The new Capitals bench boss has a game plan when it comes to helping Mantha if he remains in D.C.
The Washington Capitals have a lengthy offseason to-do list to get through this offseason, and one of the outstanding agenda items is figuring out what to do with Anthony Mantha. And though his future hangs in the balance, new head coach Spencer Carbery has a game plan if Mantha still with the team come training camp.
Carbery was on Elliot In The Morning on Monday to discuss becoming the new bench boss and what he has in mind entering his first year with the team. And, when asked about Anthony Mantha and his struggles, Carbery said that he will do whatever it takes to help.
"That's the challenge... I feel like I can help Anthony. Right away, start to get to know him, his experiences, when he’s had success, where’s he been put, what did the coaches do, how was coaching brought to you," Carbery explained on the show.
Mantha, who Washington acquired in 2021 for Jakub Vrana and picks, has not been able to find consistency in D.C. In his first fully healthy season this past year, he had just 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points in 67 games. His lack of consistency led to a drop in ice time, demotions and ultimately, healthy scratches that admittedly took a toll on his confidence.
The 28-year-old took accountability for his poor play and said that he hopes to get a chance to return to the Capitals and prove what he can do next year. He also hired a mental coach to help with his confidence.
"It's just me, myself to blame. Maybe my lack of skating, lack of shooting or lack of decision-making, maybe all the detail... it takes a toll on your confidence when [being scratched] happens, and then after, you're just looking for your game that's maybe not present," Mantha said.
Carbery added that he will look at which coaching styles work best with the Quebec native while also helping him embrace the stronger areas of his game. Because, at the end of the day, the 41-year-old coach knows that Mantha can still bring a lot to the table.
"Players are coached all differently. Some have success being pushed on, some have success being shown real positive things. So that’s where my head goes to is how can I help Anthony Mantha get back to being the player he knows he’s capable of being and he’s shown," Carbery said. "I’ll dig in on a personal level and I’ll help him and look for different things and show him certain things that I see through the film of when he’s playing really, really well: 'Here’s three things: boom boom boom.' And now we focus on those we get to work on those we try to make it look like that as consistently as possible in games."
Mantha has one year at $5.75 million left on his contract before becoming an unrestricted free agent. The Capitals have reportedly let teams know that Mantha is available and that they're ready to move on from him, though his trade value may not be the highest at the moment.
So at the end of the day, if the team can't move the 6-foot-5 winger, they'll turn to Carbery to fix him -- and he's ready for that chance.
"It’s one of the challenges of coaching, but one of the parts of it that I love is trying to help players be their best and find those different ways.”