Carson Lambos Is Due For A Breakout Season

Iowa Wild defenseman Carson Lambos struggled with consistency in his rookie season. Transitioning from junior hockey to professional hockey in the AHL is difficult, and not everyone makes it. However, with Daemon Hunt’s resurgence in his s ophomore season, which resulted in him being called up, we can expect Lambos to bounce back. 

On February 10th, 2020, the Minnesota Wild traded Jason Zucker to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Alex Galchenyuk, Calen Addison, and a conditional 2020 first-round pick that the Penguins turned into a 2021 first. The Wild drafted Lambos 26th overall in the 2021 draft. Lambos remains the last man standing from the Zucker trade. So, it's up to Lambos to ensure the Zucker trade is worth it. 

Lambos was productive enough to be a first-round talent. In the 2019-20 season, Lambos scored 32 points in 57 games for the Winnipeg Ice (WHL). He got to represent Team Canada in the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge, where he scored only 5 assists in 6 games played. In his draft year, Winnipeg loaned him to the JYP Under-18 team in the Under-18 SM-sarja league in Finland, scoring 3 points in 2 games. 

However, he also played for the JYP Jyväskylä Under-20 team, scoring 11 points in 13 games. That was good enough for the Wild to draft Lambos' 26th overall. 

Lambos played another WHL season after that and scored 48 points in 61 games, elevating his game. However, his last WHL season was forgettable because Team Canada cut him. They didn’t even roster him as a 7th defenseman, which was pretty concerning. Lambos only got to play one game before they cut him. However, it allowed Lambos to focus on the AHL. 

Still, Lambos didn't deliver in his rookie season, scoring 14 points in 69 games. He struggled to get consistent top-four minutes, mostly playing in a third-pairing role with some power play time. It's pretty common for teams to shelter a junior player transitioning to professional unless they're a lottery pick, which Lambos isn't. 

While Lambos has seen setbacks, they seem minor, considering he wasn't projected to make the NHL within a few seasons after the Wild drafted him. Lambos was never projected to be an offensive juggernaut. Lambos’ game is being a stable, two-way defenseman. Lambos is still on track to become a second-paired defenseman, which is perfect behind new prospect Zeev Buium. 

Adding Buium in the draft took the burden off of Lambos to develop into a top pairing talent, allowing him to take the next few years to round out his game. Jonas Brodin’s contract will expire after the 2027-28 season, but his No-Movement Clause (NMC) will expire after the 2024-25 season. That means Brodin will be available for trade if a contender happens to be interested. 

Can Lambos initiate a Brodin trade by the 2026-27 or 2027-28 season? Brodin is holding Lambos’ place, so the Wild won't have to worry about playing him soon. However, what if Brodin suffers injuries? That’s when Lambos gets his opportunity to shine and gets called up, much like Hunt. 

Hunt scored 0.57 points in his sophomore season, which is above average. Lambos has first-round value compared to Hunt. What if Lambos scores above 0.57 points? I'm not saying he'll explode offensively, but what if he scores at least 10% better? Lambos will be less streaky and more consistent than he was this past season. 

Lambos is still a top-ten prospect for the team, and he knows that he'll need to work harder to achieve his next goal. While Hunt remains the team's first call-up option, Lambos has a higher ceiling and deserves a chance to get called up if he is NHL-ready. 

He finished 12th in scoring for the Wild but finished third in scoring for defensemen while playing a depth role. When Lambos gains more consistency and gets more minutes, we'll likely see him finish first in scoring for defensemen and possibly sneak into the top five in scoring for skaters. So, let’s hope he takes the next step. 

The Wild haven’t removed Lambos from their plans, even though they extended Jacob Middleton and Brodin has term left on his contract. Lambos can garner some value from the Zucker trade, even though Galchenyuk is no longer in the NHL, and the team traded away Addison this past season. Let's hope that Lambos starts his journey as a seasoned professional.