The Maple Leafs on Wednesday officially put truth behind some recent speculation, announcing that Lambert has been hired as an associate coach on new head coach Craig Berube’s staff.
Chynoweth, who spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach with the Leafs, will not return, the club announced.
In the 59-year-old Lambert, a native of Saskatchewan, the Leafs have added a wealth of experience behind the bench.
Most recently, Lambert was the head coach of the New York Islanders until he was fired this past January. He had been an associate coach with the Isles starting in 2018-19 before he was promoted prior to the 2022-23 season.
After his playing days ended following the 2000-01 season, Lambert embarked on a long coaching career, starting in 2002-03 when he was hired as an assistant coach with Moose Jaw of the Western Hockey League.
Since then, Lambert also was a head coach in the WHL and was an assistant coach and head coach in the American Hockey League.
His first coaching job in the NHL came in 2011-12, when he started a three-year run as an assistant with the Nashville Predators before he moved to the Washington Capitals in a similar position for the next four seasons. In Washington, he was part of the staff under Barry Trotz that won the Stanley Cup in 2018.
Lambert has worked as coach in every season since his first job in Moose Jaw 22 years ago. In the NHL, he played in a total of 283 games with the Detroit Red Wings, New York Rangers and Quebec Nordiques.
Chynoweth’s departure from the Leafs staff follows that of Manny Malhotra, who was hired in May to be the head coach of Abbotsford, the AHL affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks.
