Last season ended with a declaration. This season begins with a confession. At the end of the day, Colorado College coach Kris Mayotte hopes both will lead to a better Tigers hockey team in the fall and winter. 

“Our culture is so healthy right now, our program is so healthy, our guys can’t wait for next year and all these guys are committed to each other,” Mayotte said back in March. “I don’t want to pretend like they’re committed to me. They’re committed to each other.”

The offseason validated Mayotte’s statement. CC lost only four players to the transfer portal and, earlier this month, announced the smallest incoming group of newcomers in Mayotte’s tenure, which began in 2021. 

The six incoming Tigers are a far cry from the 14 who joined last year and 12 the year before that. And they are indicative of the philosophy that guides Mayotte and his coaching staff throughout offseason recruitment.  

It’s better to establish a core group of players and add pieces in subsequent years than to try to bring players in through the portal. 

That philosophy grew out of a lesson from the offseason that preceded the 2024-2025 year. 

“Two offseasons ago, when we had a lot of turnover, we talked about the fact that there wasn’t a guy on our team that didn’t get presented options,” Mayotte said. “It didn’t matter the number that ultimately decided to stay and that we kept, you knew that group was here for a reason. One, their care for each other. Two, their belief in this program, this school and what it can become and their desire to attack it and build it. So I think through that process was really where the foundation of it all came in. Every time you add something to that locker room, you’re trying to make sure that one, you’re obviously adding a quality player, but you’re adding people that add to the locker room.”

While last year’s rule change, allowing for the inclusion of players from the Canadian Hockey League in the NCAA, no doubt inflated the number of players CC added, the staff’s recruitment philosophy seems to be playing out this season. 

Now, it’s simply a matter of making sure that Mayotte puts his Tigers in the best position to succeed. He confessed in an interview earlier this month that he didn’t do a great job of tailoring the offense to the skill set of the players on his roster. 

“If you look at the way that we created offense and tried to create offense, it was probably built a little bit more for the (Noah) Labas and the (Gleb) Veremyevs and the (Stanley) Cooleys and the (Chase) McLanes and the big and hard and heavy, where I think this team just has a lot more skill and elite skaters. We just want to make sure that we’re utilizing that stuff the right way.”

Working with players who have more speed, skill and sense, Mayotte said he expects his offense this season to rely on the players’ skating ability. The Tigers will work on their two-man game, generating chances on the line rush and making more reads in the offensive zone. 

But the bottom line is that, to improve, CC must get the puck in between the dots and send bodies to the net.   

There were some statistical metrics that showed CC’s potential to be a top-scoring team in the country last season. Midway through the campaign, CC ranked inside the top 10 (of 63 teams in the nation) in terms of expected even-strength goals per game per Puck Preps’ Ryan Sikes. However, the Tigers were second-to-last in terms of goals scored above expected.  

Other metrics showcased why the Tigers fell short, Mayotte said.

“Last year, the biggest difference for us and the top-scoring teams in the country was just our net presence and how many shots we get with a screen and the percentage of our shots that we take that have a screen,” Mayotte said.

“The easiest fix is just make sure we have more guys at the net or have a guy at the net but make sure he’s doing the job the right way. Again, when you look back at part of the plan and how we’re going to create offense, we’re going to use our speed and our skill and our sense, but at the same time, we have to have someone that’s on top of the net and we have to make sure that we’re around the net when the time comes. It’s adding all of those things together.” 

Mayotte has hope for the upcoming season as he recalls how his returning sophomores finished their rookie seasons with players like Wilson Björck, Connor Hvidston and Tomas Mrsic all consistently finding ways to create offensive chances on a weekly basis. Combining that with the experience of players who can hopefully stay healthy in Max Burkholder, Owen Beckner and Ryan Koering, the plan is for the Tigers to springboard into a successful season on the back of a level of continuity that they haven’t had in the past couple of years. 

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Incoming and outgoing Tigers 

Incoming 

F Carmelo Crandell transferred to CC from Arizona State 

F Ty Halaburda entering CC from Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League (WHL)

F Zach Olsen 2026 third-round draft pick to Toronto 73rd overall entering CC from Saskatoon Blades (WHL)

F Sebastian Vitali entering CC from New Jersey Jr. Titans of the North American Hockey League

D Blake Jones entering CC from Nanaimo Clippers of the British Columbia Hockey League
G Michal Pradel 2025 third-round pick to Detroit 75th overall entering CC from Tri-City Storm of the United States Hockey League

Outgoing 

F Gavin Lindberg transferred to North Dakota

F Merril Steenari transferred to Northern Michigan 

F Shane Kozlina transferred to Division III

F Ryan Alexander graduated 

F Brayden Schuurman left program to play Canadian U Sports per Mayotte

D Matteo Mann transferred to Lake Superior State

G Kaidan Mbereko graduated

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Tigers add Toyota as school’s inaugural jersey patch sponsor 

CC will have a new logo next to the Tiger on the front of its jersey, Toyota’s.  

The change comes as a result of the NCAA’s approval of corporate jersey patch sponsorships for Division I athletics beginning in the upcoming 2026-2027 season. The automaker will serve as the college’s inaugural jersey patch sponsor and Toyota’s logo will be worn by athletes on both CC’s men’s ice hockey team and women’s soccer team.

The school made the announcement last week.  

“We are excited to announce this enhanced relationship with Toyota, which reflects creative partnerships and the momentum we have as an athletic program in this evolving NCAA landscape,” Colorado College Vice President and Director of Athletics Lesley Irvine said in a release. “At a time when we are seeking new revenue opportunities, we are proud to partner with a company such as Toyota, that believes in our vision and commitment to our programs and student-athletes.”