Cornell men's hockey captain Ryan Walsh will return to the Spengler Cup with the U.S. Collegiate Selects in December. The Rochester native was named to the roster Thursday after helping the college all-star team reach last year's championship game.
Cornell announced that Walsh and Wisconsin defenseman Logan Hensler were the latest additions to a roster that now stands at 16 players. The final 25-player team will draw from all six NCAA Division I hockey conferences for the tournament in Davos, Switzerland.
Walsh joins Cornell defenseman Xavier Veilleux, who was selected Oct. 22. Big Red coach Casey Jones will serve as an assistant alongside Minnesota Duluth coach Scott Sandelin under head coach Mike Souza of New Hampshire.
Walsh and Minnesota Duluth's Zam Plante are the only returning players named to the roster so far. The chance to go back required little deliberation for Cornell's senior forward.
“It was an easy answer for me,” Walsh said in Cornell's announcement. He said he discussed the opportunity with his family and felt fortunate to receive another invitation.
Cornell teammates join an expanded ECAC group
Walsh and Veilleux are among five ECAC Hockey players selected so far. Union's Tyler Dunbar, Quinnipiac's Elliott Groenewold and Dartmouth's Hayden Stavroff are also on the roster. Last year's team had two ECAC representatives: Walsh and Quinnipiac's Chris Pelosi.
Walsh is in his second season as Cornell's captain. He opened this season with two goals and an assist through two games, collecting all three points in the Big Red's 5-2 victory over Sacred Heart on Oct. 30.
He also began the season among the country's strongest faceoff performers. His 23 faceoff wins per game led Division I, while his .711 winning percentage ranked second among players with at least 30 attempts, according to Cornell.
Walsh finished his junior season with 10 goals and 23 assists for 33 points in 33 games. That followed a 31-point sophomore season in which he scored 17 goals and added 14 assists over 36 games. His Cornell career totals stand at 41 goals and 48 assists for 89 points in 106 games.
U.S. opens against Frölunda on Dec. 26
The Collegiate Selects won Group Cattini last December, earning a bye into the semifinals before advancing to the final. Host HC Davos won the championship game 6-3. Walsh scored a goal and added an assist in that final, accounting for both of his points in the tournament.
This year's U.S. team again shares Group Cattini with Davos, joined by Sweden's Frölunda. Group Torriani includes Switzerland's SCL Tigers, Germany's Adler Mannheim and Finland's Ilves Tampere.
The Americans will open against Frölunda at 2:15 p.m. Eastern on Dec. 26. Their game against Davos will follow at the same time on Dec. 27 if they lose the opener, or Dec. 28 if they win.
Group play runs Dec. 26-28, with each group winner receiving a semifinal bye. The remaining teams play pre-semifinals on Dec. 29, followed by the semifinals Dec. 30. Those rounds have games at 9:10 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. Eastern.
The championship game is scheduled for 6:10 a.m. Eastern on Dec. 31. Broadcast information for the 2026 tournament will be announced later.
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