The UAF hockey team has announced its schedule for the upcoming 2025-26 season. The team will compete in 35 regular season games, including 16 at home in the Carlson Center.
The season begins with the annual Blue/Gold Scrimmage on Sept. 20, followed by a pair of exhibition matchups against UNLV on Sept. 26 and Briercrest College on Sept. 27.
Regular season play begins on Oct. 3-4 with a two-game home series against the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Shortly after, the team travels to Tempe, Arizona, for the Icebreaker Tournament hosted by Arizona State University. It’s the first of three tournaments or invitationals on the schedule this year.
UAF’s home opponents during the regular season include matchups with Minnesota Duluth, Michigan Tech, Alaska Anchorage, Lindenwood University and Long Island University. Additional exhibition games are scheduled against Simon Fraser University and Grand Canyon University.
On the road, the Nanooks travel to the University of Wisconsin, Princeton University, Quinnipiac University, Union College, Providence College, Cornell University and Alaska Anchorage.
Midseason play includes the Adirondack Winter Invitational in Lake Placid, New York, where the Nanooks will take on Clarkson University and St. Lawrence University.
After capturing their 14th consecutive Alaska Airlines Governor’s Cup last season, the Nanooks will aim to extend that streak. They begin this year’s Governor’s Cup series against Alaska Anchorage with back-to-back home games on Jan. 16-17.
The bulk of the rivalry series will be played in February, with six consecutive head-to-head matchups between Feb. 6 and Feb. 28. That stretch includes four games in Anchorage followed by two in Fairbanks to close the series.
The season concludes with the inaugural United Collegiate Hockey Cup, a five-team postseason tournament for NCAA Division I independent programs. Set for March 5-7, the tournament guarantees each team at least two games.
Participating schools include UAF, Alaska Anchorage, Lindenwood, Long Island and Stonehill College.
The Nanooks enter the season after going 12-14-6 last year, following winning records in each of the two previous seasons, where they finished 17-14-3 and 22-10-2.