The six-team 2026 UCHC Men's Hockey Championship Tournament will begin with quarterfinal action on Wednesday, Feb. 25, as No. 4 Nazareth University hosts No. 5 Albertus Magnus College from Tim Horton’s IcePlex at 2 p.m and No. 3 Chatham University will host No. 6 SUNY Brockport from the Alpha Ice Complex at 5:30 p.m.
Top-seed Utica University and No. 2 SUNY Geneseo will host the two first round winners in semifinal action on Saturday, Feb. 28 with the 2026 UCHC Championship game set for Saturday, March 7. Utica University is the top overall seed in the upcoming tournament and will look to win its fifth league title in the last seven seasons and sixth overall. No. 2 SUNY Geneseo is the defending UCHC Champion.
The UCHC Champion earns an automatic berth into the 2026 NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Championship, which begins on Saturday, March 14.
Site: Higher Seeds for all games
2025-26 UCHC Men’s Hockey Championship Participants
No. 1 – Utica (17-7-1, 13-2-1 UCHC, 42 points)
No. 2 – SUNY Geneseo (17-7-1, 12-4-0 UCHC, 36 points)
No. 3 – Chatham (19-5-1, 10-5-1 UCHC, 30 points)
No. 4 – Nazareth (15-7-3, 9-6-1 UCHC, 27 points)
No. 5 – Albertus Magnus (16-9-0, 8-8-0 UCHC, 24 points)
No. 6 – SUNY Brockport (10-15-0, 6-10-0 UCHC, 20 points)
2026 UCHC Men's Hockey Championship Tournament Schedule
Wednesday, February 25 (First Round)
No. 5 Albertus Magnus at No. 4 Nazareth – 2 p.m.
No. 6 SUNY Brockport at No. 3 Chatham – 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 28 (Semifinals)
Lowest Seeded First Round Winner at No. 1 Utica – 7 p.m.
Highest Seeded First Round Winner at No. 2 SUNY Geneseo – 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 7 (Championship)
Lowest Seeded Semifinal Winner at Highest Seeded Semifinal Winner - TBA
Utica is the No. 8 ranked team in the Division III Men’s Ice Hockey National Power Index and enters the UCHC Championship Tournament with a 17-7-1 mark, having finished 13-2-1 in UCHC play, earning 42 points. The Pioneers are the No. 1 seed in the UCHC Tournament for the ninth straight season. Utica is out-scoring opponents, 115-60 this season and have five players with at least 20 points, 14 with at least 10 points and five players with at least 10 goals this season. Drake Morse leads the Pioneers in scoring with 32 points on 16 goals and 16 assists. Nick Ahern has 27 points has 11 goals and 16 assists. Eric Vitale, who scored the overtime winner in the 2025 NCAA Frozen Four win over Curry College, leads Utica with 14 goals, including five power-play markers, while John Gutt has 25 points on 11 goals and 14 assists and Andrew Della-Rovere has 24 points. Goaltenders Kyle Curtin and Frank Murphy have shared duties in net. Curtin is 11-5-1 with a 2.35 goals against average and two shutouts, while Murphy is 6-2-0 with a 2.23 goals against average.
SUNY Geneseo is ranked No. 10 in the USCHO Division III Men’s Hockey poll and 13th nationally in the NPI. The Knights enters the UCHC tournament with an 17-7-1 overall record, having finished 12-4-0 in league play. Geneseo is out-scoring their opponents, 96-60 this season and has tremendous depth, with five players scoring at least 20 points and 13 with at least 10 points. Alex Dameski leads the Knights and is among the league leaders in scoring with 35 points on 19 goals and 16 assists and is plus-22. Filip Wiberg has 26 points on 10 goals and 16 assists, while defenseman Sean Melso, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, has 25 points on seven goals and 18 assists. Carter Diceman has 12 goals. Goaltender Jacob Torgner is 13-5-1 between the pipes with a 2.17 goals against average and a .929 save percentage.
2025-26 UCHC Men’s Quarterfinal Preview Capsules
No. 5 Albertus Magnus at No. 4 Nazareth, Wednesday – 2 p.m.
Nazareth enters the tournament with a 15-7-3 record on the season, including an 9-6-1 mark in league play. Six different Golden Flyers have at least 10 points in 2025-26. Blake Frost leads the Golden Flyers in scoring with 22 points on 11 goals and 11 assists, while Logan Tobias, Charles Ross and Will Halecki each have seven goals. First-year goaltender Paul Dalessio is 11-3-0 in net with a 2.44 goals against average and .927 save percentage to lead the Golden Flyers.
Albertus Magnus finished the regular season with a 16-8-1 overall record, including a 8-8-0 mark in its first season of UCHC play. Twelve different Falcons have at least 10 points on the season. Connor Bertamini and Zane Kindrachuk are tied for the team lead with 22 points apiece, while Maksim Tseglenik is right behind with 21 points. Kindrachuk leads the Falcons with 11 goals, while Justin Sullivan also has nine goals and Bertamini has a team-best 19 assists. In net, Chace Hale has 12 wins, while Caleb Chabot has a 1.79 goals against average and a .934 save percentage.
This will mark the third meeting in less than a week for the two programs, as they wrapped up the regular season versus each other in Connecticut on Feb. 20-21. Nazareth earned a 3-1 win on Feb. 20, while Albertus salvaged the split with a 2-0 win the next day.
No. 6 SUNY Brockport at No. 3 Chatham, Wednesday – 5:30 p.m.
Chatham enters the UCHC Tournament with a 19-5-1 overall record, including a 10-5-1 mark in league play, good for 30 points. Chatham, the highest scoring team in the UCHC, is out-scoring opponents, 127-56, has seven players with at least 20 points this season and 14 with at least 10 points, including reigning UCHC Player of the Year Nick Cyprian leads the league in scoring with 40 points on 17 goals and a league-high 23 assists. Michael Roby leads the league with 22 goals and has 15 assists for 37 points. Caden Pendo and True Crowe are both plus-32 on the season. In net, Cameron Kuntar is 12-4-1 with a 1.90 goals against average and a .948 save percentage.
SUNY Brockport earned six wins in league play to earn a UCHC postseason berth for the second straight season. Eight different players have at least 10 points for the Golden Eagles. Nick Reif has nine goals and 20 points to lead Brockport. Brody Seitz and Schuyler Flansburg each eight goals, while Kyle Kussmann leads Brockport with 13 helpers and Manny Sanchez has 12 assists and 19 points. David Filak and Dax Easter have played the majority of time in net. Filak has seven wins, a 3.01 goals against average and a .916 save percentage.
Chatham and Brockport split the regular season series in Brockport on Nov. 14-15, with the Golden Eagles earning four of the six points. The Cougars rallied from a 4-2 deficit to defeat Brockport, 5-4 in overtime on Nov. 14 behind a hat-trick from Roby, while Brockport earned a 2-1 win the following day.