UMD Bulldogs (Northern News Now)
Make it seven.
UMD has extended its record number of Hobey Baker Award winners, as sophomore forward Max Plante of Hermantown won the 2026 award at a ceremony Friday night in Las Vegas.
Plante is the fourth UMD player to win the Hobey Baker — which goes to the top player in men’s Division I hockey — since Scott Sandelin took over as head coach in 2000. Sandelin has broken a tie with his predecessor, Mike Sertich, by coaching four Hobey winners to become the all-time leader.
Scott Perunovich was the last UMD player to win the Hobey Baker Award (2020). Before that came Jack Connolly (2012), Junior Lessard (2004), Chris Marinucci (1994), Bill Watson (1985), and Tom Kurvers (1984).
A Hermantown native, Plante had already taken home NCHC Forward of the Year and NCHC Player of the Year. He beat out Denver defenseman Eric Pohlkamp for top honors in the NCHC, and again for the Hobey Baker Award, with Pohlkamp and Michigan senior TJ Hughes joining Plante as the top three finalists, dubbed the Hobey Hat Trick.
Plante finished the season with 25 goals and 27 assists for 52 points. He was top three nationally in goals, points, game-winning goals (six), and shots on goal (152). Sandelin used Plante in all situations, even strength, power play, penalty kill, with Plante and his older brother Zam, also a sophomore, both averaging over 20 minutes of ice time per game. They were fixtures on a power play that finished third nationally, and a penalty kill that was second in the country.
Max Plante was a second round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.
