Carle, 29, is the youngest active head coach in NCAA Division I college hockey. Prior to being named head coach, the Anchorage, Alaska native served the previous four and a half seasons as an assistant coach with the Pioneers under Jim Montgomery, joining the program on January 1, 2014, following a season and a half as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League (USHL).

In his first season as head coach, Carle guided the Pioneers to their 18th consecutive 20-win season with a 24-12-5 record and 11-10-3-3 mark in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). After competing in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff, Denver advanced to the NCAA tournament for the 12th straight year and first under Carle’s leadership, defeating Ohio State and American International College to earn a spot in the Frozen Four for the third time in four years.

During his tenure as an assistant coach with the Pioneers, Carle helped Denver to a 115-51-23 record, a 66-32-14-8 mark in the NCHC, one NCHC regular-season title, two NCHC Frozen Faceoff titles, five NCAA Tournament appearances, two Frozen Four appearances and the 2017 National Championship. While in Green Bay, Carle helped the Gamblers to a 37-23-4 record, a second-place finish in the USHL’s Eastern Conference and a franchise record 15-consecutive wins on home ice.

Prior to joining the Gamblers, Carle served four seasons as a student assistant coach with the Pioneers after being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the primary disease of the myocardium muscle of the heart, and being forced to retire from his playing career. Carle graduated from the University of Denver in 2012.

As a player, Carle was a defenseman at Shattuck-St. Mary’s (Minn.), helping the Sabres capture back-to-back national titles in 2007 and 2008. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 7th Round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and recruited to play at Denver before receiving his diagnosis.

David resides with his wife, Mellissa Carle.