2025–26 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey season
| 2025–26 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey season | |
|---|---|
| Conference | NCHC |
| Home ice | Magness Arena |
| Rankings | |
| USCHO | #6 |
| USA Hockey | #6 |
| Record | |
| Overall | 12–6–1 |
| Conference | 8–2–0 |
| Home | 5–1–0 |
| Road | 7–4–1 |
| Neutral | 0–1–0 |
| Coaches and captains | |
| Head coach | David Carle |
| Assistant coaches | Tavis MacMillan Dallas Ferguson Ryan Massa |
| Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey seasons « 2024–25 2026–27 » | |
The 2025–26 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey season will be the 77th season of play for the program and 13th in the NCHC. The Pioneers will represent the University of Denver in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, play their home games at Magness Arena and be coached by David Carle in his 8th season.
Season
Departures
| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zeev Buium | Defenseman | United States | Signed professional contract (Minnesota Wild) |
| Connor Caponi | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Cardiff Devils) |
| Matt Davis | Goaltender | Canada | Graduation (signed with San Jose Barracuda) |
| Jack Devine | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Florida Panthers) |
| Freddie Halyk | Goaltender | Canada | Transferred to Brown |
| Carter King | Forward | Canada | Graduation (signed with Calgary Flames) |
| Aidan Thompson | Forward | United States | Signed professional contract (Chicago Blackhawks) |
| Jared Wright | Forward | United States | Signed professional contract (Los Angeles Kings) |
Recruiting
| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clarke Caswell | Forward | Canada | 19 | Brandon, MB; selected 141st overall in 2024 |
| Kyle Chyzowski | Forward | Canada | 21 | Surrey, BC |
| Kristian Epperson | Forward | United States | 19 | Mequon, WI; selected 88th overall in 2025 |
| Johnny Hicks | Goaltender | Canada | 20 | Kamloops, BC |
| Eric Jamieson | Defenseman | Canada | 20 | Calgary, AB; selected 177th overall in 2024 |
| Brendan McMorrow | Forward | United States | 19 | Lakeville, MN; selected 196th overall in 2025 |
| Brady Milburn | Forward | Canada | 20 | Kamloops, BC |
| Quentin Miller | Goaltender | Canada | 20 | Montréal, QC; selected 128th overall in 2023 |
| Payton Nelson | Forward | United States | 20 | Centennial, CO |
| Reid Varkonyi | Forward | Canada | 19 | Sherwood Park, AB |
Roster
As of August 12, 2025.[1]
| No. | Nat. | Player | Class | Pos | Height | Weight | DoB | Hometown | Previous team | NHL rights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Tory Pitner | Sophomore | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 2006-03-06 | Greenwich, Connecticut | Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) | COL, 185th overall 2024 | |
| 3 | Cale Ashcroft | Junior | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2004-08-05 | St. Albert, Alberta | Tri-City Storm (USHL) | — | |
| 5 | Garrett Brown | Junior | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | 2004-04-04 | San Jose, California | Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL) | WPG, 99th overall 2022 | |
| 6 | Alec Whipple | Sophomore | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 2004-02-09 | Far Hills, New Jersey | Trail Smoke Eaters (BCHL) | TBL, 213th overall 2019 | |
| 8 | Kristian Epperson | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2006-05-16 | Mequon, Wisconsin | Saginaw Spirit (OHL) | LAK, 88th overall 2025 | |
| 9 | Boston Buckberger | Junior | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 2003-06-01 | Saskatoon, Saskatchewan | Lincoln Stars (USHL) | — | |
| 10 | Brady Milburn | Freshman | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | 2005-03-03 | Kamloops, British Columbia | Kamloops (BCHL) | — | |
| 11 | Samu Salminen | Senior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 182 lb (83 kg) | 2003-04-09 | Helsinki, Finland | Connecticut (HEA) | NJD, 68th overall 2021 | |
| 12 | Sam Harris | Junior | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2003-10-14 | San Diego, California | Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) | MTL, 133rd overall 2023 | |
| 13 | Hagen Burrows | Sophomore | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | 2005-10-13 | Orono, Minnesota | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) | TBL, 128th overall 2024 | |
| 14 | Rieger Lorenz | Senior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 192 lb (87 kg) | 2004-03-30 | Calgary, Alberta | Okotoks Oilers (AJHL) | MIN, 56th overall 2022 | |
| 15 | Eric Jamieson | Freshman | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2005-07-15 | Calgary, Alberta | Everett Silvertips (WHL) | CGY, 177th overall 2024 | |
| 16 | Kyle Chyzowski | Freshman | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2004-08-16 | Surrey, British Columbia | Portland Winterhawks (WHL) | — | |
| 17 | Peter LaJoy | Junior | F | 5' 7" (1.7 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 2002-02-27 | Evergreen, Colorado | Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks (NAHL) | — | |
| 18 | Payton Nelson | Freshman | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 174 lb (79 kg) | 2005-01-17 | Centennial, Colorado | Salmon Arm Silverbacks (BCHL) | LAK, 169th overall 2022 | |
| 19 | Jake Fisher | Sophomore | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 192 lb (87 kg) | 2005-03-27 | Woodbury, Minnesota | Fargo Force (USHL) | COL, 121st overall 2024 | |
| 21 | Kent Anderson | Senior | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2003-11-13 | Calgary, Alberta | Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) | — | |
| 22 | Brendan McMorrow | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2006-03-27 | Lakeville, Minnesota | Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL) | LAK, 196th overall 2025 | |
| 23 | Eric Pohlkamp | Junior | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2004-03-23 | Brainerd, Minnesota | Bemidji State (USHL) | SJS, 132nd overall 2023 | |
| 24 | Kieran Cebrian | Junior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 2003-03-31 | Denver, Colorado | Tri-City Storm (USHL) | — | |
| 25 | Clarke Caswell | Freshman | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 2006-02-02 | Brandon, Manitoba | Swift Current Broncos (WHL) | SEA, 141st overall 2024 | |
| 27 | James Reeder | Freshman | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 168 lb (76 kg) | 2005-10-06 | Glenview, Illinois | Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) | LAK, 198th overall 2024 | |
| 28 | Reid Varkonyi | Freshman | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 2006-01-15 | Sherwood Park, Alberta | Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) | — | |
| 29 | Quentin Miller | Freshman | G | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 2004-12-23 | Montréal, Quebec | Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL) | MTL, 128th overall 2023 | |
| 30 | Paxton Geisel | Junior | G | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2004-01-18 | Estevan, Saskatchewan | Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL) | — | |
| 31 | Johnny Hicks | Freshman | G | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 154 lb (70 kg) | 2005-09-11 | Kamloops, British Columbia | Victoria Royals (WHL) | — |
Standings
| Conference record | Overall record | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | |||
| #4 North Dakota | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 41 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 68 | 41 | ||
| #6 Denver | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 40 | 18 | 19 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 75 | 37 | ||
| #5 Minnesota Duluth | 12 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 34 | 29 | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 66 | 41 | ||
| #7 Western Michigan | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 37 | 33 | 16 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 58 | 47 | ||
| Arizona State | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 27 | 34 | 18 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 53 | 63 | ||
| St. Cloud State | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 31 | 38 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 57 | 54 | ||
| Colorado College | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 26 | 29 | 18 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 51 | 47 | ||
| Omaha | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 21 | 40 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 41 | 56 | ||
| Miami | 10 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 27 | 42 | 18 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 63 | 60 | ||
| Championship: March 21, 2025 † indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (National Cup) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll; updated December 15, 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||
Schedule and results
Scoring statistics
Rankings
| Poll | Week | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 (Final) | |
| USCHO.com | 4 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
| USA Hockey | 4 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ "2025-26 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Denver Pioneers. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ "2025-26 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". Denver Pioneers. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "Denver Univ. 2025-2026 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.