Lambert coached Preds centerman Colton Sissons in Kelowna from 2010-13 and has also worked with Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro on the international stage with Team Canada. A self-described "players' coach," Lambert can't wait to be back on the same club with a pair of players he holds in high regard.
"Colton was such an amazing young man when I coached him in Kelowna," Lambert said. "You just knew the type of player he was, and the type of person he was, that he was going to find success. The Preds were very patient with him, which is probably why he's become the player he has for them.
"Then Dante, for him to come out of college and step right in and play a few games, and then step right in at the playoff level is amazing. Certainly, not every player can do that, but he's a player that has great character. He's a great person, and I'm sure he's going to have a very long career ahead of him."
Speaking of lengthy tenures, Lambert was a solid defenseman himself, skating for 19 professional seasons from 1990 through 2009. Drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1989 NHL Draft, Lambert played 29 games in Quebec City and made stops in the AHL, IHL and Finland before finishing his career in Germany.
Lambert captained the Swift Current Broncos, Long Beach Ice Dogs and Hannover Scorpions over the course of his career, and coaching was a natural evolution following his playing days.
"From a young age, I've always thought that coaching was going to be something I wanted to do," Lambert said. "I was considered a leader on most teams that I played on, and as my career went along - I was in Europe when I finished - I was almost 40 years old playing with some guys who were 19 or 20. I felt like I had already almost begun that part of it, so it was an easy transition."
Lambert will continue that path into Middle Tennessee, another chance to compete for the ultimate prize hockey has to offer.
And that unmistakable Nashville vibe Lambert and his wife experienced a few weeks back? He knows it exists inside of Bridgestone Arena, too. He felt it a few seasons back when he passed through with Buffalo.
Now, he'll help contribute to it every night.
"I had chills," Lambert said of standing behind the bench in Nashville for the first time. "It's an amazing feeling to be in that building, and now to actually be a part of the home team rather than the road team, I'm really, really stoked about it. It's going to be awesome."