Carson Lambos
Carson Lambos opens the 2026-27 season in the AHL, not on Minnesota's NHL roster: he lost the final training camp defense spot to David Spacek and cleared waivers on September 24-25, 2026, reporting to the Iowa Wild (The Hockey News and Yahoo Sports, checked 25 September 2026).
Role
No NHL role to report. Lambos was one of eight Wild players placed on waivers on September 24, 2026, and cleared unclaimed by all 31 other clubs; he is now assigned to AHL Iowa Wild for the start of the season. The Hockey News (25 September 2026) specifically noted he 'appears to have lost the roster battle' for Minnesota's last blueline spot to 23-year-old David Spacek, who stayed with the NHL club. Any path back to Minnesota this season would require a recall, and having burned his waiver exemption, he would need to clear waivers again to be sent back down after any such recall.
A 2021 first-round pick (26th overall) who has logged heavy AHL minutes against top competition in Iowa the last two seasons, Lambos says his defensive game has matured while he insists the offensive tools have not disappeared; a strong start in Iowa or an injury to one of Minnesota's veteran defensemen (the Wild carry an experienced group ahead of him) could prompt a recall during the year.
He was passed over for the final NHL defense job by Spacek in camp and then cleared waivers untouched by every other team in the league, a sign that around-the-league evaluators do not currently view him as an NHL-ready option. His NHL sample is a single game, on December 18, 2025, and last season's full-season AHL production (reported as eight goals and 19 points in 70 games) is middling for a former first-rounder now on a one-year, two-way deal.
Where analysts split
There is no real public disagreement, more a settled outcome that outlets are still framing loosely: The Hockey News hedged with 'for now' when describing him losing the job to Spacek, leaving open whether a hot AHL start or a Minnesota blueline injury could get him recalled later in the season, versus the plainer reading that clearing waivers untouched signals limited league-wide confidence in him as an NHL piece right now.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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