As the weather gets colder, winter sports are starting their seasons. The Keene State Women’s and Men’s Ice Hockey teams are heading into their upcoming seasons and spoke about their expectations and challenges for the 2026-2027 season. The men’s team played an exhibition non-conference game on Oct. 16, 2026, against Eastern Hockey League (EHL) All-Stars at Keene Ice. The Women’s Ice Hockey team has its first game on October 30th, 2026, against Salve Regina University at 3 p.m. at Keene Ice.
The men’s team swept its first game against the EHL All-Stars 4-2. The EHL All-Stars contain three teams: Main, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. The third period of the game hosted most of the goals for both teams. The Owls scored a tough shot to make their lead 3-0 at the beginning of the last period. The EHL All-Stars didn’t give up and racked up two goals midway through the third period. However, the Owls secured their win by getting an empty-net goal to finish the game with a victory of 4-2.
Many players on the men’s team voiced their excitement for the upcoming season and making the playoffs. Junior forward Thor Hansen said, “There were a few teams we lost to that we thought [we] were better than last year, but this year we’re certain we are better.” Hansen also mentioned how the team’s focus is on “beating teams in conference” and “getting two wins on teams we play twice and a steal from higher-ranked teams to make playoffs.”
Hansen went on to say, “We have a better plan than last year and better team chemistry with 18 juniors having our third year together.” Hansen is making his words become a reality after scoring the second goal for the Owls in the first period, putting the team up 2-0 very early in his first game.
Sophomore forward Zack Chouinard said the team needed more physicality and “to be more aggressive on the ice and defensively in our zone.” He also said that “we need to have more pride, have less turnovers, communicate and support each other, and I think this year will be pretty good.”
Plymouth State is a rivalry game that not just men’s and women’s ice hockey players are excited to play, but also coaches. Assistant coach of the men’s team and men’s lacrosse, Joe Nutting, affirmed that one of the players this year is a “senior transfer from Plymouth who has something to prove.” Nutting also stated that, “I think bragging rights and a steal for our transfer and our guys is something they want to win against a great rivalry. This rivalry against Plymouth has been a tradition in Keene State College for many years. According to Nutting, the men’s ice hockey team had a “sold out crowd in their place and our place.”
Choinard and Hansen are both in agreement with their assistant coach that Plymouth is the game to beat. “Plymouth was a team we lost to twice last year,” said Hansen. “We’d love to at least split [the series] with them, but we would really like to grab two from them.”
Players on the women’s team are also keeping up with this passionate rivalry. First-year defender Tegan Pereira shared, “Something that I am most excited for going into the season is playing against Plymouth State since it is our rival game and I know it is going to be very competitive, and I am always someone who likes to challenge myself, and I feel like those games really show who you are as a player.”
The women’s ice hockey head coach, Robert Morgan, made a statement on their upcoming season. Morgan stated that “Our focus remains on establishing a championship culture built on accountability, commitment and consistent improvement.”
His players are also determined to have a team all striving to make the playoffs and win as much as possible. Sophomore defensive player Emily Edmunds shared that “I think that we are going to do really well this season; we’re meshing really well as a team, and our practices have been going really well.”
The players are also keeping up high expectations and priorities for themselves. Pereira mentioned how this upcoming season, her priorities are “Keeping my body healthy, making sure I’m feeling the right things and recovering correctly. I want to make sure that I am in shape, especially transitioning from high school to college.
”Morgan rounded off his statement by stating that “we continue to emphasize, being the best at getting better every day is what will ultimately define our success.”
Both the men’s and women’s ice hockey teams have a lot of expectations and goals set individually as players, coaches, and as a team. All in all, both teams are pushing to make it to the playoffs in the 2026-2027 season.
Amaya Spadola can be contacted at
Aspadola@kscequinox.com
