2025–26 Minnesota State Mavericks men's ice hockey season
| 2025–26 Minnesota State Mavericks men's ice hockey season | |
|---|---|
| Conference | CCHA |
| Home ice | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center |
| Rankings | |
| USCHO | #15 |
| USA Hockey | #14 |
| Record | |
| Overall | 11–4–5 |
| Conference | 8–3–3 |
| Home | 5–2–2 |
| Road | 6–2–3 |
| Coaches and captains | |
| Head coach | Luke Strand |
| Assistant coaches | Troy G. Ward Keith Paulsen Cory McCracken |
| Minnesota State Mavericks men's ice hockey seasons « 2024–25 2026–27 » | |
The 2025–26 Minnesota State Mavericks men's ice hockey season will be the 57th season of play for the program, 30th at the Division I level, and 5th in the CCHA. The Mavericks will represent Minnesota State University, Mankato in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, play their home games at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center and be coached by Luke Strand in his 3rd season.
Season
Departures
| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cade Alami | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (signed with Tahoe Knight Monsters) |
| Luke Ashton | Defenseman | Canada | Transferred to Cornell |
| Steven Bellini | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (signed with Asiago Hockey 1935) |
| Kaden Bohlsen | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Calgary Wranglers) |
| Brian Carrabes | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Adirondack Thunder) |
| Adam Eisele | Forward | United States | Transferred to Ohio State |
| Josh Groll | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Fort Wayne Komets) |
| Tyler Haskins | Forward | United States | Transferred to Mercyhurst |
| Will Hillman | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Toledo Walleye) |
| Zach Krajnik | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Savannah Ghost Pirates) |
| Andrew Miller | Goaltender | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Brett Moravec | Forward | Canada | Signed professional contract (Indy Fuel) |
| Kade Nielsen | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Brenden Olson | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (signed with HC Nové Zámky) |
| Rhett Pitlick | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Bakersfield Condors) |
| Jordan Power | Defenseman | Canada | Graduation (signed with Greenville Swamp Rabbits) |
| Eli Pulver | Goaltender | Canada | Transferred to Wisconsin |
| Sam Rice | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Luc Wilson | Forward | Canada | Transferred to Rensselaer |
Recruiting
| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max Beckford | Goaltender | Canada | 22 | London, ON; transfer from Bentley |
| Rylan Bonkowski | Defenseman | Canada | 19 | Richmond, BC |
| Jacob Conrad | Defenseman | United States | 23 | Green Bay, WI; transfer from Lake Superior State |
| Fēlikss Gavars | Forward | Latvia | 23 | Riga, LAT; transfer from St. Lawrence |
| Easton Hewson | Defenseman | Canada | 20 | Edmonton, AB |
| Liam Hupka | Defenseman | United States | 20 | Minneapolis, MN |
| Mason LeBel | Forward | United States | 21 | South Bend, IN |
| Tristan Lemyre | Forward | United States | 24 | Mirabel, QC; transfer from Western Michigan |
| Charlie Lurie | Forward | United States | 22 | Minnetonka, MN; transfer from Omaha |
| Reid Morich | Forward | United States | 20 | Scottsdale, AZ |
| Jordan Ronn | Forward | United States | 20 | Champlin, MN |
| Sawyer Scholl | Forward | United States | 23 | Green Bay, WI; transfer from Wisconsin |
| Jack Smith | Forward | United States | 23 | St. Cloud, MN; transfer from Minnesota Duluth; selected 102nd overall in 2020 |
| Ean Somoza | Forward | United States | 22 | Thousand Oaks, CA; transfer from Western Michigan |
| Bryce Strand | Defenseman | United States | 21 | Green Bay, WI |
| Liam Watkins | Forward | Canada | 21 | Okotoks, AB; transfer from Omaha |
| Alexander Zetterberg | Forward | Sweden | 19 | Sundsvall, SWE; transfer from Boston University |
Roster
As of August 24, 2024.[1]
| No. | Nat. | Player | Class | Pos | Height | Weight | DoB | Hometown | Previous team | NHL rights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Jacob Conrad | Sophomore (RS) | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 2002-05-18 | Green Bay, Wisconsin | Lake Superior State (CCHA) | — | |
| 5 | Mason Wheeler | Junior | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 2001-09-29 | Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota | Tri-City Storm (USHL) | — | |
| 7 | Bryce Strand | Freshman | D | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 2004-02-10 | Green Bay, Wisconsin | Philadelphia Rebels (NAHL) | — | |
| 8 | Campbell Cichosz | Senior | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 174 lb (79 kg) | 2001-08-23 | Albert Lea, Minnesota | Anchorage Wolverines (NAHL) | — | |
| 9 | Luigi Benincasa | Junior | F | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 159 lb (72 kg) | 2002-10-07 | Edmonton, Alberta | Ferris State (CCHA) | — | |
| 10 | Evan Murr | Junior | D | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 178 lb (81 kg) | 2003-02-27 | Stillwater, Minnesota | Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) | — | |
| 11 | Jordan Ronn | Freshman | F | 6' 10" (2.08 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | 2005-06-09 | Champlin, Minnesota | Fargo Force (USHL) | — | |
| 12 | Alex Zetterberg | Sophomore | F | 5' 8" (1.73 m) | 163 lb (74 kg) | 2006-04-27 | Sundsvall, Sweden | Boston University (HEA) | — | |
| 13 | Tristan Lemyre | Senior | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2001-01-15 | Mirabel, Quebec | Western Michigan (NCHC) | — | |
| 14 | Mason LeBel | Freshman | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | 2004-05-06 | South Bend, Indiana | St. Cloud Norsemen (NAHL) | — | |
| 16 | Jacob Bonkowski | Freshman | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2003-08-25 | Richmond, British Columbia | Coquitlam Express (BCHL) | — | |
| 17 | Ean Somoza | Junior | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) | 2003-02-08 | Thousand Oaks, California | Western Michigan (NCHC) | — | |
| 18 | Jakob Stender | Junior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2002-08-07 | Alexandria, Minnesota | Fargo Force (USHL) | — | |
| 20 | Jack Smith | Senior | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2002-07-06 | St. Cloud, Minnesota | Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) | MTL, 102nd overall 2020 | |
| 21 | Fin Williams | Junior | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 186 lb (84 kg) | 2003-04-21 | North Vancouver, British Columbia | Notre Dame (Big Ten) | — | |
| 22 | Liam Hupka | Freshman | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2005-06-27 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) | — | |
| 23 | Sawyer Scholl | Junior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2002-02-14 | Medford, Wisconsin | Wisconsin (Big Ten) | — | |
| 24 | Charlie Lurie | Junior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 2003-03-11 | Minnetonka, Minnesota | Omaha (NCHC) | — | |
| 25 | Fēlikss Gavars | Senior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 184 lb (83 kg) | 2002-05-15 | Riga, Latvia | St. Lawrence (ECAC) | — | |
| 26 | Rylan Bonkowski | Freshman | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2006-04-26 | Richmond, British Columbia | Tri-City Storm (USHL) | — | |
| 27 | Liam Watkins | Sophomore | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 201 lb (91 kg) | 2004-07-13 | Okotoks, Alberta | Omaha (NCHC) | — | |
| 28 | Easton Hewson | Freshman | D | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | 2005-06-08 | Edmonton, Alberta | Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL) | — | |
| 31 | Matthew Syverson | Junior | G | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2003-04-22 | Apple Valley, Minnesota | Lindenwood (NCAA) | — | |
| 33 | Alex Tracy | Senior | G | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 2001-05-04 | Chicago, Illinois | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) | — | |
| 35 | Max Beckford | Sophomore | G | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2003-01-30 | London, Ontario | Bentley (AHA) | — | |
| 39 | Ralfs Bergmanis | Senior | D | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 2002-03-13 | Liepāja, Latvia | Vermont (HEA) | — | |
| 44 | Reid Morich | Freshman | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 214 lb (97 kg) | 2005-04-11 | Scottsdale, Arizona | Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL) | — |
Standings
| Conference record | Overall record | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | |||
| Bemidji State | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 33 | 29 | ||
| Bowling Green | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 13 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 17 | ||
| Augustana | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 14 | ||
| Michigan Tech | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 28 | 24 | ||
| #15 Minnesota State | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 21 | 18 | ||
| St. Thomas | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 32 | 37 | ||
| Ferris State | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 30 | ||
| Lake Superior State | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 28 | 29 | ||
| Northern Michigan | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 39 | ||
| Championship: March 20, 2026 † indicates conference regular-season champion (MacNaughton Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Mason Cup) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll; updated November 3, 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 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||
| USA Hockey | 18 | 20 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ "2024-25 Men's Hockey Roster". Minnesota State Mavericks. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
- ^ "2025-26 Men's Hockey Schedule". Minnesota State Mavericks. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
- ^ "Minnesota State Univ. (Mankato) 2025-2026 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
- ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.