10 Wenatchee Wild Alumni Reach NCAA Division I Tournament
WENATCHEE, Wash. – The 2026 NCAA Division I men’s hockey tournament will again feature a double-digit list of former Wenatchee Wild standouts for fans to follow. 10 former Wild players will step onto the ice in the 16-team tournament starting Thursday, representing eight NCAA institutions, following the announcement of this year’s bracket Sunday afternoon. For the first time, Wenatchee will have players from its Western Hockey League era in the tournament, after an NCAA ruling in November of 2024 established eligibility for former WHL players.
- North Dakota Fighting Hawks: Cade Littler, Tyler Young
The Sioux Falls Regional’s top seed is one of two NCAA tournament programs boasting a pair of Wenatchee alumni – Littler and Young led UND to 27 wins entering the tournament, its most in a season since the 2015-16 campaign. Littler has picked up five goals and eight assists in 33 games after producing 113 points in a Wild uniform, while Young has five goals and six helpers in 29 appearances. He spent the 2019-20 campaign in Wenatchee, scoring 37 points in 56 games.
- Connecticut Huskies: Huston Karpman, Brendan Dunphy
UConn is the other school in the 16-team field with a pair of former Wild players – Karpman is making his second appearance in the tournament with the Huskies, after suiting up for five games in Wenatchee and posting an assist to start his junior career in 2019-20. He has made 12 appearances this year, while Dunphy has six points in 36 games with the Huskies after notching 22 points in 47 WHL games with the Wild last year. His final junior season also yielded a seventh-round selection by Florida in last year’s NHL Draft.
- Cornell Big Red: Parker Murray
Cornell makes its 28th tournament appearance and fourth straight, with Murray stepping onto the ice for nine games this year. He racked up 53 points over a season-and-a-half with the Wild from 2021 to 2023, and his final postseason with Wenatchee included a remarkable 14 points over just 10 appearances.
- Quinnipiac Bobcats: Graham Sward
Sward debuted in the college game this year after playing in the American Hockey League and ECHL in 2024-25, and cranking out 81 points with the Wild in his final WHL season in 2023-24. His 15 points this year helped the Bobcats make the field for the seventh straight year.
- Western Michigan Broncos: Garrett Szydlowski
The defending national champions again feature a Wenatchee alumnus, as Szydlowski picked up 11 points to help the Broncos claim the top seed in the Loveland Regional. Szydlowski racked up 57 points over two seasons with the Wild from 2021 to 2023, and finished last year’s run to the NCAA title with 10 points.
- Minnesota State Mavericks: Ean Somoza
Somoza also helped Western Michigan earn last year’s national title, before transferring to Mankato and helping the Mavericks claim a spot in this year’s tourney. This season, he put up 24 points, including seven goals, as Minnesota State claimed a Central Collegiate Hockey Association Mason Cup championship. Somoza became one of Wenatchee’s most decorated Junior A scorers, rolling up 127 points over two seasons from 2021 to 2023. The Broncos and Mavericks will meet in the opening round of the tournament for the second straight season.
- Wisconsin Badgers: Daniel Hauser
The Western Hockey League’s all-time winningest goaltender will lead Wisconsin into the tournament against Dartmouth, as Wenatchee’s lone goaltending representative in the tournament. Hauser won 78 games with the Winnipeg ICE before following the team to Wenatchee and winning 25 more, and has 18 wins this season for the Badgers.
- Dartmouth Big Green: Jason Stefanek
Stefanek began a three-year British Columbia Hockey League career with the Wild in 2022-23, notching 28 points in 53 games. He opened his college career this season with 12 points in 25 appearances, as Dartmouth claimed a spot in the field by winning an ECAC title.
