Over the past 10 years, few coaches have climbed the coaching ladder as efficiently as Reid Cashman. His noted work ethic, overall attention to detail, along with experience gained under several established coaches have led him to his current situation: preparing for a new chapter as first time head coach with Dartmouth Big Green.

Cashman's fast-tracked coaching journey began at the young age of 29 with his alma mater Quinnipiac University, where he spent five years as an assistant under the mentorship of his former coach Rand Pecknold. He then made the jump to the AHL with the Hershey Bears and, after just two seasons, would join the big club in Washington as an assistant under Todd Reirden.

During his time with the Capitals, Cashman was in charge of handling defencemen and played a key role in the development of players like 2020 Norris Trophy candidate John Carlson.

Cashman shared his thoughts on defenceman development at the 2019 TeamSnap HockeyCoaches Conference, where he presented on building deception into your defenceman’s game. To him, simplicity and a focus on building fundamental habits can empower players to make world class plays on a consistent basis. It struck a chord with the audience and was voted the top presentation at the event by the coaches who attended. It was clear then that Cashman had an effective process for developing individual players and that it would only be a matter of time before he got the opportunity to apply that process in leading his own team.

The Minnesota native also took part in our popular Chalk Talk series at the 2019 draft, in partnership with the NHL Coaches Association.

In this week's podcast, find out Cashman's thoughts on defenceman development, how relationships forged during his playing career have led to opportunities as a coach, and how he plans to build a championship program at Dartmouth.