The Kelowna Rockets are pleased to announce the Western Hockey League team has re-signed assistant coach Dan Lambert to a new two year contract.

Lambert recently completed his third season as a Rockets assistant coach, working with the team's defencemen.

"Dan has done a great job working with our young defencemen," said Rockets president/general manager Bruce Hamilton. "We're happy that he will be back to continue developing our blueline."

A former draft pick of the Quebec Nordiques and a Memorial Cup winner in 1989 with the Swift Current Broncos, Lambert played professional hockey for 19 years with stints in the NHL, AHL and IHL before finishing his career in Germany's DEL, the top European hockey league.

"I'm excited because I feel the back-end of this hockey team will be our strength in the future," said Lambert. "It's going to be very exciting to watch them grow as hockey players."

The Rockets will return a solid core of defencemen next season with draft eligible Damon Severson, 2012 top  defenceman Mitchell Chapman, youngsters Jesse Lees, Madison Bowey, Cole Martin and veteran MacKenzie Johnston all coming back. Throw prospect Riley Stadel into the mix and the Rockets blueline is deep and talented.

"That's the strength of the club looking forward," said Lambert. "With the Rockets, when you look at the defencemen playing in the NHL, that's been the history of this club so it's nice to see this organization returning to that direction."

Lambert had a decorated junior hockey career in Swift Current, winning the Memorial Cup in 1989 and putting up 102 points from the blueline that season. In 19 professional seasons, Lambert would finish with a plus rating 13 times. He had a stellar 10 year career in Germany's DEL and also played in the AHL, the IHL and with the Quebec Nordiques, the team that drafted him.

Lambert first joined the Rockets in the 2009-10 season. He lives with and three daughters in Kelowna.