While the hockey world was locked in on the United States of America overcoming Canada for the gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, the college season has continued its breakneck journey to the end of the 2025-26 campaign. With only a handful of scheduled series left before conference tournament time kicks off, the squads from the Big Ten and Hockey East continue to separate themselves from the pack as the action on the frozen floor begins to matter just a little bit more. Meanwhile, the dominant scoring forces from top-ranked Michigan State, #5 Quinnipiac, and #9 Minnesota-Duluth (UMD) have continued to thrive in 2026, even if one of those forwards has encountered a rough patch over the last month. 

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Big Ten Populating the Top 10 Late in the 2025-26 Season

There should be some changes in the soon-to-be updated U.S. College Hockey Online (USCHO) Division I Men’s poll after a couple of ties inside the top five during the weekend of Feb. 20-21. The #3 North Dakota was stopped by unranked St. Cloud State, while the reigning Division I Men’s National Champions (#4 Western Michigan)  settled for a draw against a squad with a sub .500 record in Colorado College.

Michigan State is expected to retain its hold on the top spot in the USCHO poll following a pair of wins over unranked Notre Dame. #2 Michigan and #6 Penn State continues to pile up wins to keep pace with their conference opponents. Meanwhile, #8 Denver and #12 Boston College remains as looming threats if they can successfully navigate what is expected to be a wild conference tournament scene once the regular season wraps up.  

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Ethan Wyttenbach – F – Calgary Flames

NCAA Stats: 34 games played – 22 goals, 32 assists (Quinnipiac Bobcats)

Ethan Wyttenbach leads the nation in scoring with 54 points, a nine-point lead over Arizona State’s Cruz Lucius (Pittsburgh Penguins) at 45 points. An undersized forward at 5-11, the freshman forward has controlled the NCAA scoring race over the last six weeks as the Bobcats battle in a fierce Northeast hockey scene. 

Calgary took a late-round bet on upside by selecting Wyttenbach in the fifth-round selection at the 2025 NHL Draft. The Long Island product scored 24 goals in his lone season with the Sioux Falls Stampede of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Wyttenbach has showcased a similar scoring touch at the next level with 22 goals for Quinnipiac. If he maintains his scoring ability at the professional level, the Flames might have secured an important scoring piece for their rebuild. 

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Gavin McKenna – F – 2026 NHL Draft Eligible

NCAA Stats: 28 games played – 13 goals, 30 assists (Penn State Nittany Lions)

Gavin McKenna vaulted up the points leaderboard following a 10-point weekend against an unranked Ohio State. He currently sits in a fifth-place tie in NCAA scoring with 43 points. The Whitehorse, Yukon-native started the weekend by totaling eight points (one goal, seven assists) in an 11-4 win over Ohio State on Feb. 20, the largest single-game scoring effort in nearly 40 years in the NCAA. 

McKenna followed up his electric performance with an overtime game-winner to finish off the sweep of the Buckeyes on Saturday. With another out-of-this-world weekend, the forward can put himself in the thick of the 2026 Hobey Baker Award conversation. McKenna is already one of the 87 players nominated for the award this season. Individuals can vote once per day through March 8. The winner will be announced on April 10. More importantly, McKenna put NHL scouts on notice with only four months until his draft date. 

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Max Plante  – F – Detroit Red Wings

NCAA Stats: 32 games played – 22 goals, 22 assists (Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs)

Max Plante endured a late January and early February scoring slump by recording just five points over an eight-game stretch. He seemingly scored at will earlier in the season, but the forward seems to have hit a wall late in the season. It’s understandable given Plante has already established new career highs on goals (22), assists (22), and game-winning goals (5) in 2025-26.  

The Red Wings prospect broke out of his scoring slump with two goals in his most recent series against Miami (Ohio). It will be important for him to build upon that to finish the season. It will be interesting to see how Detroit approaches the 21-year old prospect this summer as he seems poised for an opportunity at the American Hockey League (AHL) level during the start of the 2026-27 season. 

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With the NHL swinging back into action,  there is going to be plenty of hockey to follow over the next few months as the regular season winds down. If you get the opportunity, don’t forget to keep an eye on the top college hockey programs in the country when they skate into action (typically with Friday night and Saturday contests). A significant improvement in competition has allowed the NCAA to rank among the top places to train for a professional hockey career this season… and you might just catch a glimpse at the early career of a future NHL star in the process of watching some really, really good hockey.  

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My socials can be found on Twitter/X – @CBabosWrites 

Christopher Babos