DULUTH — Minnesota Duluth senior defensemen Joey Pierce knew exactly what was coming last season when Bulldogs coach Scott Sandelin brought in a group of 11 highly-touted freshmen.
Pierce,
was a senior at Hermantown High School when Zam Plante and Ty Hanson joined the varsity as sophomores. Practices at
jumped to another level, and Pierce knew the same would happen at Amsoil Arena.
“I was lucky enough to play with Ty and Zam in high school, so I saw how they grew up,” Pierce said. “They bring the level of practice up. They did that in high school, so I was excited for that to happen. I was expecting it. I think some guys might have been like, ‘Holy cow, these guys do drive it every day.’ I was happy to see that it hadn’t changed. Adding Max (Plante) did no different. It probably raised it even more.”
The Bulldogs
underwent another makeover in the offseason
after losing 20 games and missing the NCAA tournament for a third consecutive season. The Bulldogs brought in 12 newcomers —
seven freshmen and five transfers
— to replace the six players who graduated and seven who transferred out in the spring.
While there is talent among this year’s newcomers, Pierce said it will once again be
— with 10 of 11 members back as sophomores — driving the Bulldogs. Zam Plante will center a top line that
includes his younger brother, Max,
and the top returning goalscorer,
Goaltender
will be the starter on Day 1. Meanwhile, two sophomores — Max Plante and Hanson — will serve as captains this season along with Pierce, junior defenseman
and redshirt senior forward Kyler Kovich.
Minnesota Duluth defenseman Joey Pierce (18) skates against Stonehill on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024, at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth Media Group
“They’re not afraid to speak their mind,” Pierce said of the now sophomores. “If they want something changed or something done right or done better, they’re going to let you know. I think that’s great.”
While some from the 2024-25 Bulldogs might have been caught off-guard by the incoming freshmen, that doesn’t appear to be the case for the 2025-26 team. Kovich said it didn’t take long to see who drives the program.
Minnesota Duluth celebrates a power play goal by freshman wing Max Plante against Denver in the second period on Friday, Jan. 24 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
UMD Athletics
“Those are guys that live and die hockey,” said Kovich, a transfer from Cornell. “That’s what you want on a team, right? You want guys that are dedicated to the sport. It’s not often you get a class like that. It’s a young class. They’re only through one year of college hockey, but it seems like they have four years of experience. It’s a special class.”
The 2025-26 Bulldogs men’s hockey season begins Oct. 3-4
with a trip to Fairbanks, Alaska, for a nonconference series versus the Alaska Nanooks. To preview the season, the News Tribune got the perspectives from three different ‘Dogs — a rookie, a transfer and a returner — on the state of the program.
The rookie: Grayden Siepmann
Minnesota Duluth defenseman Grayden Siepmann talks to the media on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / Duluth Media Group
College hockey wasn’t even on the mind of Bulldogs freshman defenseman Grayden Siepmann a year ago at this time. The 21-year-old from Langley, British Columbia, was playing Major Junior hockey for the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League.
Having started his major junior career with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen when he was 16, college hockey had not been on his mind for a while.
When the NCAA announced in November 2024
it would be lifting its ban of Major Junior players from the Canadian Hockey League
— turning the hockey world upside down — Siepmann’s world opened up.
The 6-foot, 185-pound blueliner was planning to turn pro after his fifth and final season of juniors, but instead
began to field scholarship offers from NCAA schools.
As pumped as he was for college hockey to be an option, it was a bit much at first, Siepmann said.
“Basically every day I was on the phone after practice, and getting emails and text messages. It was definitely a lot to handle,” he said. “Especially because we’re playing 70 games, playing every other day. Sometimes you didn’t want to talk to anyone, after losing.”
Siepmann said UMD was one of the first schools to reach out to him.
He wasn’t too familiar with the school originally, but heard great things upon doing his research. He sees a good future for the program with a strong group of incoming freshmen and transfers, and a strong sophomore class.
“I agree with Joey, definitely a big driver on the team,” Siepmann said. “
Our first line is all sophomores,
so it’ll be a huge part of winning games and the go-to guys that we look to.”
Siepmann’s class could also make an impact right out of the gate this year. It’s an older group that on average is less than six months younger than the sophomores. All seven arrived at UMD with at least one year of junior hockey experience, if not more.
“Being an older group, you can notice that,” Siepmann said.
Kovich said he also noticed this group of freshmen — all between the age of 19 and 21 — are ready to play. Siepmann, for instance, will likely start the season on the power play, according to Sandelin.
There is one area that Siepmann lacks experience in, he admitted. That’s being back in an actual classroom again. He’s been taking online classes since he was in Bantams attending the Yale Hockey Academy in Abbotsford, British Columbia.
Now he’s eyeing a finance degree — but currently undeclared — in college. Siepmann said he considers himself a pretty good student, so the adjustment hasn’t been too hard.
“The biggest thing is just getting your brain going again,” he said. “Hopefully get some easy courses to start off and then pull your way up.”
The transfer: Kyler Kovich
Minnesota Duluth forward Kyler Kovich talks to the media on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / Duluth Media Group
UMD’s hockey and business programs have formed a bit of a pipeline with Cornell recently, with three Ivy League grads coming to Duluth from Ithaca, New York, the last six seasons.
Ivy League schools don’t allow student-athletes to return for a fifth year after graduating. That led defenseman
to Duluth in 2020-21,
to the women and
All three came to UMD to get a Master of Business Administration.
“Yeah, Ivy (League) has some weird rules that they created in the 15th century that are still sticking around,” Kovich said.
Minnesota Duluth forward Zam Plante (27) takes control of the puck during a face off against Alaska forward Kyle Gaffney (34) on Friday, Jan. 3 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth Media Group
Kovich,
an alternate captain at UMD this year
having yet to play a game for the Bulldogs, is part of Sandelin’s largest group of transfers ever. He’s joined by
senior forward Kyle Gaffney of Alaska, senior forward Scout Truman of UMass Lowell,
junior defenseman
Brady Cleveland of Colorado College
and sophomore goaltender
Seven Bulldogs were in the transfer portal
before any of them committed to UMD.
were among the first to commit to the Bulldogs out of the portal in the spring, and all three did so pretty quickly, Sandelin said.
Kovich said the exodus of upperclassmen from UMD didn’t send up any red flags for him, not with Sandelin still coaching the Bulldogs. Coming to UMD was a “no-brainer” decision, he said.
“Obviously the guys that really care about this program are still sticking around,” Kovich said. “So really, it means that maybe you’re weeding out the guys that aren’t meant to be at UMD. It just makes a stronger team and a more confident team.”
Sandelin said Kovich will be a good fit at UMD because he’s not looking to do more than he did at Cornell. Kovich is coming off his best season with the Big Red in 2024-25 having put up five goals and nine assists playing in all 36 games. He missed almost all of the previous season after a taking a skate to the back of his leg and rupturing his Achilles.
Kovich played at Cornell for the legendary Mike Schafer, who retired after 30 seasons following the Big Red’s loss in the regional final to Boston University. Kovich said Schafer and Sandelin are both cut from the same cloth, which has made his transition to UMD easier.
“There were just so many reasons that led me here, and it’s been an unbelievable choice so far,” Kovich said. “I’m super happy.”
The returner: Joey Pierce
Minnesota Duluth defenseman Joey Pierce talks to the media on Wednesday, Sept. 17 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / Duluth Media Group
Since UMD’s run of seven straight NCAA tournament appearances between 2015-2022 — that included four straight NCAA Frozen Fours and back-to-back NCAA titles — Sandelin has brought in 12 newcomers in three of the last four seasons. Pierce was part of the first group in 2022-23 that included 10 freshmen and two transfers.
Pierce and fellow senior defenseman Riley Bodnarchuk are all that remain.
Just one classmate —
— left UMD after signing a pro contract while
another class member lost his academic eligibility.
Six left the Bulldogs via the transfer portal the three previous offseasons, including four players in the spring of 2025.
UMD lost
four juniors, two sophomores and a freshman
last spring to the portal. Pierce said it was a weird couple of weeks in Duluth as he watched teammates, classmates and friends that he grew “really, really” close to leave Duluth.
Pierce said
he doesn’t hate anyone that left,
he doesn’t blame them for doing what they thought was best and he still considers them friends.
“There’s times where I was upset and frustrated with it, in those couple weeks, and I think that’s okay to feel that way,” Pierce said.
“There were some real tough conversations. I’m glad I had them. There’s a couple points where I felt like I was trying to — not save it — but let guys know that it can work here, they can be a big part, a valuable part of this team. I’m glad I did that. I would regretted it more if I didn’t do that. They ultimately made their decisions.”
Was leaving ever an option for Pierce? Yes, he said, while also adding that he entertained the option as much as he entertained moving away from home for college
before committing to UMD back on Valentine’s Day 2020.
So, not much.
Blake Biondi (left) and Joey Pierce pose for a News Tribune photo during their high school days at Hermantown in March 2020, prior to both playing at Minnesota Duluth.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth Media Group
Pierce, who grew up in Ely before moving to Hermantown in high school, said he always wanted to be a Bulldog. His pride in the program has kept him a Bulldog. He loves the Duluth area and the history of the program, which was chasing a third-consecutive national championship — spoiled by COVID-19 — when he committed.
“I love driving to the rink every day and looking at Lake Superior,” Pierce said. “I don’t think it gets better than that.”
As captain this season, Pierce said he won’t shy away from tough conversations off the ice, and he’s not going to wait until the spring to start having them, like he did a season ago. Those chats will happen early and often, if need be, he said.
Minnesota Duluth defenseman Joey Pierce (18) is introduced prior to playing Minnesota on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, at Amsoil Arena in Duluth.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth Media Group
“Letting things get to a point where it can’t be solved has been an issue,” Pierce said.
Those conversations may not be necessary, however. Pierce said this team has a different feel to it. It’s a team that is committed to the overall goal, and not as focused on themselves and their own future.
“I like to get through hard things and come on the other side,” Pierce said. “That’s how my time here has been so far, and I feel like we’re real close to getting on the other side. I’m excited for that.”