Spencer Carbery - Head Coach

Spencer Carbery was named the 20th head coach of the Washington Capitals on May 30, 2023.

Carbery, 41, returns to the organization after spending the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs. With Toronto, Carbery was responsible for the team’s power play and oversaw the team’s forwards. In his first season with the club in 2021-22, the Maple Leafs ranked first in the NHL in power play percentage (27.3), a 7.3-percent improvement from the previous season. Over two full seasons, Toronto converted on 26.6 percent of their power-play opportunities, the second-highest rate in the League during that span. In addition, Maple Leafs forwards ranked fourth in the NHL in goals (251) and points (589) during the 2022-23 season and second in goals (277) and third in points (652) in 2021-22.

Prior to joining Toronto, Carbery served as head coach of Washington’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate the Hershey Bears for three seasons from 2018 to 2021. Under Carbery, Hershey posted a combined record of 104-50-9-8 (.658 point percentage), including an AHL-best 24-7-2-0 record (.758 point percentage) in his final season behind the Bears’ bench in 2020-21. Carbery received the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL’s outstanding coach for the 2020-21 season, becoming the fifth coach in Hershey franchise history to win the award. During his three-year tenure with Hershey, Carbery coached and aided in the development of several players that appeared in games with the Capitals during the 2022-23 season, including Martin Fehervary, Aliaksei Protas, Connor McMichael, Alex Alexeyev, Beck Malenstyn, Lucas Johansen and Joe Snively.
 
The Victoria, British Columbia native spent five seasons as head coach and director of hockey operations for the South Carolina Stingrays from 2011 to 2016, with the Stingrays serving as the Capitals’ ECHL affiliate in Carbery’s final two seasons in South Carolina. Carbery compiled a record of 207-115-38, leading the Stingrays to the Kelly Cup Playoffs in each of his five seasons. In total, Carbery guided South Carolina to two division titles, two Eastern Conference Finals appearances and a Kelly Cup Finals appearance in 2015. In 2013-14, Carbery won the John Brophy Coach of The Year Award after leading the Stingrays to their first division title since 2000-01. Carbery is one of four coaches to ever win coach of the year awards at both the AHL and ECHL levels.
 
In addition to his time with the Maple Leafs, Bears and Stingrays, Carbery served as head coach of the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in 2016-17 and was an assistant coach with the AHL’s Providence Bruins in 2017-18.
 
Carbery, whose coaching career began in 2010-11 as an assistant coach with South Carolina, played parts of two seasons with the Stingrays and helped the team capture the Kelly Cup in 2009. That same season, Carbery was honored as the Stingrays’ inaugural Jerry Zucker Community Service Award winner for his work in the Lowcountry community. Carbery, a forward, played 181 games over three ECHL seasons with Bakersfield, Stockton, Fresno and South Carolina and 63 games in the CHL with Tulsa. Carbery graduated from St. Norbert College, where he played for three seasons after playing one season at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Carbery and his wife, Casey, have two children, Hudson and Vivian.

Scott Allen - Assistant Coach

Allen, 57, is entering his second season as an assistant coach with the Capitals. Prior to joining Washington, Allen spent three seasons with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL). Allen is responsible for the Capitals’ penalty kill, which allowed the sixth-fewest power-play goals against (41) in the NHL during the 2022-23 season.

With Hershey, Allen served as an assistant coach for two seasons before being named the Bears’ head coach ahead of the 2021-22 season. Under Allen, Hershey finished with a record of 34-32-6-4, clinching a Calder Cup Playoff berth, and ranked tied for 11th in the AHL in goals against (209).

The New Bedford, Massachusetts native has coached professionally for more than 25 seasons, including assistant positions with the New York Islanders (2009-12), the Florida Panthers (2016-17) and the Arizona Coyotes (2017-19). With Arizona, Allen worked with the Coyotes' defensemen and penalty kill. During the 2018-19 season, Arizona ranked tied for first in the NHL in penalty kill percentage (85.0) and tied for fifth in goals against per game (2.68). In Allen's one season with Florida, the Panthers finished with the second-best penalty kill percentage in the NHL (85.3). Additionally, Allen has coached in the AHL for 14 seasons.
 
Allen played professionally for 10 seasons in the All-American Hockey League, Atlantic Coast Hockey League, Colonial Hockey League, Central Hockey League and ECHL. Allen, a forward, won back-to-back Kelly Cups with the Carolina Thunderbirds in 1989 and the Greensboro Monarchs in 1990.
 
Allen and his wife, Traci, have two daughters: Mackenzie and Camryn.

Mitch Love - Assistant Coach

Love, 39, joins Washington after spending the previous two seasons as the head coach of the Calgary Flames' AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers (2022-23) and Stockton Heat (2021-22). Love will primarily work with the Capitals' defensemen.

Love, who guided Calgary to an AHL-best 51-17-3-1 record in 2022-23, received the Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL's outstanding coach for the second-consecutive season. Love became just the third coach in AHL history to win back-to-back Pieri Awards and the first to do so in his first two seasons in the league.

Under Love last season, Calgary ranked first in the AHL in goals against per game (2.42) and penalty kill percentage (85.1%) and fourth in goals for per game (3.56). In 2021-22, Stockton ranked third in the AHL in goals against per game (2.72) and finished with the league's second-best record. In two seasons as head coach, Love complied a record of 96-33-8-3 and won two Pacific Division titles.

Prior to joining the Flames organization, Love was head coach of the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League (WHL) from 2018-21, where he posted a record of 95-44-12-4 over three seasons. The Quesnel, British Columbia native also served as an assistant coach with the Everett Silvertips of the WHL for seven seasons from 2011-18.
 
Internationally, Love was an assistant coach on Canada's gold-medal winning team at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship and served in the same role at the 2021 tournament, earning a silver medal. Love coached Capitals forward Connor McMichael at both tournaments. Love also earned a gold medal as an assistant coach for Canada at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.
 
Love played professionally for six seasons, including five years in the AHL, where he recorded 27 points (6g, 21a) and 808 penalty minutes in 278 career games.

Kirk Muller - Assistant Coach

Muller, 57, joins the Capitals after spending the previous two seasons as an associate coach with the Calgary Flames. Muller is responsible for the Capitals’ power play and forwards.

The Kingston, Ontario native brings 17 years of NHL coaching experience to Washington, which includes two stints with the Montreal Canadiens as an assistant coach (2006-11) and as an associate coach (2016-21) and two seasons with the St. Louis Blues as an assistant coach (2014-16). Muller also served as head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes (2011-14) and the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Milwaukee Admirals (2011). Muller’s teams have qualified for the playoffs nine times, including two conference final appearances (Montreal: 2010; St. Louis: 2016), and have ranked in the top 10 in power-play percentage seven times. During Muller’s tenure in St. Louis, the Blues owned the NHL’s third-highest power-play percentage (21.9 percent).

Internationally, Muller was an assistant coach for Canada at the 2012 and 2019 IIHF World Championships, earning a silver medal in 2019 along with Capitals forwards Dylan Strome and Anthony Mantha. Prior to joining the coaching ranks, Muller appeared in 1,349 games over 19 NHL seasons with the New Jersey Devils, Montreal, New York Islanders, Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers and Dallas Stars, recording 959 points (357g, 602a). Muller, the second overall pick in the 1984 NHL Draft, won the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993.

Muller and his wife, Stacey, have four daughters, Brittney, Kourtney, Bryelle and Kira.

Kenny McCudden - Assistant Coach & Skills Coach

McCudden, 61, joins the Capitals after spending the last eight seasons as an assistant coach with the Columbus Blue Jackets. During his eight seasons with Columbus, McCudden worked closely with Blue Jackets players, including Seth Jones, Cam Atkinson, Zach Werenski, Josh Anderson and Oliver Bjorkstrand, who all registered career highs in points during his tenure.  In 2016-2017, McCudden was part of Jack Adams Award winner John Tortorella’s coaching staff.

A Chicago native, McCudden joined the Blue Jackets in 2015 as a skills coach after spending 16 seasons as the skating and skills coach for the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Chicago Wolves. With Chicago, McCudden helped the Wolves advance to the 2005 Calder Cup Finals and capture the Calder Cup championship in 2008.

McCudden has worked with numerous NHL players and prospects as a skills coach and instructed at development camps for the Colorado Avalanche, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Thrashers. In addition, McCudden served as the skating and skills coach for the United States Women's National Team from 2011-14 and as a scout for the silver medal-winning squad at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Scott Murray - Goaltending Coach

Scott Murray is entering his seventh season as the Capitals’ goaltending coach. Prior to joining Washington, Murray spent four seasons with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Over the last six seasons, Capitals goaltenders have combined for 253 wins, the eighth-most wins in the NHL.

During the 2022-23 season, Murray worked with goaltenders Darcy Kuemper and Charlie Lindgren. Kuemper appeared in 57 games for the Capitals in his first season with the team, which tied his single-season career high in games played (2021-22: 57 GP). Among goaltenders with at least 55 starts in 2022-23, Kuemper ranked eighth in the NHL in goals-against average (2.87) and save percentage (.909) and his five shutouts last season were tied for the second most in the NHL (Ilya Sorokin, New York Islanders: 6 SO; Alexandar Georgiev, Colorado Avalanche: 5 SO; Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars: 5 SO). Lindgren set NHL career highs in games played (31), games started (26) and wins (13) in 2022-23. Lindgren, who posted a 9-1-0 record with a 1.90 goals-against average and a .934 save percentage from Dec. 5 to Dec. 31, was named the NHL’s First Star for the week ending Dec. 11 and finished the month tied for first in the NHL in wins.

During the Capitals’ 2017-18 Stanley Cup-winning season, Murray helped Braden Holtby set a franchise record for most wins in the postseason and lead all NHL goalies in goals-against average (2.16) during the playoffs.
 
Murray joined the Capitals organization in 2013 after spending four seasons as the goaltending coach for the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League. Murray, 44, played hockey collegiately at Lake Superior State University. The St. Clements, Ontario, native also played for the San Angelo Saints (Central Hockey League) and Motor City Mechanics (United Hockey League) during his professional career.
 
Murray and his wife Renee have three children, a son Tylar, and two daughters, Ella and Liv.

Brett Leonhardt - Assistant Coach & Video Coach

Brett Leonhardt is entering his 12th season as the Capitals’ video coach and sixth as an assistant coach. Leonhardt’s responsibilities include developing and delivering game plan meetings and pre-scouting opponents at five-on-five play.

Leonhardt spent two seasons in the NHL office in Toronto as their video manager for hockey operations beginning in 2011. In his role, he was responsible for breaking down and handling all video for rule changes, video reviews, officiating issues and more.

Prior to his time with the NHL, Leonhardt received a Bachelor of Arts in communications and media arts at Neumann University and was a recipient of the John A. Phillips Scholar-Athlete Award as well as the John Facenda Award for excellence in communication arts. He played hockey collegiately at both Neumann University and Oswego State University after spending three seasons playing for the Cambridge Winterhawks and Kitchener Dutchmen of the GOJHL.

Leonhardt was born in Kitchener, Ont. He and his wife Logan, reside in Ashburn, Va., with their twin boys, Beckham and Lennox.

Emily Engel-Natzke - Video Coach

Emily Engel-Natzke is entering her second season with the Capitals. Engel-Natzke, 32, previously served as video coach for Washington's AHL affiliate the Hershey Bears during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons.

With Hershey, Engel-Natzke was responsible for producing opponent pre-scouts and coaching reports, as well as in-game and postgame video breakdowns.

The Fort Collins, Colorado native previously worked with the University of Wisconsin's men's and women's hockey teams as video coordinator from 2015-2017 and as assistant director of operations/video coordinator with the men's team from 2017-2020.

In addition, Engel-Natzke has worked with USA Hockey as a video coach for the U18 and Senior Women's National Teams. Engel-Natzke was part of the gold-medal winning staffs for the U18 team at the 2018 Women's World Championship in Dmitrov, Russia, and for the Senior Women's team at the 2019 World Championship in Espoo, Finland.

Engel-Natzke and her wife, Spencer, reside in Vienna with their dog, Hat Trick, and three cats, Sophia, Juusto and Lucy.