ARLINGTON, VA — The Washington Capitals wrapped up their season on Tuesday, speaking to the media at Breakdown Day after losing in Game Four to the New York Rangers. For Spencer Carbery, Breakdown Day offered him a chance to reflect back on the ups and downs of his first year as an NHL head coach.
Carbery touched on a number of memorable moments during his 20-minute press conference, from the team’s first win against the Calgary Flames in October to the Mentors’ Trip that he argued helped turn the season around. But when asked what moment he’ll recount decades down the line, reminiscing with his family long after his eventual retirement, Carbery couldn’t help but name the Game 82 victory that propelled the Capitals back into the playoffs.
“I would probably say (it’s) the Philadelphia game that I’ll remember,” he said. “Because we had been battling for so long. And for it to come down to one game, winner take all, we win. And coming on a back-to-back, so we fly in and we get there and everybody’s exhausted or we train.
“And to just grind our way through that game: it wasn’t pretty — in true Caps fashion this year. Just trying to find a way: we get the empty-netter and I think just the relief that we achieved it.”
While the Capitals professed faith that they could make the playoffs, their odds remained slim with just days remaining in the regular season. Six straight losses nearly sunk their season in April before a three-game win streak — as well as help from the out-of-town-scoreboard — earned them a chance to win a spot in Game 82.
The Flyers had just as much as stake in that final contest: anything but a regulation win would eliminate their playoff chances, leading them to pull their goaltender with just over three minutes remaining. TJ Oshie scored on the empty net 10 seconds later, but reality didn’t sink in for Carbery until the final horn.
“Even though you believe that you can — the whole time you’re believing ‘Okay, we’re going to find a way. We’re going to find a way,’ but until it happens, it’s hard to say, ‘We knew this was going to culminate,’” Carbery said Tuesday. “And so when that moment came where the buzzer — because even when they had the goalie pulled and it’s 2-1, you’re like, ‘They still have a chance to tie this game and it goes to overtime and we needed the two points.’ So I’ll never forget that game and I think it’s just a true representation of our group this year: the resiliency, the back-to-back, the on the road, both teams playing for something. And in odd fashion, but we find a way to win a game and get back into the playoffs.”
While a bizarre empty-net game-winner felt like an appropriate finale for this year’s Capitals squad, Carbery admitted he might fudge the details when he’s retelling the tale.
“It’ll be a breakaway backhand shot,” he joked.
Speaking more broadly, Carbery made a point to praise not only players and staff, but also the warm welcome he’s received in Washington. Six years after the Capitals won the Stanley Cup in 2018, Carbery arrived in DC in the twilight years of the Alex Ovechkin era as the team worked to balance an aging veteran core with young, developing players. The season wasn’t easy by any stretch, nor did it end how Carbery would have wanted. Still, Carbery’s excited for the chance to do it all again.
“Well, I’ve lost a few years off my life from this season. Few more gray hairs if I grew it out,” he joked. “It was a tremendous experience. I mean, this year — I knew the the fan base and the building. I could speak about our guys all day long and the leadership and how impressive a group they are to be around and having coached. But I’ll mention, and I said this before the playoffs: coaching in Washington and the fan base and the Rock the Red and the enthusiasm around town and people coming up to me, whether it’s in Virginia or downtown DC or in Maryland where my son plays, you genuinely can feel this is a hockey town and people love the Washington Capitals.
“And I felt that in the community, and then you get into Capital One Arena and feel that on the bench. That was really special, to be able to go through — especially some games where we really got rocking in there and it was tight and it was going to overtime. Yeah, I’ll remember that and hopefully get to experience that for a lot of years to come.”
