USCHO Fan Forum
This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
-
The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.
HOBART HOCKEY 2026-2027; from Hunted to Hunter
- Thread starter Bartman
- Start date
From the Finger Lakes Times(6/17/25)
The Hobart hockey-to-France pipeline continues as two more Statesmen are headed overseas to begin their professional careers.
Goaltender Damon Beaver ’26 and forward Kahlil Fontana ’26 have signed with Yetis du Mont-Blanc of France’s Division I Hockey League, allowing the longtime teammates to continue playing together in the French Alps.
“I’m really excited for these two,” Hobart Head Coach Mark Taylor said. “It’s great to get paid to continue to play, to do it in Mont Blanc, in the French Alps, is a bonus, but to do it with a current teammate and best friend will be memories for a lifetime.”
Beaver and Fontana become the third and fourth members of Hobart’s Class of 2026 to sign professional contracts in France. Forward Tanner Daniels signed with Cholet, while Mavrick Goyer will play in Valenciennes. Over the past two years, seven Statesmen have moved on to play professionally in France. Former Hobart standout Zach Tyson ’22, MSM’23, also played for Mont Blanc during the 2023-24 season.
Beaver leaves Hobart following one of the most decorated careers in program history. The 2026 Sid Watson Award winner posted a 20-1 record this season with a 0.99 goals-against average, a .951 save percentage, and seven shutouts. He led the nation in winning percentage, goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts.
Over 79 career games, Beaver compiled a 73-5-1 record with 26 shutouts, a 1.02 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage. He set Hobart career records for wins, shutouts and save percentage, while also establishing the NCAA Division III career record for shutouts.
Fontana, a team captain, earned AHCA All-America East First Team honors following his senior season. He led Hobart with 21 goals and finished second on the team with 42 points in 31 games. He matched a program record by scoring four goals in a game during a win over Skidmore and ranked among the nation’s leaders in both goals and points per game.
The 2025 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, Fontana, finished his Hobart career with 88 points on 42 goals and 46 assists in 116 games. He was also named the SUNYAC Men’s Hockey Scholar-Athlete of the Year in April.
Beaver and Fontana were key members of a senior class that set a program record with 116 wins and a .944 winning percentage. During their careers, the Statesmen reached four national championship games, captured three NCAA Division III national titles, and posted a perfect 68-0 record at home in The Cooler.
The Hobart hockey-to-France pipeline continues as two more Statesmen are headed overseas to begin their professional careers.
Goaltender Damon Beaver ’26 and forward Kahlil Fontana ’26 have signed with Yetis du Mont-Blanc of France’s Division I Hockey League, allowing the longtime teammates to continue playing together in the French Alps.
“I’m really excited for these two,” Hobart Head Coach Mark Taylor said. “It’s great to get paid to continue to play, to do it in Mont Blanc, in the French Alps, is a bonus, but to do it with a current teammate and best friend will be memories for a lifetime.”
Beaver and Fontana become the third and fourth members of Hobart’s Class of 2026 to sign professional contracts in France. Forward Tanner Daniels signed with Cholet, while Mavrick Goyer will play in Valenciennes. Over the past two years, seven Statesmen have moved on to play professionally in France. Former Hobart standout Zach Tyson ’22, MSM’23, also played for Mont Blanc during the 2023-24 season.
Beaver leaves Hobart following one of the most decorated careers in program history. The 2026 Sid Watson Award winner posted a 20-1 record this season with a 0.99 goals-against average, a .951 save percentage, and seven shutouts. He led the nation in winning percentage, goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts.
Over 79 career games, Beaver compiled a 73-5-1 record with 26 shutouts, a 1.02 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage. He set Hobart career records for wins, shutouts and save percentage, while also establishing the NCAA Division III career record for shutouts.
Fontana, a team captain, earned AHCA All-America East First Team honors following his senior season. He led Hobart with 21 goals and finished second on the team with 42 points in 31 games. He matched a program record by scoring four goals in a game during a win over Skidmore and ranked among the nation’s leaders in both goals and points per game.
The 2025 NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, Fontana, finished his Hobart career with 88 points on 42 goals and 46 assists in 116 games. He was also named the SUNYAC Men’s Hockey Scholar-Athlete of the Year in April.
Beaver and Fontana were key members of a senior class that set a program record with 116 wins and a .944 winning percentage. During their careers, the Statesmen reached four national championship games, captured three NCAA Division III national titles, and posted a perfect 68-0 record at home in The Cooler.
Just starting to wake up to the coming 2026-27 Hobart season. The team roster is already up. The good news is the returning team scored 66% of the goals last year. The challenge is someone has to fill Beaver's skates, but with the Hobart Defense, the transition should be easier. So Hamilton gets 2 million $$ grant from the state to spruce up their rink, unfortunately HWS did not. So, the longest home ice winning streak will have to be extended the way the Cooler is. It has been working for us so far 
The 2026-27 season is only a few weeks away. A recent article ranked Hobart as the No.1 program in D3 Hockey . The Cooler is looking forward to hosting a new season and continuing its NCAA record winning streak of 69 games
Last week, Frank Zawrazky of The Hockey News recognized Hobart's recent run of success. In his article, he talks about the Statesmen's achievements both in the classroom and on the ice. Zawrazky also mentions the recent establishment of the Thomas B. Poole '61 and Family Head Coach of Hobart Hockey in honor of Mark Taylor and what that means for the program. Zawrazki also noted about Hobart's reputation and winning culture and how that attracts recruits.
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Hobart has gone 136-12-4. The Statesmen have won three national championships, been to four straight national title games, captured four straight conference tournament titles (3 NEHC, 1 SUNYAC) and been to five NCAA tournaments. Hobart has won 69 straight games on its home ice, a record across all divisions of college hockey. The Class of 2026 contributed heavily to that run, going 116-6-2, including a perfect 68-0-0 at The Cooer. Hobart has been selected to 11 straight NCAA tournaments, the longest active streak in Division III.
The accolades have piled up for the Statesmen over the past five seasons. Taylor has been named the national coach of the year three times and Damon Beaver '26 won the Sid Watson Award last year as the national player of the year. Fifteen players have garnered AHCA All-America East recognition and 31 have earned all-conference recognition, including 11 conference players and rookies of the year. Nine Statesmen have signed to play professionally in Europe after graduation, highlighted by Matthew Iasenza '25 helping Cholet capture the French Division I championship last year.
Last week, Frank Zawrazky of The Hockey News recognized Hobart's recent run of success. In his article, he talks about the Statesmen's achievements both in the classroom and on the ice. Zawrazky also mentions the recent establishment of the Thomas B. Poole '61 and Family Head Coach of Hobart Hockey in honor of Mark Taylor and what that means for the program. Zawrazki also noted about Hobart's reputation and winning culture and how that attracts recruits.
Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Hobart has gone 136-12-4. The Statesmen have won three national championships, been to four straight national title games, captured four straight conference tournament titles (3 NEHC, 1 SUNYAC) and been to five NCAA tournaments. Hobart has won 69 straight games on its home ice, a record across all divisions of college hockey. The Class of 2026 contributed heavily to that run, going 116-6-2, including a perfect 68-0-0 at The Cooer. Hobart has been selected to 11 straight NCAA tournaments, the longest active streak in Division III.
The accolades have piled up for the Statesmen over the past five seasons. Taylor has been named the national coach of the year three times and Damon Beaver '26 won the Sid Watson Award last year as the national player of the year. Fifteen players have garnered AHCA All-America East recognition and 31 have earned all-conference recognition, including 11 conference players and rookies of the year. Nine Statesmen have signed to play professionally in Europe after graduation, highlighted by Matthew Iasenza '25 helping Cholet capture the French Division I championship last year.
Last edited:
Tom Coughlin
5x NCAA Champ/2x Super Bowl Champ
This is arguably more impressive than 3 straight NCAA championships with how difficult it is to make the tournament. Maybe not quite more impressive, but it's close IMO.
Mark Taylor has done a remarkable job attracting players every year and molding them into a consistent unit. They have also had successful careers as they leave their active playing days. I don't know how long it can last, but it is a fantastic run, for sure.
Fishman'81
Black Bear since D-2
I'm surprised that Beaver wasn't offered a minor league contract here in the States. Or was he..?
Hobart extended the Cooler streak 2-0 over Elmira last night. The Beaver era is over, but Connor Shibley looks good in net making 15 saves and getting the shutout. The Elmira Freshman goalie from Russia also looked good. Although it wasn't the best effort by the Hobart offense whiffing on a few shots and missing some passes, but it was the first game of the season as the team gels into the new version of the Statesmen. It will be interesting to see how they perform in Elmira tonight especially after some heated exchanges last night. .After seeing the overtime win by Utica out at Adrian, the Statesmen have some work to do before their back to back games against the Pioneers next weekend .
Utica tonight for the first time since our finals loss to Hamilton. Hobart 2-0 after taking care of a feisty Elmira team.Utica is looked pretty good in the fat 2 games against Adrian although the season is still early for these two Natty contenders. I expect Hobart to be strong on defense but unproven in the net under pressure. Utica always has a strong attack . Hopefully the Hobart attack is effective tonight.
Hobart returns to Utica after the loss in last season's final and secures a 4-1 win over #3 Utica. Connor Shibley looks great in goal although gave up his first goal of the season but Shibley and his defense shuts out Utica on the man-up all night. Hobart now 3-0 , defends the Cooler on Saturday and looks to extend the college record home ice win streak .
Refs should have put away the whistles in a game like this. I wouldn’t say Utica was on the man up “all night”. More than once a Utica PP was quickly negated by a penalty. Hobart, again, looks good. Utica, not great. It is very clear Utica is missing their best dman, senior captain, due to injury.
Puckstopper467
Active member
D3 could be penalties all game, just let them play and just call intent to injure or a clear out scoring chance penalty that is it. Why I say D3 is these refs are the worst they want to just blow their whistles.
Very impressive display especially by the defense and PK which had to work overtime this game. Could not help but think that D3 refs not used to working in front of 3800+ got a good old case of rabbit ears. If nothing unexpected comes up between now and next Friday, expect to take in a game when Hobart makes their only Capital District appearance of any season. Unfortunately, Hobart never goes to Williams or MCLA.
It is not "slumming" for me, at least not anymore. Love the D3 game especially with the higher end teams. No endless refs watching TV all freakin night, no coaches challenges, no media breaks and no stoppages for people to shovel the damned ice. Just a straight diet of hockey. Time of tonight's game 2 hours and 2 minutes. Totally unknown to us in more recent times. To put all the wasted time in perspective, going to and from a game in Saratoga 35 miles from my house results in just about the same arrival time back home than does going to a game in Troy 4 miles from my house. Of course, it does help that when going to anything in Saratoga, over 90% of the 70 mile round trip is four lane highway.
There is also another better thing about D3 that should not be taken for granted as you go to games from one season to the next. For the most part, the only guys from last year's Hobart team not present tonight used their eligibility and probably graduated from Hobart too. Where we go regularly, you not only have graduates, but, you also have another 9 to 10 transfer gigolos leaving for their second or even third school in four years. Then over the course of the spring and in to summer here comes a similar number of incoming replacement transfer gigolos also on at least there second school.
When and if that ever comes to D3, you are probably not going to like it either.
To be more accurate, I should have said Utica was 0-7 on the extra man and Hobart was 0-4, so no impact from the whistles other than being an annoyance. I'm sure the refs at the Cooler will keep the penalty box occupied, unfortunately. The score from last night did not reflect how even these two teams are, so I will be sweating the Cooler game on Saturday , for sure.
Fishman'81
Black Bear since D-2
I completely missed the game, thinking it was tonight. My 95-YO mother has become my full time (unpaid) job, but that was just inexcusable. I seem to be toddling down Dementia Lane.
Turns out that I was better off staying home, I suppose. Hobart is a horrible pox upon the good people of Utica. It feels like Groundhog Day every time the two teams meet. Locals suspect foul play, bribes, devil-worship, etc., but none of that can be confirmed... Yet.
So, BM, did you attend? I always think that the reported crowd sizes remind me of January 2016, but apparently the tickets were sold. Any comments you might have via the in-person experience will make me feel a bit less stupid for missing that game.
Turns out that I was better off staying home, I suppose. Hobart is a horrible pox upon the good people of Utica. It feels like Groundhog Day every time the two teams meet. Locals suspect foul play, bribes, devil-worship, etc., but none of that can be confirmed... Yet.
So, BM, did you attend? I always think that the reported crowd sizes remind me of January 2016, but apparently the tickets were sold. Any comments you might have via the in-person experience will make me feel a bit less stupid for missing that game.
I did see the game on the computer(I wouldn't want to be in a real comfortable big boy rink , preferring the limited site lines and firm metal benches of the Cooler) and Utica came out very strong. Hobart was far better than their initial series against Elmira. I don't know whether the goalie last night for Utica is considered the best of the lot(a Freshman), so that could have been a factor in Hobart scoring four goals. I'm looking forward to the game tomorrow and we have collected a small bucket of cash for the refs to ensure fairness and show our appreciation.for their hard work. Come to Geneva, the pretzels are awesome