The 2025-2026 season was a big year for Atlantic Hockey America (AHA). Penn State made the Frozen Four for the first time, Delaware joined the conference, and six AHA players appeared at the Olympics. With every team looking to build on last year’s excitement, let’s take a look at some of the key questions, players, and expectations of each team in the AHA before the 2026-2027 season kicks off.
Penn State University
Finished 33-6-0 with an in conference record of 22-2-0. Won the AHA conference championship, eliminated in the NCAA tournament semifinals by Wisconsin
Storyline to Watch: Can Penn State keep their momentum after losing Tessa Janecke?
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Alanna Devlin (F) | Lauren Hernick (G) | Morgan Stickney (G) | Katie DeSa (G) |
| Ashley Kokavec (D) | Megan Hosman (D) | Mya Vaslet (F) | |
| Kylie Amelkovich (F) | Taylor Lum (F) | ||
| Sofia Ismael (F) | Leah Stecker (D) | ||
| Sydney McIntosh (F) | Tessa Janecke (F) | ||
| Lorelai Nelson (F) | Kendall Butze (D) | ||
| Maddy Christian (F) |
Expectations are higher than ever after Penn State had the most successful season in program history. Winning the AHA championship is no longer the goal for this program anymore but the standard. But for the first time, they’ll have to navigate their recent reputation as NCAA title contenders without the best player in program history.
The roster isn’t short on talent. Whether it’s Grace Outwater, the sophomore who had 40 points in 36 games last year, or incoming star recruits like Kylie Amelkovich, this team has the most star power of any AHA team. But replacing Janecke is not just about replacing her scoring production, it’s the impact of losing a program-altering player. Janecke was Penn State’s first ever Patty Kazmaier top-three finalist. She holds nearly every single record in program history. The structure of Penn State’s offense the last four seasons was designed around her two-way play at center. Alongside the departure of other high-impact players such as Katelyn Roberts and Katie DeSa, this year is about proving that Penn State can remain a top school in the NCAA in a new era. The core from Penn State’s most successful years have graduated, and the underclassmen need to make the team their own.
Player to Watch: Abby Stonehouse · Forward, Junior
Stonehouse is the best bet to jump from “great secondary scorer” to “point per game producer.” She drives to the net, scores on tip-ins, relentlessly pressures opponents, and follows through on second, third, and fourth chances. Since she’s usually around the net, it can be easy to miss how good her wrist shot is, but Penn State fans saw it more in the second half last year. Ten of her 14 goals on the season came after the holiday break. Of those ten, four goals came in tournament play. Her step forward last year was enough to earn her a spot at the Canada’s National Women’s Development Team Series versus the United States in August. With so many key pieces of the offense graduating, Stonehouse continuing her momentum is key for Penn State.
Prediction: Penn State wins AHA title, loses in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament
While still a contender, I don’t expect this program to take the next step right away with how many significant pieces they lost. A lot of their returning top players (Keller, Maynard, Fantin, Campbell) are very young, only entering their sophomore season. This group may not be ready yet, but they are loaded with talent that will only get more cohesive by the game.
Mercyhurst University
Finished 23-11-3 with a 17-5-2 in conference record, lost to Penn State in the AHA Championship
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Lexington Secreto (G) | Emma Leibrecht (F) | Halle Duchene (F) | Payten Evans (D) |
| Kismet Dogan (F) | Ashley Mandeville (D) | Sophie Erlam (D) | Makayla Javier (D) |
| Lucy DeCoteau (F) | Emmi Mourujarvi (D) | Sonja Inkamp (D) | Jade Maisonneuve (F) |
| Erika Lind (G) | Zoe Cramer (F) | Sophie McKinley (F) | |
| Julia Schalin (F) | Mariia Polozkova (F) | Jessica Ciarrocchi (F) | |
| Tara Bach (G) | Grace Kipfer (G) | ||
| NaYeon Kim (F) |
Storyline: Can Mercyhurst take care of business in big out of conference matchups?
Going 6-6-1 in out of conference games cost Mercyhurst a chance at the NCAA tournament through an at-large bid. They finished 12th in NPI rankings, two spots from Minnesota Duluth, the lowest ranked team by NPI to make it in. Duluth swept them to start the season, as did UConn, and they lost to Wisconsin during the Smashville Showcase. The one conference team above Mercyhurst in the rankings, Penn State, won three of four regular season games. The Lakers sole win came in overtime.
Mercyhurst would prefer to make it into the tournament through the AHA championship. Considering they only lost the 2025 final to Penn State by one goal, it’s certainly possible. But whether it’s through an at-large bid or through the AHA route, Mercyhurst is going to have to prove they can do more than just take care of business against lower ranked teams. They’ll play two against each of UConn, Minnesota Duluth, and Colgate this season in match ups viewers will want to circle.
Player to Watch: Julia Perjus · Redshirt Sophomore, Forward
Last year, Mercyhurst lost number one center Vanessa Upson and one of their top scorers, Thea Johansson. How the Lakers would make up that offense and who would step into that role was in question. When the puck actually dropped, Julia Perjus was the clear answer from game one.
Even as an older freshman (born 2004), stepping into the NCAA and contributing immediately is hard. Perjus’s three points in the second game of the season against Duluth proved she would not need much time to adjust. By the end of the year, she led the team in: goals (17), assists (21), faceoff percentage (.565), power play goals (7), blocks by a forward (35). Beyond the stats, Perjus was the entire engine the Mercyhurst offense ran through. Her drive to the net, fearlessness in challenging defenders one on one, and confident stickhandling helped Mercyhurst improve their offense by ten goals from the season prior.
Prediction: Mercyhurst lose in the AHA finals, make the NCAA tournament through an at-large bid and lose in the first round
Despite the loss of Julia Schalin, who was third in points on the team, I really like this Mercyhurst team. Freshman Berlin Lolacher hit her stride in the second half, scoring eight of her 11 goals after New Years, and should be a key piece in the top six going forward. The additions of Sonja Inkamp, Zoe Cramer, and Maria Polozkova are good bets to make an immediate impact. Overall, I think they have a clearer idea of the kind of hockey they want to play (and how to base it around Perjus) and are more prepared to go in their early season match ups against Duluth and UConn.
Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT)
Finished 16-18-0 with a 11-13-0 in conference record. Lost in double overtime to Syracuse in the quarterfinals of the AHA tournament
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Sidney Jackel (F) | Anneka Aspaas (F) | Jaidan Fahrny (F) | |
| Mackenzie Clarke (D) | Brynn Evans (F) | Lexi Sung (F) | |
| Maddy Delahunt (F) | Karly Kolssak (F) | ||
| Sofia Ripley (F) | Sophia Bellina (G) | ||
| Eryka DeRocha (F) | |||
| Oceanne Thiffault (G) |
Storyline to watch: The Emma Pickering, Addie Alvarez, and Linda Rulle last dance
RIT is coming off one of their strongest but most frustrating seasons in recent history. They had some incredible upsets against big name programs like Penn State, St. Lawrence, Mercyhurst, and Colgate. Yet at the same time, the Tigers went 2-2 against Robert Morris, 2-2 against Syracuse, and 1-3 against Lindenwood. As mentioned in our roundtable piece, RIT haven’t finished with a .500 or higher record in the last decade, and coming just short last year hurt considering some of the games they dropped.
Still, there’s a lot to like about this team, and reasons to believe that a winning record is in reach. Most of their core is returning, including Pickering, Alvarez, and Rulle, who’ve helped get this program back on track. The year before the three joined, RIT finished 4-26-2 with only a single conference win. Since then, the win total has gone up every season, and finally getting to the elusive .500 mark would be a great send off note for this group of players.
Player to watch: Brenna McNamara · Junior, Goaltender
Considering I just spent the last two paragraphs talking about three players not named Brenna McNamara, the choice to go with her may seem a little strange. But McNamara is the most crucial player on this team. The Tigers’ starting goaltender from last year, Sophia Bellina, graduated, leaving incoming junior McNamara to take the reins. McNamara started 12 games last year, including some of RIT’s biggest games. She was in net for their AHA tournament game, and for RIT’s upset win against Penn State. If RIT is to improve on last year, McNamara will need to replicate her .929 save percentage over a starters workload this year.
Prediction: Rochester hits .500, finishes in third place in the AHA and loses in the conference tournament semifinals
I am always stuck between believing in the narrative and trying to be pragmatic. RIT does not have an easy road ahead of them. They have a harder out of conference schedule, swapping St. Lawrence for Clarkson and Post for New Hampshire. The Tigers do not have a true superstar in their forward group, nor depth in their lineup.
What they do have is 1) a lot of chemistry 2) equally distributed scoring among their first two lines and 3) a really, really good power play. RIT’s power play was .319 last year, good for second best in the NCAA. Most of the players who made up that power play unit are returning. The power play is what set RIT apart from Syracuse and Lindenwood, whose special teams are some of the worst in the NCAA. Even if RIT’s power play only performs at 70% of what it did last year, it is still one of the best in the conference, and enough to give them the edge over other teams.
Lindenwood University
Finished 14-21-2 with a 11-12-1 conference record, lost in the AHA semifinals to Mercyhurst
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Eva Filippova (G) | Lexington Secreto (G) | Maddalena Bedont (D) | Josey Dunne-Weeks (D) |
| Mariana Valeri (F) | Maegan Cronan (F) | Kate Graham (D) | Molly Henderson (F) |
| Zoe Rimstad (G) | Thea Rustbakken (D) | ||
| Hannah Dods (F) | Tiril Arntzen (F) | ||
| Catherine Hodgins (G) | Krisztina Weiler (F) | ||
| Maddie Slocum (F) | Raquel McCormack (F) | ||
| Tilde Simensen (F) | |||
| Ebba Ridderstolpe (G) |
Storyline to watch: The overhaul of Lindenwood’s defense
Lindenwood could score, but their above average offense was negated by a rough defense. Only six teams gave up more goals in the NCAA than the 119 Lindenwood conceded. Opponents averaged 34.7 shots against Lindenwood in a game, much higher than RIT’s 30.2 or Syracuse’s 31.1 average. A total 11 goals were scored by Lindenwood’s blue line, the second fewest from an AHA team. The situation gets more dire now that that Josey Dunne-Weeks, who was Lindenwood’s number one defender, graduated.
Three new defenders are coming in, and Lindenwood still has a top four defender in Ellie Musceder. New head coach Max Gavin will try to convert the new talent into a tighter defensive system and play to their strengths, but it’s a major project he’ll be undertaking in his first year as coach considering what he’s inherited.
Player to watch: Michaela Sophia Paulínyová · Sophomore, forward
While fellow Slovak, Tatiana Blichová, got most of the attention for her 31 point season, Paulínyová had a solid first year of her own. She tied for fourth on the team in points with nine goals and 12 assists in 36 games. Paulínyová averaged 2.5 shots a game, becoming more confident taking her own shot as the season went along. In the semifinal loss to Mercyhurst, Paulínyová finished strong with a goal and 10 shots across the two games.
WIth leading goalscorer Molly Henderson graduating, Lindenwood will need someone to step up and help replace her production, and Blichová is a likely candidate to do so.
Predictions: Lindenwood finishes under .500, wins round one to get to the quarterfinals before losing
Lindenwood is changing a lot of things at once. They have a new coach, who also brought in former Mercyhurst assistant coach Trey Flesch. The roster has ten new players coming in and eight players leaving. They no longer have goaltender Lexington Secreto, who started 25 games and covered for Lindenwood’s struggling defense at times with her .919 save percentage. With so many of their key returning pieces still young and a large incoming freshman class, Lindenwood has time for these players to figure out what kind of team they want to be. We just might not see that team for another season.
Syracuse University
Finished 15-18-4 with a 10-11-3 conference record, lost to Penn State in the semifinals of the AHA tournament
| Transfers In | Transfer Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Kerttu Lehmus (F) | Mikayla Todd (F) | Nina Geric (F) | Maya D’Arcy (D) |
| Sophia Hausberger (F) | Bella Gould (G) | Kendra Raypholtz (F) | Sami Gendron (D) |
| Alara Murphy (D) | Charlotte Hallett (D) | ||
| Maryn Broderick (D) | Heidi Knoll (F) | ||
| Cicely Harnum (G) | Maïka Paquin (G) |
Storyline to watch: Can Syracuse’s special teams be…special?
Syracuse had an up and down season last year, but the number one thing that held them back was their lackluster power play and penalty kill. The Orange had a .746 penalty kill percentage and .124 power play percentage, 42nd and 38th respectively out of 45 in the NCAA.
Syracuse brought in new coaches, hiring head coach Brian Idalski and assistant coach Patricia Sautter Elsmore. Perhaps new faces and ideas on the coaching staff will help give the special teams a boost. Unfortunately, none of Idalski’s teams were known for great power plays or penalty kills either, but even an improvement from bottom of the league to below average would help Syracuse. The entire offense was dismal, only scoring 69 goals all season, and the power play is one way to raise that number.
Player to watch: Jordan Blouin · Sophomore, Forward
Last year, there were moments where Blouin would decide to take over the game and get a crafty shot on goal or blow past defenders to drive to the net. Blouin stood out most for her elite skating skills. She maintained control of the puck in tight turns in the offensive zone and generated rush chances. The best example of how much Blouin can shine was in the AHA quarterfinals against RIT, when she had a goal, two assists, and six shots. If Idalski can find a way to leverage her best skills and get a more consistent version of Blouin, Syracuse will see improvement on the offensive side.
Prediction: Finish above ten wins, get a bye to AHA tournament quarterfinals and lose in the semifinals
A new direction was needed for Syracuse, but like Lindenwood, we may not see a huge jump immediately. Starting goaltender Ava Drabyk gives this team a high enough floor to get to ten wins and advance over a team like Lindenwood, who are going through even more change. Additionally, top scorer Emma Gnade should only get stronger now that she’s another year older. What may hold them back from improving drastically is losing Maya D’Arcy and Sami Gendron, important pieces in an already thin blue line. Defender Alara Murphy is an interesting incoming piece that can help ease that loss, but it may take a few months to see her talents translate on the NCAA level.
Robert Morris University
Finished 13-21-2 out of conference, 8-14-2 in conference, lost in AHA tournament quarterfinals to Syracuse
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Lucy Thiessen (D) | Linnea Misner (D) | Rio Pierre (F) | Morgan Giannone (F) |
| Bridget Stevenson (F) | Molly Dunn (D) | Ava Vrana (F) | Ellie Marcovsky (F) |
| Caroline Aufiero (D) | Calli Arnold (F) | Emma Goding (D) | |
| Greta Brezenski (F) |
Storyline to Watch: Will the depth scoring come to life?
Jessica Mackinnon, Morgan Giannone, and Alaina Giampietro scored 48 of the Colonials 82 total goals last year. Besides those three players, no one else reached the ten goal mark. Giannone is graduating, meaning that on top of trying to add to their depth, they need to find a way to replace her production. Linnea Misner, the highest scoring defender on the team, also transferred out.
However, RMU’s 82 goals in 2025-2026 were already a 22 goal improvement from the year prior. The addition of Jessica MacKinnon and Taylor Storey from Clarkson University gave Robert Morris a more stable top six forward group. Four new players are transferring into the program, including three more players (Bridget Stevenson, Caroline Aufiero, and Greta Brezenski) from Clarkson University. If those transfers can have even half the impact that Storey and MacKinnon had last year, they’ll make up for some of the offense lost from Giannone and Misner.
Player to Watch: Lucy Thiessen · Defender, Sophomore
With RMU losing two of its top defenders (Misner and Emma Goding), Thiessen and Aufiero’s additions are crucial to this team. Despite a quiet freshman year for Thiessen at Boston University, she’s the best bet to find success with a change of scenery. Thiessen, a product of the Junior Flyers and Bishop Kearney, will get more opportunity and responsibility than she did at Boston University. Thiessen was also a teammate of Thalia D’Elia on the junior Flyers, and getting to play alongside her could be good for both players.
Predictions: RMU gets the bye to the quarterfinals of the AHA tournament but loses
RMU has arguably less star power than they had last year. Despite this, I think they’re still the most systematically sound of the 4-7 teams in the AHA. RMU played to their players strength last year, finding each player a place in the team where they could reach their potential. Fans saw this best on the defensive side during even strength play. They averaged under 30 shots against per game, a lower average than several AHA teams with better records than RMU. Special team and losing Giannone and Misner will likely keep them from advancing further in tournament.
University of Delaware
Finished 2-31-0 with a 1-23-0 in conference record, lost to Robert Morris University in overtime of the AHA play-in round
| Transfers In | Transfers Out | Freshmen | Graduated |
| Shea Frost (D) | Eva Mayo (F/D) | Katie Belk (F) | Kaitlin Finnegan (F) |
| Hailey Anderson (F) | Morgan Link (F) | ||
| Lily Myers (F) | |||
| Reese Reid (D) | |||
| Kyla Schneider (F) | |||
| Mackenzie Sunderbruch (G) |
Storyline: As the team gels, what is Delaware’s identity?
Last year, the Blue Hens were getting familiar both with each other as players and with D1 hockey, considering only four players had played at this level before. The coaching staff prioritized low risk plays and protecting the middle of the ice while players adjusted to the speed and physicality of the NCAA. When we did see glimpses of offensive success, it usually came off of rush chances, an identity Delaware may want to build on going into season two.
Player to Watch: Katelynn Charlton · Forward, Sophomore
Charlton led the Blue Hens in total shots on goal with 104. The next highest on the team was 64. Charlton, like many young players do, hit a wall after the New Years and struggled in the second half. While her shot rate stayed high, she did not get a goal after January ninth. However, she had an explosive start to the year, with five of her ten points coming in the first month of the year. The talent is there for Charlton, it’s just a matter of being able to sustain it for a full season.
Prediction: Improves their record, but loses in the AHA play-in again
Delaware still has one of the youngest rosters with the fewest number of combined experience and eight new players. Any tournament success is still a long shot. However, the coaching staff of Allison Coomey, Melissa Samoskevich, and Taylor Willard and the process they demonstrated in year one should lead to a notable improvement in the win column. I’d expect Delaware to fare better against some in conference opponents like RMU, Syracuse, and Lindenwood to grab a handful more wins. Delaware also gets a rematch against Brown and Holy Cross, as well as games against LIU, which should help facing some familiar out of conference opponents.
