Capitals Win Big With Carbery Hiring; 3 Key Areas Where New Head Coach Provides Boost

The Capitals power play, prospects and more are sure to get a big boost with Carbery at the helm.

ARLINGTON, V.A. -- The Washington Capitals made quite a statement on Tuesday, hiring Spencer Carbery as their head coach and turning to a first-time NHL bench boss after a disappointing 2022-23 campaign saw them miss the playoffs for the first time in nine years.

He will be on board for the next four years as general manager Brian MacLellan hopes that he can help the team get back to its winning ways.

"We are extremely pleased to name Spencer as our new head coach," general manager Brian MacLellan said. "Spencer is one of the best young coaches in the game who's had success at every level at which he has coached. We feel his leadership, communication skills, ability to develop players and familiarity with our organization will be a tremendous asset as he makes this next step in his coaching career."

Carbery garnered a lot of interest from multiple teams across the league and has an impressive resume and also spent plenty of time in the Washington organization as the head coach for the AHL-affiliate Hershey Bears and ECHL-affiliate South Carolina Stingrays. 

And now, after two years in the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, he's at the helm in D.C. following Peter Laviolette's tenure -- and it looks like it'll pay off big time.

Here are three key areas where the 41-year-old provides a much-needed boost.

Carbery was at the helm of the Maple Leafs' man advantage, transforming it into one of the top units in the league over the span of two seasons.

In 2021-22, Toronto's power-play percentage of 27.3 led the league, and last year, their 26.6 PP% was the second-best in the NHL behind Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers. The Maple Leafs' power play under Carbery also ranked best in franchise history.

Washington's power play has struggled in recent years and had gone through multiple dry stretches. The Capitals finished with a 21.2 PP% last season, which ranked 16th in the league.

With Carbery at the helm and another assistant also coming in to replace Blaine Forsythe, Washington will get a fresh new voice on the man advantage, which should help the team immensely as it looks to return to top form.

The Capitals are on Alex Ovechkin watch, with the captain now sitting 73 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time record. He has three more years to go on his contract, and I don't see him hanging 'em up until he passes No. 99.

Carbery is signed for four years, and he worked wonders with the likes of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander while overseeing the forwards. Through the power play and work on offense, he can help Ovechkin remain in good position to pass Gretzky and continue to produce the way he has throughout the course of his career.

Meanwhile, Washington also needs help with secondary scoring and consistency on offense. The Capitals' 3.09 goals-for per game was the 12th-worst in the NHL, and several forwards also dealt with inconsistency, including Evgeny Kuznetsov and Anthony Mantha. And while their futures remain up in the air, Carbery could provide a much-needed change that could benefit them and more.

With Carbery at the helm, Washington can get more out of all four lines and be a force at even strength, while he could also help some of the team's struggling pieces.

Lastly, Carbery is a refreshing and reassuring voice for the organization and its rising prospects.

Carbery was the Bears' head coach from 2018 to 2021 and got to work with multiple up-and-coming Capitals, including Connor McMichael, Beck Malenstyn, Aliaksei Protas and Joe Snively up front, as well as Martin Fehervary, Alex Alexeyev and Lucas Johansen on the backend. He also worked with Rasmus Sandin in Toronto.

General manager Brian MacLellan wants to inject youth and speed into the roster this offseason, while also revamping the top-6. Surely, adding some prospects to the mix can help there, and Carbery can help McMichael, as well as possibly Joe Snively, Ethen Frank, Hendrix Lapierre and more with taking the next step and being NHL-ready.

Ultimately, Carbery is a familiar face and a well-liked member of the organization, and having him at the helm will provide Washington with a needed change up front that can, in turn, lead to beneficial changes across the board.