Two seasons ago, Max Plante joined the University of Minnesota Duluth men’s hockey team, and was hugely notable for two things outside of his hockey talent – he was one of 16 players in program history with a father who was a former Bulldog hockey player, and his older brother Zam Plante would be joining him for what would be both of their rookie campaigns at UMD.

Fast forward 63 games as a Bulldog to this past April, Plante stood out for a far greater reason when the 2025-26 college hockey season came to an end – he had become UMD’s seventh Hobey Baker Award winner in school history.

Plante expanded the Bulldog program’s trove of Hobey Baker trophies by adding his own, the first UMD player to win college hockey’s biggest honor since Scott Perunovich earned it in 2020. Overall there have been seven Bulldog winners – Plante, Perunovich, Jack Connolly (2012), Junior Lessard (2004), Chris Marinucci (1994), Bill Watson (1985) and Tom Kurvers (1984).

The Hermantown, Minn. native collected almost every major award across college hockey this past season as a sophomore. In addition to being named college hockey’s highest honor, Plante was named a 2025-26 CCM/AHCA Hockey West First Team All-American during the Hobey Baker Award ceremony, the 2026 USA Hockey’s Jim Johannson College Player of the Year, the College Hockey News Player of the Year and USCHO’s Player of the Year.

The Red Wing draftee was also chosen the 2025-26 National Collegiate Hockey Conference Player of the Year – just the second Bulldog ever to land the honor, and became UMD’s first NCHC Forward of the Year. Named to the NCAA Tournament Albany Regional All-Tournament Team, Plante also earned an All-NCHC First Team selection. Plante finished the season with 52 points – the most by a Bulldog since 2011-12 – and his 26 goals – the second most in the NCAA to date – is the most since Mike Connolly put up 28 in 2010-11.

One of just 28 players to have compiled 51 or more points in a single season in UMD program history (82 seasons), Plante ranked third in the NCAA in total points (52), game-winning goals (6), eighth in power play goals (8) and points per game (1.30 ppg). In 15 games last season Plante registered two or more points, including five with three or more. With a time on ice average of 21:50, Plante also owned a plus/minus rating of +19 and had his first career hat trick against the University of Omaha on Nov. 14. Against teams in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, Plante had 15 points (6g, 9a) in 14 games, a 1.04 ppg, and that included three points in two NCAA Tournament games.

In addition to his Bulldog hockey duties this season, Plante also had two stints with two USA Hockey teams. In December, he was a member of the U.S. 2026 U.S. National Junior Team, and this past May, he was named to the 2026 U.S. Men’s National Team IIHF Men’s World Championship roster. And yet somehow, with all the extra hockey mixed in, Plante kept his grades up enough to be named both a 2025-26 AHCA Academic All-American and a CSC Academic All- American – no small feat. Plante was also named to the CSC Academic All-District® Men’s At-Large Team and a 2025-26 NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete and NCHC Honor Roll member.

Perhaps the biggest postseason story for Plante, however, is that the reigning Hobey Baker Award winner will return to UMD’s campus next season for his third, and what he has said will be his final, season of college hockey. Earning all the individual honors meant something to Plante, but his ultimate goal remains to bring a NCAA Championship banner back to the rafters of AMSOIL Arena.

“I plan to come back next year,” said Plante. “Just the fact to have the chance to play with two brothers at that high a level and to try to achieve something that I haven’t achieved and win a national championship. That’s kind of the goal, really, that I had coming into college hockey. Obviously, there’s a lot of work to do before we get there, but to be able to do that with not only my brothers, but guys that I’ve gotten to know really well in my two years at UMD and they’re kind of like brothers now. So it’s a super special place to me and I just kind of want to give it one last go.”

Just the third sophomore ever to win the Hobey Baker, Plante will become the first Hobey Baker winner since the University of North Dakota’s Ryan Duncan in 2007 to return to his college team following his win.