2025-26 men’s hockey team award winners announced
May 15, 2026 | Men's Hockey
Nine skaters receive annual team-given honors
MADISON, Wis. – Following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season, the Wisconsin men's hockey program has chosen its annual team award winners, handing out honors for MVP, competitiveness, consistency and improvement, among others.
Spike Carlson/Chris Chelios Most Valuable Player - Ben Dexheimer
Senior defenseman and team captain Ben Dexheimer took home the Spike Carlson/Chris Chelios Most Valuable Player award. First handed out in 1964, this award honors Spike Carlson, one of the first hockey players for the Badgers who also coached at UW during the 1930-31 season, while Chelios is a Badger and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Over his four years as a Badger, Dexheimer totaled 13 goals and 84 points in 149 games played. During his senior season, he tied his career-high in scoring with 28 points set during his sophomore year, and set a career high in goals with seven. From Edina, Minnesota, the senior scored the game-winning goal, 24 seconds into overtime, against third-overall seed Michigan State in the 2026 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament regional finals to send Wisconsin to its first Frozen Four since 2010. He earned recognition on both the 2026 NCAA Worcester Regional and 2026 NCAA Frozen Four All-Tournament Teams for his outstanding postseason performances, as well as a 2026 All-Big Ten First Team nod, HCA National Defender of the Month for March/April honors, All-USCHO.com Third-Team honors and earned Wisconsin's male Big Ten Medal of Honor.
Dexheimer finished the 2025-26 season as the Big Ten's top-scoring defenseman with 28 points on seven goals and 21 assists. He notched four game-winning goals to lead the roster, and his three power-play goals ranked fifth. The senior also sat second on the team in blocks with 56. Following his four-year career as a Badger, Dexheimer signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Minnesota Wild starting in 2026-27. He joined the AHL's Iowa Wild on an Amateur Tryout Agreement (ATO) contract for the remainder of the season, skating in two games.
Dr. Joseph Coyne/Joe Pavelski Most Consistent Player / Ivan B. Williamson Scholastic Award - Gavin Morrissey
The Dr. Joseph Coyne/Joe Pavelski Most Consistent Player award went to sophomore forward Gavin Morrissey. The award honors Dr. Joseph Coyne, a dentist in Madison who was a big supporter of the UW hockey program in the early days of John Riley and Bob Johnson, and Pavelski a 2006 NCAA champion at Wisconsin and UW's all-time leading scorer in the NHL. Morrissey finished the year leading the Badgers in scoring with 36 points in 36 games, with his 27 assists also topping the UW roster. His nine goals were tied for fifth. The Rochester Hills, Michigan, native earned Worcester Regional All-Tournament Team honors after notching a goal and two assists in the regional final contest against Michigan State, scoring Wisconsin's second goal in 34 seconds to tie the game at three with less than five minutes remaining in regulation to get the contest to overtime, where captain Dexheimer scored to give UW its first Frozen Four bid in 16 years. In recognition of his stellar sophomore year, Morrissey was also a Hobey Baker Fan Vote nominee for the second year in a row, and he earned a Big Ten Second Star of the Week nod in March.
Morrissey was also named the winner of the Ivan B. Williamson Scholastic Award. Williamson served at Wisconsin as its Director of Athletics from 1955-69 and was instrumental in the revival of UW hockey as a varsity sport in 1963. In recognition of his academic achievements, Morrissey was also named the winner of Wisconsin Athletics' Scholar-Athlete of the Year award.
Fenton Kelsey, Jr./Mike Richter Most Competitive Player - Jack Horbach & Adam Pietila
Two Badgers – senior forward Jack Horbach and sophomore forward Adam Pietila – will share the Fenton Kelsey, Jr./Mike Richter Most Competitive player award, named in honor of Kelsey, Jr., the first Executive Director of the Blue Line Club, who was a big supporter of hockey and played a major role in the building of Hartmeyer Ice Arena on Madison's east side. It's also named after Badger goaltender and U.S Hockey Hall of Famer Richter.
From Naperville, Illinois, this is Horbach's second time winning the Most Competitive Player award, also taking home the honor as a sophomore in 2023-24. The forward is also a past recipient of the team's fan-voted WHA-TV/Jim Santulli 7th-Man Award, which he won as a freshman in 2022-23. Throughout his four-year Badger career, Horbach owns 16 goals and 39 points in 143 games. A three-time Academic All-Big Ten skater, the senior finished his final season as a Badger with three goals and eight points, including scoring the game-winner against Dartmouth in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament to give UW its first tournament win since 2010. Horbach is a versatile forward who has jumped on defense when needed and an expert penalty killer, finishing his UW career with three short-handed goals, tallying one each year except during his sophomore season. After playing his final game in the Cardinal and White, the forward signed a one-year AHL deal for the 2026-27 season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
Pietila wrapped up his sophomore season with a career-high in goals and points, lighting the lamp seven times and totaling 12 points in 31 games played. The Hartland, Michigan, native tied for seventh on the roster in scoring and finished the year with 50 shots and a plus-four rating. Last year, the forward took home the team's Otto Breitenbach/Curtis Joseph Most Improved Player award.
Mark Johnson Rookie of the Year Award - Luke Osburn
Named after two-time first-team All-American, former WCHA Freshman of the Year and UW's all-time leading goal scorer, this year's Mark Johnson Rookie of the Year honor went to Luke Osburn. The defenseman finished his spectacular freshman year with six goals and 21 points, ranking second among Badger blueliners in goals and points, and second among UW freshmen in scoring. His 21 points were the most for a UW freshman defenseman since NHLer K'Andre Miller posted five goals and 22 points as a rookie during the 2018-19 season. The Plymouth, Michigan, native earned All-Big Ten Honorable Mention and Big Ten All-Freshman Team selections at the end of the regular season. The 2024-25 USHL Defenseman of the Year is also a Big Ten Star of the Week, earning a second star honor on Feb. 19.
The Suter Family Unsung Hero Award - Aiden Dubinsky
Aiden Dubinsky, a senior defenseman, was named the winner of the Suter Family Unsung Hero Award. First handed out in 2016, the award honors Madison natives and brothers Bob (1975-79), Gary (1983-85) and John (1973-78) Suter, as well as Bob's son Ryan (2003-04), who all attended Wisconsin and played defense for the Badgers. Dubinsky transferred to the Badgers from Minnesota Duluth for his senior season, tallying two goals and six points in his final year of college hockey. The defenseman and former Bulldog assistant captain has nine goals and 40 points in 141 college games played, as well as 151 career blocks and one power-play goal scored his sophomore year. His 22 blocks in 2025-26 rank fifth on the UW roster, and his two goals rank fifth among Badger blueliners. Following his NCAA career, the Highland Park, Illinois, native signed a Professional Tryout (PTO) contract with the Laval Rocket, AHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens, skating in one game at the end of the 2025-26 season.
Otto Breitenbach/Curtis Joseph Most Improved Player - Weston Knox
Sophomore defenseman Weston Knox was voted the team's Otto Breitenbach/Curtis Joseph Most Improved Player award winner. Otto Breitenbach was a past commissioner of the WCHA and UW Associate Athletic Director from 1973-87, while Joseph was a Badger and NHL standout in goal. Knox finished his sophomore year with one goal and a career-high six points in 20 games played, scoring his first-career goal on Dec. 28 against Lake Superior State in the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off semifinals. The Andover, Minnesota, native also posted 10 blocks and 10 shots on the season.
Jeff Sauer Award - Jack Phelan
Sophomore defenseman Jack Phelan took home the Jeff Sauer Award, given annually to a 'great guy' on the team. The award honors Coach Sauer, the winningest Wisconsin men's hockey coach, who spent 20 years behind the Badger bench. The Hinsdale, Illinois, native finished the year with nine points, all of them assists, to rank fourth among Badger blueliners in the category. His plus-eight rating was tied for fifth on the team, and his 46 blocks placed him third.
WHA-TV Jim Santulli 7th Man Award - Grady Deering
Freshman forward Grady Deering won the fan-voted WHA-TV/Jim Santulli 7th Man Award. The award is named after the late Jim Santulli, a producer for the Wisconsin Public Television network for 30 years (1966-96) who was instrumental in initiating Badger basketball, football and hockey broadcasts on WHA-TV beginning in 1973-74. Deering, the Badgers fourth-line center, finished his rookie year with seven goals and 15 points in 39 games played, tying for seventh on the roster in goals and fifth among UW freshmen in scoring. The Des Moines, Iowa, native sat eighth among all Badgers with a plus-seven rating, notching 85 shots and 12 blocks over the season.
Awards
Spike Carlson/Chris Chelios Most Valuable Player - Ben Dexheimer
Dr. Joseph Coyne/Joe Pavelski Most Consistent Player - Gavin Morrissey
Ivan B. Williamson Scholastic Award - Gavin Morrissey
Fenton Kelsey, Jr./Mike Richter Most Competitive Player - Jack Horbach & Adam Pietila
Mark Johnson Rookie of the Year Award - Luke Osburn
The Suter Family Unsung Hero Award - Aiden Dubinsky
Otto Breitenbach/Curtis Joseph Most Improved Player - Weston Knox
Jeff Sauer Award - Jack Phelan
WHA-TV Jim Santulli 7th Man Award - Grady Deering
