Black Hawks Alumni on 81 Percent of NCAA Tournament Programs
USHL Waterloo Black Hawks

Black Hawks Alumni on 81 Percent of NCAA Tournament Programs

Published on March 22, 2026 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Waterloo Black Hawks News Release


Waterloo, Iowa - Thirteen of the 16 college hockey teams which earned a berth in the 2026 NCAA Men's Division I Hockey Tournament include at least one Waterloo Black Hawk on their roster.

The bracket of contenders was announced Sunday. Competition begins at regional sites on Thursday. The national championship game will be played on April 11th in Las Vegas.

The 2025/26 Minnesota State Mavericks include the most former Black Hawks (three). Reid Morich - the Black Hawks 2024/25 captain - is a freshman for the Mankato-based school. Five other Waterloo players who were on the Hawks' roster for the 2025 Clark Cup Final are also freshman for NCAA Tournament qualifiers.

Eight of the former Hawks in contention for a title this spring are NHL Draft picks: Garrett Brown (Winnipeg, 2022), Emmett Croteau (Montreal, 2022), Patrick Geary (Buffalo, 2024), David Klee (San Jose, 2023), Matthew Lansing (Vancouver, 2025), Brendan McMorrow (Los Angeles, 2025), John Mustard (Chicago, 2024), and Aaron Pionk (Minnesota, 2023).

In addition, four coaches or staff members on qualifying teams have ties to Waterloo: Reid Cashman (Head Coach, Dartmouth), Cody Chupp (Assistant Coach, Minnesota-Duluth), Bryn Chyzyk (General Manager, North Dakota), and Matt Smaby (Associate Head Coach, North Dakota).

The complete list of former Hawks in the 2026 NCAA Tournament follows:

Connecticut - Kam Hendrickson

Dartmouth - Emmett Croteau [Reid Cashman]

Denver - Garrett Brown, Brendan McMorrow

Michigan - Ben Robertson, Garrett Schifsky

Michigan State - Patrick Geary, Gavin O'Connell

Minnesota-Duluth - Aaron Pionk, Ryan Zaremba [Cody Chupp]

Minnesota State - Easton Hewson, Reid Morich, Fin Williams

North Dakota - David Klee [Matt Smaby, Bryn Chyzyk]

Penn State - Nicholas DeGraves, Nick Fascia

Providence - John Mustard

Quinnipiac - Matthew Lansing

Western Michigan - Zach Bade, Sam Huck

Wisconsin - Grady Deering

Just since 2016, 22 Waterloo alumni have won an NCAA title, and five of those skaters have been part of two championship squads.

Check out the Waterloo Black Hawks Statistics

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