Colgate adds 11 newcomers with strong USHL backgrounds for 2026-27

Colgate did not just restock its 2026-27 roster. It leaned into the same junior pipeline that has fed college hockey for years, adding 11 newcomers with seven first-years and four transfers, and building a class heavy on players who already learned the pace and pressure of the USHL. Head coach Mike Harder did not hide the intent, saying, “We could not be more excited for the future of Colgate Hockey.”

The USHL footprint is strongest in the names that already carry real junior mileage. Tobias Öhman arrives after stops with the Chicago Steel and Sioux Falls Stampede, and his Colgate-linked profile lists 108 points in 169 games across those two clubs. He was Chicago’s assistant captain in 2025-26, and when Sioux Falls acquired him from the Steel on Feb. 5, 2026, the Stampede said he had nine goals and 24 assists and was tied for the Steel team lead in points. That is not a flyer. That is a player who has been driving a roster, not hiding on one.

Elias Zimmerman brings a similar profile, even if his path has already dipped into the NCAA level. UMass listed him as a Fargo Force product who spent the 2024-25 season in the USHL and posted 18 points in 57 games. HockeyDB shows he then appeared in 17 games for UMass in 2025-26, giving Colgate a transfer who has already handled junior hockey, Division I practice demands and game speed. Colgate’s 2026-27 roster page already lists both Zimmerman and Öhman, so the Raiders are not projecting on those two. They are bringing them in with a clear eye on immediate depth.

Brandt Dubey adds another USHL thread, though his junior résumé is thinner than the other two. His Dubuque Fighting Saints bio says he skated in two USHL games for Tri-City in 2022-23, a reminder that Colgate is still recruiting from a wide net even while the program tilts toward players with league experience. The bigger picture is hard to miss: the USHL said 244 of 437 players in the 2026 NCAA Tournament field, or 56 percent, were league alumni. Colgate’s class fits that reality, and the two most obvious early contributors are the ones with the deepest USHL reps and the sharpest production. Harder’s roster is not just international. It is junior-tested.