David Carle guided Denver to its second national championship in two years, downing Boston College 2-0 back on April 13 in St. Paul, Minn.
For taking the Pioneers to the top of the college hockey mountain, Carle has been named USCHO.com Coach of the Year for the 2023-24 season in a vote of USCHO.com staff members.
During this past season, his sixth year at the helm of his alma mater, Carle guided the Pioneers to their third NCAA Frozen Four in that time. Denver finished with a 32-9-3 record this season, marking the program’s third consecutive 30-wn campaign—the first time in school history it has reached the threshold in back-to-back-to-back years. It is also the 22nd straight full season where DU has recorded 20 or more victories, extending its “Tenzer” Streak as the longest active stretch in college hockey that dates to 2001-02.
Denver finished second in the NCHC standings during the regular season with 45 points and a 15-7-2 record in conference play. In the postseason, the Pioneers swept Minnesota Duluth in two games in the NCHC quarterfinals before defeating St. Cloud State in the conference semifinals and Omaha in the championship game to pick up their third NCHC Frozen Faceoff championship. Overall, it was DU’s 18 conference tournament title in the team’s 75-season history.
The Pioneers played in their 33rd national tournament and advanced to their 19th Frozen Four and fifth trip in the last eight years (seven tournament appearances) by winning the NCAA Northeast Regional in Springfield, Mass.
Carle picked up his 126th career victory on Nov. 25 against Yale, surpassing his predecessor, Jim Montgomery, for sole possession of fourth place on the school’s all-time wins list. He coached his 200th game—all at DU—on Dec. 9 at Western Michigan to become just the fifth Pioneers coach to reach the milestone. His .675 winning percentage through the first 200 games was the second-best mark among Denver coaches, as only Murray Armstrong was better through his first 200 at .735 while also winning three national titles.
Overall, Carle owns a 148-62-16 all-time record and his current .690 winning percentage is presently the best among coaches in Denver hockey history. Armstrong is second with a .674 winning percentage.
Carle won his second national title as a head coach and his third overall. He became the fourth-youngest coach in college hockey history to win an NCAA championship in 2022 (32 years, five months, zero days) and also won a title as an assistant on Montgomery’s staff in 2017.
He also won a gold medal as well this season for Team USA at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship in Sweden in December and January, leading the Americans past the host Swedes in the final for the country’s sixth gold in the last 20 years.
