Fantasy Summary
A dynamic skater with excellent acceleration and top-end speed, edgework and agility is close to elite. Tough to knock off the puck, can fight through checks, and has elite puck-handling skills and scoring ability. Still, his vision and decision-making as a playmaker are questioned, and he is considered a boom-or-bust prospect with consistency concerns at both ends of the ice. He can potentially be a top-line center with PP1 usage if his all-around game develops. His floor is a bottom-six up-tempo center that can be relied on to kill penalties.
Observations
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September 2024 – Lambert attended the Winnipeg Jets 2024 Development Camp on July 3-7, 2024, and will participate in the 2024 Young Stars Classic in Penticton, B.C, September 13-16, 2024. With the Winnipeg Jets leaving the door open this off-season for their young players to earn a spot in the 2024-25 opening night roster, Lambert will look to impress the new Jets coaching staff led by head coach Scott Arniel and get a long look at their 2024-25 training camp. Mark Henry
April 2024 – The American Hockey League announced on April 17 that Manitoba Moose forward Brad Lambert is a 2023-24 AHL All-Rookie Team member. The following day, Lambert was called up to the NHL by the Winnipeg Jets; he played in the Jets’ regular season finale versus the Vancouver Canucks and recorded his first NHL point, picking up an assist on the opening goal of the game by Gabe Vilardi. Lambert was returned to the Manitoba Moose on April 19. Mark Henry
April 2024 – Lambert was named AHL Rookie of the Month for March. The 2022 Winnipeg Jets first-round pick was third in the AHL with 18 points (four goals and 14 assists) in 13 games while helping the Manitoba Moose to a 10-3-1 record in March. Lambert’s 14 assists led the AHL this past month. He leads the Moose in scoring and ranks second among AHL rookies with 49 points (19 goals and 30 assists). Mark Henry
January 2024 – Lambert will represent the Manitoba Moose at the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Tech CU in San Jose, California, on February 4 and 5, 2024. Lambert is tied with fellow rookie forward Nikita Chibrikov on the Moose for the lead in points this season with 24 points (11 goals and 13 assists) in 26 games. He is tied for sixth in AHL rookie points and fifth in rookie goal scoring. Mark Henry
October 2023 – Lambert attended the Winnipeg Jets’ 2023 Development Camp in July and participated in the 2023 Young Stars Classic in Penticton, B.C., from September 15-18, 2023. He also attended the Jets’ training camp before being reassigned to the Manitoba Moose to start the 2023-24 campaign. He has five points in three games with the Moose (three goals and two assists). Mark Henry
May 2023 – After being loaned from the Manitoba Moose (AHL) to the Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL), Lambert had an exceptional playoff run with 26 points in 17 games, and his team is now representing the WHL at the Memorial Cup. He made huge strides with confidence this year, and the offense seems to be hitting all cylinders. He is finally showing that top-six potential he was drafted to have ahead of the 2022 draft. Seth Ditchfield
July 2022 – Lambert has been selected by the Winnipeg Jets with the 30th pick in the first round of the 2022 NHL Draft. Nick Richard
January 2022 – After a tough first half of the season, rumors of a split between Lambert and JYP have come to fruition. Lambert’s contract was terminated at his request and he will return to Pelicans for the remainder of the season after playing in their program from 2017 to 2019. He managed just two goals and four assists through 24 games with JYP this season and will be hoping a fresh start with a new club can help him unlock the potential he showed in his first full Liiga season. Nick Richard
December 2021 – Lambert has long been considered one of the top prospects in the 2022 class and entered the season projected as a top-five pick but his play this season hasn’t been enough to maintain that standing. After playing a full season in Liiga as a draft-1 player last season, he hasn’t taken the step forward that you would hope to see from a second-year player and has been surpassed, at least for the time being, by prospects having better seasons – including his teammate Joakim Kemell. Nick Richard
September 2021 – Lambert had a solid season with JYP’s Liiga squad in 2020-21, finishing with 15 points in 46 games – solid production for a draft-1 player in a men’s professional league. Lambert was also the number one guy for Finland at both the U18 and U20 Worlds but was a bit of a disappointment there, especially at the U18s, scoring only five assists and no goals in five games. The point production he had was solid, but he didn’t show much development to his main flaws during the season. Lambert was mostly used as a winger and even though he might still play some center, I see him as a winger in the NHL.
Lambert has some serious offensive talent. He is a dynamic player who drives the play with his excellent skating ability and great puck handling skills. He is really good in the transitional game and is great at carrying the puck into the offensive zone with control. He has good vision and accurate passing skills which helps him create chances for his teammates. He has, however, shown a tendency to be a bit selfish with the puck at times, especially in the junior national team games. That is mostly because at those levels, he can dominate the offensive zone by just skating and dangling around opponents. That won’t be as easy at higher levels and he needs to simplify his decisions with the puck on his stick. Lambert’s shot is the biggest thing he needs to improve in his offensive game. Even though he can shoot accurate wristers and score from different situations, he still has to significantly improve his finishing ability to become a real dual-threat offensively. His upside is great because of his exceptional offensive talent but there are still concerns, mostly with his defensive game and physicality. If Lambert shows progress during his draft year, he will put himself in good position to be one of the first five names called on draft day in June. Eetu Siltanen
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