Princeton Ranked 20th in Nation

The Princeton University men's hockey team has cracked the USCHO.com Top 20 for the first time in seven seasons.

The Tigers (10-4-0 overall, 6-2-0 ECAC Hockey) have won five consecutive games overall, and have won all eight games at home so far this season at Hobey Baker Rink, Princeton's longest home-opening win streak since the arena opened in 1923. The Tigers are also currently in first place in ECAC Hockey, and were last ranked among the national top 20 NCAA Division I men's teams during the 2018-19 campaign.

In addition, two Tigers were honored by the conference after last weekend's home sweep of Ivy League opponents Harvard and Dartmouth. Senior defenseman Tyler Rubin was named ADAPT Nutrition Defender of the Week award for the second consecutive week after recording three assists in those two outings, while junior goaltender Arthur Smith was tabbed as MAC Goaltending Goalie of the Week after stopping 58 of 64 shots and picking up two wins in his first action since November.

Princeton closes out a five-game homestand this weekend with conference contests against Rensselaer and Union. 

2026 U.S. Men's Olympic Hockey Team Revealed

Former NCAA skaters make up the bulk of the 2026 U.S. Olympic men's hockey team that will compete in Italy next month, the first time that current NHL players will compete in the Olympic Winter Games since 2014 in Russia.

Forwards

Matt Boldy, Minnesota Wild (Boston College)

Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets (Michigan)

Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights (Boston University)

Clayton Keller, Utah Mammoth (Boston University)

Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings (Michigan)

Brock Nelson, Colorado Avalanche (North Dakota)

Tage Thompson, Buffalo Sabres (UConn)

Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators (Boston University)

Defensemen

Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild (Minnesota)

Noah Hanifin Vegas Golden Knights (Boston College)

Quinn Hughes, Minnesota Wild (Michigan)

Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins (Boston University)

Jake Sanderson, Ottawa Senators (North Dakota)

Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes (Colorado College)

Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets (Michigan)

Goaltenders

Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets (UMass Lowell)

Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars (Boston University) 

Jeremy Swayman, Boston Bruins (Maine)

In addition, Canada's 2026 Olympic men's squad will boast three former NCAA skaters in forward Macklin Celebrini (Boston University) of the San Jose Sharks, and defensemen Cale Makar (UMass) and Devon Toews (Quinnipiac) of the Colorado Avalanche and Colton Parayko (Alaska Fairbanks) of the St. Louis Blues.

The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place from Feb. 5-22 in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. 

U.S. Ousted at 2026 World Juniors

There will be no three-peat for the United States at this year's World Junior Championship. The U.S. was ousted tonight by Finland, 4-3, in overtime in a semifinal game in St. Paul. It was the second straight loss for the Americans, who also fell to Sweden, 6-3, on New Year's Eve in their final game of group play.

Ryker Lee (Michigan State) tied the contest late in regulation after Finland had taken a 3-2 lead on back-to-back goals. Cole Eiserman (Boston University) and Cole Hutson (Boston University) scored second-period goals for Team USA, which also got two assists from James Hagens (Boston College), and 21 saves in net from Nick Kempf (Notre Dame). Heikki Ruohonen (Harvard) scored a goal for Finland, which fell to the U.S. in last year's final in OT in Ottawa.

Finland will now face Sweden in one WJC semifinal, while Canada will take on Czechia in the other, both on Sunday. The bronze and gold medal games are scheduled for Monday.

ADDENDUM: Sweden won the gold medal over Czechia, while Canada took the bronze.

Hockey New Year

 

U.S. Collegiate Selects Make Spengler Cup Final

Aiden Fink (Penn State) scored three goals and set up another, and Alex Tracy (Minnesota State) made 32 saves as the U.S Collegiate Selects defeated HC Sparta Praha, 5-2, in the semifinal round of the 2025 Spengler Cup. It is the first time current NCAA players are competing in the tournament in its 103-year history.

Team USA will face host HC Davos in the title tilt on Wednesday in Switzerland. The U.S. previously defeated Davos, 5-3, in group play back on Dec. 27. Davos is seeking its record 17th Spengler Cup club championship, and second in three years.

ADDENDUM: Davos claimed its latest Spengler Cup title with a 6-3 victory over the U.S Collegiate Selects in the final. Adam Tambellini (North Dakota) notched two goals and an assist for Davos, while Fink was named to the All-Star Team.

MSU, Michigan Tech Win GLI Semifinals

Charlie Stramel scored two goals and assisted on another as third-ranked Michigan State defeated Ferris State, 5-1, in a Great Lakes Invitational semifinal on Sunday at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Mich. Trey Augustine made 20 stops for the Spartans (13-4-0 overall), who are seeking their second consecutive GLI title. Hobie Hedquist stopped 18 of 19 shots in relief for the Bulldogs (4-15-0).

MSU will face Michigan Tech (11-6-2) in the final tonight ( 7 p.m. ET, BiG+). The Huskies defeated Miami, 5-2, in the others semifinal, as Stiven Sardarian scored two goals and set up another, and Owen Bartoszkiewicz stopped 26 shots. Matteo Drobca made 28 saves for the Red Hawks (10-7-2), who will face Ferris in the consolation game.

ADDENDUM: Stramel scored two more goals, including the game-winner, and earned tournament MVP accolades as MSU topped MTU, 4-1, to win its second straight GLI title. Miami won the consolation game over Ferris, 4-2.

U.S., Canada Win in 2026 WJC Openers

Will Zellers (North Dakota) scored two goals and set up another, and Cole Hutson (Boston University) tallied two assists as the host United States defeated Germany, 6-3, tonight in its opener of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in St. Paul, Minn. The U.S., which has won the last two WJC gold medals, will next face off tomorrow with Switzerland, which will be playing in its first game of the tournament.

In the nightcap in Minneapolis, Canada outlasted Czechia, 7-5, by scoring four times in the third period. Michael Hage (Michigan) notched a goal and two assists for the Canadians, who also got two assists from Gavin McKenna (Penn State) and an empty-net goal from Porter Martone (Michigan State). Canada will next face Latvia on Saturday.

ADDENDUM: Team USA edged Switzerland, 2-1, on a goal by Zellers, while Canada topped Latvia by the same score on an overtime goal from Hage.