P.K. Subban bluntly names HC Spencer Carbery as Capitals’ 'best weapon'

Spencer Carbery and the Washington Capitals clinched the number one seed in the Eastern Conference following Thursday night's 5-4 shootout win over Carolina.

After squeaking into the playoffs on the final day of the 2023-24 regular season just to get swept by the New York Rangers, Carbery has turned the Capitals into a Stanley Cup Contender in 2024-25.

Nobody in the hockey world could have predicted such a dominant season in the Nation's Capital, making it that much more impressive to see the job Carbery has done leading the charge behind the bench.

Former NHLer, now ESPN hockey analyst, P.K. Subban boldly said during an intermission report that he believes the head coach is Washington's best weapon for success heading into the playoffs. SportsCenter shared the clip on X (formerly Twitter).

"Their best weapon, to me, is Spencer Carbery. You look at this lineup, yeah, they went out and retooled and picked up some great players, but they've also developed. They got guys on the right, like, Pierre-Luc Dubois, he's playing the best hockey we've seen him play. What is the reason for that? Is there something in the water in Washington?" Subban said.

"Last year, they were talking about moving the team. Spencer Carbery has come in and put his fingerprints all over the culture of the organization and that team. So for me, that's why I felt so strongly about Washington at the beginning of the year, not just because of the pickups because of Spencer Carbery, they were my Dark Horse. They were my Dark Horse? Were they not? He's done a fantastic job. For me, what he's done in Washington is really second to no one. You know, there was a lot of pressure, a lot of pressure there, and he delivered," Subban added.

Carbery is in the second season of a reported four-year contract with the Washington Capitals, signed back in 2023.

Spencer Carbery is the well-deserved heavy favorite to win Coach of the Year

Spencer Carbery has pulled away as the frontrunner to win the Jack Adams Trophy.

According to BETMGM, the 43-year-old is the heavy odds-on favorite to be the 2024-25 NHL Coach of the Year at -5000, while Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason (+900) and Canadiens bench boss Martin St. Louis (+2500) round out the top three.

As Subban said, Carbery has done a tremendous job developing and getting the most out of Washington's young skill players. Jakob Chychrun, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Connor McMichael, Aliaksei Protas, and Dylan Strome are all having career-best seasons under his tutelage.

Carbery and the Capitals are back in action on Sunday night in a rematch at home against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The puck drops at 6 p.m. EST at Capital One Arena.