Thanks to the WCHA Preseason Poll, Women's Hockey Already has a Clear No. 1: Puck Drop

The preseason national polls have yet to be released, but there’s already a clear frontrunner to be No. 1 on the women’s side after the key conference announced the results of its preseason coaches’ poll on Tuesday.

Ohio State landed six first-place votes in the eight-team WCHA rankings, while Wisconsin received two. Coaches usually aren’t allowed to vote for their only team or players in conference preseason polls, so the Buckeyes were nearly a unanimous selection.

Oshio State and Wisconsin have played for the last four national championships, and every matchup has been No. 1 vs. 2 in the national polls since the 2023 national championship game, an incredible 17 games, but that only begins to tell of the WCHA’s domination in the sport.

Since NCAA championship of women's ice hockey began in 2001, the 25 titles have been won by five different programs. Four of them play in the WCHA, combining for 22 championships (88 percent). The last time a team other than from the WCHA played in the national title game was 2021. The conference has won every title since 2018.

Consequently, the chances of another team being voted ahead of the WCHA powers in the national preseason polls are beyond slim.

Meanwhile, senior forward Joy Dunne was selected as the WCHA’s Preseason Player of the Year. She led the Buckeyes in goals last season with 27 in 31 games, and was second in scoring even though she missed 10 games while playing for Team USA. Minnesota Duluth forward Caitlin Kraemer received the other Player of the Year vote.

Ohio State senior forward Jocelyn Amos and junior defender Mira Jungåker joined Dunne on the Preseason All-WCHA team. Reigning national champion Wisconsin didn’t have a first-team selection.

Minnesota forward Adrianna Milani won the Preseason Rookie of the Year voting. She edged Minnesota Duluth forward Edit Danielsson, Minnesota State forward Payton Finnie, and Wisconsin forwards Nela Lopusanova and Rosalie Tremblay.

The only other conference to release its preseason poll is the AHA.

2026-27 Preseason WCHA Coaches Poll

Place    School (First-place Votes)         Points
1. Ohio State (6) 48
2.         Wisconsin (2)                           44
3.         Minnesota                                35
4.         Minnesota Duluth                    32
5.         Minnesota State                       23
6.         St. Cloud State                          20
7.         St. Thomas                               15
8.         Bemidji State                            7

2026-27 Preseason All-WCHA

Pos.     Name School Cl.       Hometown
F          Joy Dunne, Ohio State, Sr., O'Fallon, Mo.
F          Caitlin Kraemer, Minnesota Duluth, Jr., Waterloo, Ontario
F          Jocelyn Amos, Ohio State, Sr., Ailsa Craig, Ontario
D         Mira Jungåker, Ohio State, Jr., Jönköping, Sweden
D         Chloe Primerano, Minnesota, Jr., North Vancouver, British Columbia
G         Ève Gascon, Minnesota Duluth, Sr., Mascouche, Quebec

Puck Drop: Wednesday, September 9, 2026

The Associated Press reported that the U.S. government’s 50 percent tariffs against Canada are set to have a major impact on hockey equipment with sticks and skates among the 550-plus goods to be impacted. This comes as the total spend on hockey equipment has grown 45.4 percent from 2020 to 2025 to $332.9 million. “This is not a minor blip by any means,"

Sports and Fitness Industry Association CEO Todd Smith said. Even if manufacturers have moved over the last several years from Canada to other countries, there’s still a healthy amount being manufactured in Canada and, yeah, this 50 percent tariff is a big deal. … This has, obviously, the potential to really stunt that growth. It couldn’t be a worse time for tariffs to hit in terms of really having the possibility to increase costs."

Former Michigan Tech head coach Jamie Russell (2003-11) has been named an assistant coach at Princeton. Meanwhile, Former Cortland State goaltender Derek Lalonde, better known as the head coach of the Detroit Red Wings for two-plus seasons, has been hired as an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens, replacing Trevor Letowsk.

Former North Dakota forward Tyson Jost is reportedly returning to Nashville on a Professional Tryout Agreement during training camp. He had eight goals and eight assists with the Predators last season.

Boston College has picked up a pair of center commitments with center Matthew Frost (Kingston, OHL) for 2027-28, and Benjamin Veitech (Newfoundland, QMJHL) for 2028-29. Other recent commitments for 2028-29 include Kazakhstan forward Beksultan Makysh (Windsor, OHL) to Maine; center Samuel Léonard (Alberni Valley, BCHL), and left wing Cooper Faughnan (Prince George, BCHL) to St Lawrence; and right wing Cruz Pavo (Tri-City Americans, WHL) and defenseman Adam Fortier-Gendron (Moncton Wildcats, QMJHL) to Merrimack.

Countdown to the 2026-27 Season

Men … 23 days. Women … 9 days.

This Date in Hockey History

September 9, 1960: The Hockey Hall of Fame inducted Georges Boucher, Sylvio Mantha, Jack Walker, Charles Adams, John Kilpatrick and Frank Selke.

September 9, 1966: Kevin Hatcher, who played in 1,157 games over 17 years in the NHL, suited up for the U.S. numerous times and was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, was born in Detroit.

September 9, 1969: Cornell goaltender Corrie D’Alessio was born in Cornwall, Ontario.

September 9, 1982: Ten days after becoming the general manager of the Washington Capitals, former Northeastern player David Poile acquired former New Hampshire defenseman Rod Langway along with Brian Engblom, Doug Jarvis and Craig Laughlin from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Ryan Walter and Rick Green. Langway won the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman during his first two season in Washington.

September 9. 1982: Former Minnesota defenseman Russ Anderson was named captain of the Hartford Whalers.

September 9, 1986: Defenseman Keith Yandle, who played 989 consecutive games in the NHL, the second-longest streak in league history, was born in Boston.

September 9, 1996: St. Cloud State center Michael Eyssimont was born in Littleton, Colo.

September 9, 1997: UMD right wing Nick Swaney was born in Burnsville, Minn.

September 9, 1997: Mario Lemieux was inducted into the Hall of Fame along with Bryan Trottier and Glen Sather.

September 9, 2011: Former Minnesota State forward David Backes was named team captain of the St. Louis Blues.

September 9, 2017: Hall of Fame defenseman Pierre Pilote died in Barrie, Ontario. He was 85.

September 9, 2002: Providence left wing Brett Berard was born in Providence, R.I.

September 9, 2003: Michigan defenseman Luke Hughes was born in Manchester, N.H.

September 9, 2021: Paul Holmgren, Peter McNab and journalist Stan Fischler were elected to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.

Hockey Quote of the Day

"When I first started playing hockey, I hated it. I hated getting up at six o'clock in the morning to go to the rink. I skated with my ankles turned in and everybody else skated the other way. The first goal I ever scored was in my own net."
Glenn Anderson (Denver)

We'll Leave You With This ...

Congratulations to Shayne Gostisbehere on receiving the Eliphalet Nott Medal today at Convocation!

Established in 1995, the medal is awarded to alumni who have achieved outstanding success in their professional fields.#UBeforeMe pic.twitter.com/oZh0VjsmlL
— Union College Men's Hockey (@Unionmhockey) September 8, 2026

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