USHL 2025-26 Season Preview: Can the Muskegon Lumberjacks be the first back-to-back champion in 30 years?

After a long summer, hockey is returning. Puck drops on the USHL season tonight, and to celebrate the occasion, we’re previewing the key storylines, overviewing each team, and locking in our awards predictions.

Take any predictions with a healthy spoonful of salt, however. Though massive year-to-year roster turnover is the norm for the USHL, the systemic fallout of the NCAA decision to permit CHL alumni, thereby opening up the Canadian junior route as an option for college commits, makes the 2025-26 season a mysterious one from a scouting perspective. 

But fans are wondering too. How will the quality on the ice bounce back from all the plundered talent? One thing we know for sure: there are plenty of openings and opportunities for players – with high expectations or none – to establish thems