The NHL’s coaching community is consistently in flux. Coaches can be fired at any point in the season or the off-season, but some have different degrees of job security. That’s one of the factors impacting TheHockeyNews.com’s special series in which we’re ranking the 32 NHL coaches. 

The criteria for this ranking include each coach’s accomplishments, short-term and long-term history, and expectations and reputation. That said, keep in mind that this ranking is subjective. You might not agree with parts of the ranking or the ranking itself, but from this writer’s perspective, this is a defensible ranking.

Previously, we looked at No. 10 pick Peter DeBoer of the New York Islanders. And in this file, we’re turning our attention to the NHL’s ninth-best coach.

Spencer Carbery came into the head coaching business with a splash, leading the Washington Capitals to a 40-31-11 record in his first year in 2023-24. And his second year was even better, as the Caps put together a 51-22-9 mark and the best record in the Eastern Conference.

For that notable achievement, Carbery won his first Jack Adams Award as the top coach in the league. He also led the Caps to a first-round win over the Montreal Canadiens in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs. That marked the first time Washington advanced past the first round of the post-season since they won the Cup in 2018.

Now, Carbery had some adversity this past season, with the Capitals missing out on the playoffs for the first time in his tenure with the organization. GM Chris Patrick traded longtime star defenseman John Carlson to the Anaheim Ducks. So Carbery had to adjust to a changing roster, and in the end, the Capitals missed out on a playoff spot by only three points in the standings. That fact makes Carbery’s balancing act all the more impressive.

Carbery was brought in to facilitate a transfer from one generation to the next, and nobody said it would be a cakewalk or that progress is always linear. So the Capitals’ young players need to develop under Carbery while the team stays competitive year-in and year out. That’s a tall order indeed.

In the relatively weak Metropolitan Division, the Capitals and Carbery have a golden opportunity to put together a lengthy playoff run this coming season. But Carbery needs to get Washington back on track for the regular season before Caps management and fans start having playoff conversations.

Carbery is still only 44 years old, with room to learn and grow as an NHL coach. And as the Capitals are transitioning from the Alexander Ovechkin era to a new generation for the franchise, they’ll need Carbery to develop players and keep the veterans happy and motivated to go through brick walls for him.

Winning a Stanley Cup with Washington isn’t an unattainable goal for Carbery, and an additional Jack Adams Award could also be in the cards for him.

The Capitals haven’t won a lot of high-stakes games since their Cup-winning season. But Caps GM Chris Patrick is now searching for diamonds in the rough, and he’s acquired a pair of difference-makers, including former St. Louis Blues right winger Jordan Kyrou and former Buffalo Sabres power forward Alex Tuch. That gives Carbery an awful lot to work with in order to improve the team.

Now that Patrick has brought in talented players, Carbery must integrate them effectively into the Caps’ lineup. And if he can do that, Carbery could be climbing up the rankings among all NHL coaches.

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