Oregon Ducks Hockey: Season Preview

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The Oregon Ducks hockey team began their 5th season in ACHA Division 1 this past weekend against Colorado. I will have a full recap of those games that will be included in my next Hockey update when the ATQ schedule allows for it. Today I wanted to preview the upcoming season. After securing 10 wins and finishing above .500 for the first time at this level last season, the Ducks are looking to further build upon that in 2026-2027 

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Roster 

Notable Losses from Last Year 

This year’s Ducks team losses 2 very key players from the 25-26 team 

  1. 1 Top 6 Forward, former Captain, and leading point scorer in 25-26 Jackson Henningsgard 
  1. 1 Top 4 Defensemen Hunter Voyles 

Both Seniors had big roles with the team last year and will not be easy to replace, but the good news is the Ducks return virtually all their other key players.  

Key Returning Players 

Here is a visual representation of the Top 2 forward lines and Top 4 defense pairings from last season with the current class each player is, and color coded by who is returning: 

The players that will be Juniors for the upcoming season were the first class of recruits for the program that will play an entire collegiate career at the division 1 level. Being able to sell recruits on this has notably ticked up the recruiting operation for the Ducks on the ice and is the reason 8 out of the 10 key skaters last season were sophomores or younger and are returning for this upcoming season.  

As I said, replacing Henningsgard and Voyles will not be easy, but the fact all the other key players do return is a great place to start. 

Additionally, all 3 goalies return as well, here they are in order of who I have been able to watch the most: 

  1. JR George Serbin 
  1. SO Thomas Cafarelli 
  1. SO Finn Wilson 

As a team that has been adjusting to moving up a level there have been games I’ve watched over the past two seasons were the Ducks are outmatched and the Duck goalies end up getting peppered with high-quality scoring chances against. I’ve almost always been impressed with the goaltending I’ve seen. Specific games that come to mind are the in 24-25 Saturday game against Colorado State in which George Serbin probably stole a game when the Ducks were in Fort Collins 

And this past season the Ducks dominated the Aztecs at home controlling play, but whenever the dam did break defensively, they let up a very high-quality look that Thomas Cafarelli was able to turn aside each time to pick up a shutout 

Recruits 

The recruiting class saw coach Hyman take 9 recruits, 6 forwards, and 3 defensemen to bring the total roster size to 28 players, 17 Forwards, 8 defensemen, and 3 goalies. 

Given that for a game you can only dress: 

  • 12 Forwards 
  • 6 defensemen  
  • 2 goalies 

The Ducks will have more reserves than they have in years past. I think the timing of this expansion of the roster is intentional.  

While I’m not confident enough to make a prediction on the Ducks ability to make the post-season I’ am confident in saying that there will be more weekends where the Ducks are projected to win comfortably and some games can serve as developmental opportunities. As a result, my suspicion is that the Ducks may have 1 lineup for their more competitive games and a 2nd lineup for their more developmental games.   

Lineup Projections 

Unlike other sports where your position is your position, hockey lineups are very flexible with players moving up and down lines and pairings, and forwards moving across the different forward positions as well.  The only real limitation is forwards stay forwards and defensemen stay defensemen but aside from that the pieces can and will get moved around a lot.  

I’m including a lineup projection less to give you the reader a defined depth chart of what the lineup will look like all season and Moreso to help familiarize where the returning players could factor in. I suspect more than 1 freshman will likely earn regular roles in the lineup, so this is assuredly not 100% correct. 

Schedule 

Here is a link to the full schedule: 

Here are the highlights: 

  • 12 Home Games at the Rink Exchange in Eugene
  • The Bend Outdoor Classic January 15th and 16th  

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