Capitals HC Spencer Carbery weighs in on Ryan Leonard’s second NHL game

The Washington Capitals welcomed rookie forward Ryan Leonard into their lineup on Tuesday against the Boston Bruins shortly after his tenure with Boston College came to a close.

Playing against the Bruins in TD Garden, a building that he had suited up in multiple times during his collegiate career, Leonard got 14:14 of ice time and dished out three hits.

His physical play caught the attention of captain Alex Ovechkin, who clearly loved what he saw and let him know on the bench:

To put things in perspective, Leonard was only eight months old when Ovechkin began his NHL career in 2005.

Wednesday's game against the Carolina Hurricanes, ultimately a 5-1 Capitals loss, was Leonard's second NHL contest. While there may not have been much (other than Alex Ovechkin's 891st career NHL goal) to look back positively upon, the play of Leonard caught coach Spencer Carbery's eye.

“Oh, I thought he was one of our best players on the ice,” Carbery said.

Leonard played in 15:45 of ice time and doled out even more physical punishment than his NHL debut, laying out a total of four hits.

Ryan Leonard and the Capitals will next take on the struggling Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night at Capital One Arena in Washington DC; the puck is scheduled to drop just after 7:00 PM EST.

The Capitals signed rookie Ryan Leonard to a three-year entry-level contract

Ryan Leonard, the eighth overall pick in the 2023 draft, was signed to a three-year entry-level contract with a cap hit of $950K.

He played in 37 games with Boston College in 2024-25 and scored 30 goals with 19 assists. Not only was he the leading goal scorer in the NCAA, but he also became the first Boston College player to enjoy consecutive 30-goal seasons since Cam Atkinson did so in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

In 78 total college games, Leonard scored 61 goals and 48 assists.

This past January, he also represented the United States on the international stage and helped lead them to their second consecutive gold medal win in the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship. The victory also marked the first time that Team USA won consecutive gold medals in tournament history.