The 2012 off-season saw several key changes to the lineup, with the previous season's captain, Jan Safar, moving to Kazakh club HC Gornyak and alternate captain, Bari McKenzie, moving to Cardiff Devils. Frazer Goldie, who had spent part of the previous season with the club on a two-way contract, joined full-time from Solway Sharks and Willie Nicolson re-joined the club after spending a season with rivals Fife Flyers. Hartmann also continued to recruit from Europe, signing promising Slovak goalie, Tomáš Hiadlovský, and experienced defender, Michal Dobroň, who had previously played nearly 600 games in the Czech Extraliga. On 3 September, it was announced that club legend, Martin Cingel, would be returning to the Capitals and would once again take over the role as captain.