CRANBERRY TWP, PA – Just as the 2024-25 season wrapped up, the 2025-26 season kicks off with the Muskegon Lumberjacks and Waterloo Black Hawks facing each other on the ice. This time, though, the goal isn't to win the final game of the season, but to win the first and start the new year strong.
Game two sees the Jacks take on the Sioux City Musketeers. A two-game sweep in the season series last year, the Jacks will see the Muskies three times this campaign, starting with the first meeting in Pittsburgh in week one.
2025 Dicks Sporting Goods Fall Classic Preview
In previous years, the Lumberjacks would wait until the final two days of the season-opening event to hit the ice, but they weren't entering the season as the defending Clark Cup Champions.
The USHL schedule committee didn't take long to give fans a chance to relive one of the most exciting Clark Cup Finals in recent history. The best-of-five series went the distance and featured three overtime games, including the decisive Game 5 when
Jack Christ (Chaska, MN) completed a hat-trick, helping the Jacks secure the title.
That final buzzer of Game 5 marked the start of two very different summers for the Jacks and Hawks. For the Jacks, the summer involved long trips across the country and around West Michigan, proudly showcasing the Clark Cup. The team also has a roster filled with many returning players, including the 2025 playoff MVP and top prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft,
Tynan Lawrence (Fredericton, NB).
Waterloo has seen key players like Nick Bogas depart for the National Team Development Program, along with Carter Casey, Brady Peddle, Kaden Hawkins, and others moving on to other organizations.
There are similarities between the two teams. Both squads enter the new season with new faces in leadership. The Jacks named
Colten St. Clair as the seventh head coach in franchise history. Meanwhile, Waterloo welcomed former NHL coach Scott Gordon to Party Town.
Sioux City also had an interesting offseason. Last year, their big names carried the load, helping the Musketeers to a spot in the postseason. With the departure of Giacomo Martino, Landon Gunderson, and Samuel Urban between the pipes, the Muskies are looking to find their new top guys, or a change in identity to a full team effort to find success.
One of the best parts of Junior Hockey is the feel-good stories of players on their way to the next level of their hockey careers.
Reese Lantz (Hartland, WI) joined the Lumberjacks in the fifth round of the 2023 Phase I Draft. The 2007 birth year defenseman came to Main Camp in 2023 and went back to youth hockey for a season at the 16U AAA level with the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite program. With 39 points in 55 games, Lantz again reported to Main Camp at Trinity Health Arena but again didn't make the team at the start of the 2024-25 season.
That doesn't mean he wasn't ready for the jump to Junior Hockey. Lantz started last season in the North American Hockey League (NAHL) with the Janesville Jets, where the Jacks brass could keep their eyes on him.
Lantz earned a call-up to the USHL in December and filled a hole in the Jacks' lineup due to injuries. His play through three games impressed the coaching staff enough to earn another call-up in early January after the holiday break. This time, though, the team wouldn't let him go and finalized the deal to make him a full-time part of the roster.
Through the second half of the season, Lantz put up 3 points in 19 games on the Muskegon blue line and appeared in 10 of the 14 games in the Clark Cup Playoffs.
His play didn't just impress the Jacks staff. College and NHL scouts took notice of Lantz in his rookie season in Muskegon. Expect plenty of conversations about Lantz at the next level as his second year progresses.
Lumberjacks at 2025 NHL Rookie Showcases
The Muskegon Lumberjacks were well represented at the 2025 NHL Rookie Showcases this past week. Four current Lumberjacks and eleven alumni were present at various tournaments around the National Hockey League.
The more NHL draft picks you have on your team in Junior Hockey, the more wins you typically have throughout the season. The good always comes with at least a little bad, and for the Lumberjacks, that was the departure of
Viktor Norringer (Kungsbacka, SWE),
Melvin Novotny (Stockholm, SWE),
Carter Sanderson (Pierre, SD), and
Jake Stuart (Manhattan Beach, CA) after just the first weekend of the preseason.
Along with the current Lumberjacks to attend the rookie showcases were another eleven Lumberjacks alumni. The total of 15 Lumberjacks shows the success players have found personally and as a team in recent years at Trinity Health Arena.
Full List:
Carter Sanderson (PIT), Melvin Novotny (BUF), Jake Stuart (SJS), Viktor Norringer (NSH),
Ivan Ryabkin (CAR), Matvei Gridin (CGY), Quinn Hutson (EDM), Jack Williams (CBJ), Cam Berg (NYI), Joey Larson (NYI), Dylan Wendt (NJD), David Gucciardi (WSH)
Over the Airwaves
FloHockey is the official live stream partner of the USHL. Follow along all season long on FloHockey, or with a free internet radio feed available on Mixlr and the Lumberjacks Hockey Network, presented by Lakeside Surfaces, with Voice of the Jacks,
Ezra Gennello.
Thirty minutes to puck drop every game day, the Lumberjacks Hockey Network Pregame Show takes place on Facebook Live.
Upcoming Games
Wed. September 17 | 7:00 pm ET | vs Waterloo
Thurs. September 18 | 7:00 pm ET | vs Sioux City
Fri. September 26 | 7:00 pm ET | vs Green Bay
Sat. September 27 | 6:00 pm ET | vs Green Bay
Fri. October 3 | 7:00 pm ET | vs Youngstown
Sat. October 4 | 6:00 pm ET | vs Youngstown
Follow the Jacks
Be sure to follow the Muskegon Lumberjacks on social media!
Facebook - Muskegon Lumberjacks
Twitter - @MuskegonJacks
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About the Muskegon Lumberjacks
The Muskegon Lumberjacks are proud and dedicated members of the United States Hockey League (USHL), the nation's only Tier I junior hockey league and leading producer of NCAA players and National Hockey League draft picks in the United States. The club's goal is to create an environment where student-athletes develop into successful young men on and off the ice, including playing the game the right way while keeping up with their studies in the classroom and staying actively involved in the West Michigan community. The organization is committed to providing quality, affordable, and top-notch family entertainment while providing positive role models for the youth and the local community.
