He wants to be the guy out on the ice to get the job done. We had some tough losses, but it wasn’t for lack of will.”

Although Lambert didn’t have a ton of success in his first stint as an NHL head coach, with an all-time record of 61-46-20 across two seasons with the New York Islanders and one playoff berth (a first-round loss), he feels that he’s improved as a coach partly in thanks to his time on the Maple Leafs’ bench. He credited current Leafs bench boss Craig Berube for his communication skills.

“Very direct,” Lambert said of Berube. “You know exactly what he wanted from you and, you know, the entire staff. It’s one of the most enjoyable years I’ve had with the staff.”

The Kraken have missed the playoffs in three of four seasons since 2021-22, when they were inaugurated, and Lambert is hoping he can help them take the next step with a fresh start at the helm of a new team.