Huskies are top seed for University Cup
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On the heels of a perfect 6-0 post season run and a second straight Canada West championship, the Huskie men’s hockey team has secured the top seed position for the 2026 University Cup, which begins Thursday, March 19th at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax. It’s the first time that Saskatchewan has been the number one seed since 2000. USask outscored post-season opposition 24-7 on their way to a second straight conference banner.
Head coach Brandin Cote added some key pieces to a team which already had plenty of big game experience following the 2025 conference championship season. Goaltender Nolan Maier, who joined the program in January, had a .962 save percentage in Saskatchewan’s 2026 undefeated playoff run. Forward Connor Roulette, who led the conference in regular season rookie scoring, had 12 points in the six games. The newcomers now accompany players such as fifth-year forward Chantz Petruic, who led the Huskies in playoff scoring in 2025 and had five goals and four assists in the series wins over Alberta, UBC and Mount Royal in the 2026 playoffs.
Saskatchewan’s first game of the 2026 University Cup will be on March 19th at 4:00 PM (Saskatchewan time) against the host St. Mary’s Huskies. SMU had a 16-10-1-3 regular season record in the Atlantic University conference and were knocked out of the conference playoffs by UPEI in the 2026 quarterfinals. St.Mary’s is led by head coach Tyler Naugler who has been with the program for over 25 seasons and has been the head coach since 2020-21.
SMU allowed 117 goals in 30 games in the AUS this season, second most in the conference. Offensively, the team is led by a pair of third-year forwards. Ben Allison topped the conference in scoring with 50 points in 30 games, while Reid Valade scored the most goals (27).
