General | 4/3/2025 3:11:30 PM
Zeev Buium (Denver/NTDP), Isaac Howard (Michigan State/NTDP) and Ryan Leonard (Boston College/NTDP) have been named the Hat Trick Finalists for the 2025 Hobey Baker Memorial Award. This will mark the sixth straight season a USHL alum has won the award.
Each year, the Hobey Baker is bestowed upon the player who best exhibits strength of character on and off the ice, contributes to the integrity of the game and displays outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Eight of the last 10 Hobey Baker winners played in the USHL, including the last five in Macklin Celebrini (Boston University, Chicago Steel), Adam Fantilli (Michigan, Chicago Steel), Dryden McKay (Minnesota State, Madison Capitols), Cole Caufield (Wisconsin, NTDP) and Scott Perunovich (Minnesota Duluth, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders).
Seven of the top 10 Hobey Baker finalists were USHL alumni, as well as three of the top four finalists for the Mike Richter Award, which recognizes the most outstanding goalie in Division I Hockey.
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2025 Hobey Baker Hat Trick Finalists
Zeev Buium, Denver (NTDP)
The Minnesota Wild’s 12
th overall selection in 2024 returned for his sophomore season at Denver to post 10 goals and 32 assists in 36 games from the blue line. The Californian’s 42 points tied for the most of any defenseman in the NCAA this season and he is one of only two Hobey Baker Top Ten finalists to play on the back end. He was named All-NCHC First Team. Buium had four goals and 13 assists in 55 USHL games with the NTDP from 2021-23.
Isaac Howard, Michigan State (NTDP)
In his junior year, Howard led the Spartans with 47 points in 35 games on 23 goals and 23 assists. He tied for the fifth-most goals in the NCAA on 159 total shots, fifth-most in the NCAA. Prior to his collegiate career, the Wisconsin native and Tampa Bay Lightning prospect played two seasons with the NTDP where he registered 27 goals and 43 assists from 2020-22.
Ryan Leonard, Boston College (NTDP)
The Washington Capitals prospect with back-to-back World Junior titles led the NCAA with 29 goals. Earning recognition as Hockey East’s scoring champion, Three Stars Award winner and Player of the Year, Leonard had 47 points in 35 games in his sophomore season for a 1.34 point-per-game average, tied for fourth in the NCAA. His 181 shots led the nation. As a member of the NTDP from 2021-23, the Massachusetts-born forward had 21 goals and 14 assists in 50 games.
About the USHL
The United States Hockey League and its 16 member clubs are committed to being the leading 16–20-year-old junior hockey league in the world. More than half of Division I men’s hockey roster spots are held by USHL alumni and more than 195 alumni were listed on NHL rosters at the start of the 2024-25 season.
The league's player-first approach, including a 2:1 practice-to-game ratio and a schedule with 92% of games played on weekends, provides its players with the optimal environment for athletic and personal growth, creating pathways for the next generation of stars like Kyle Connor (Youngstown Phantoms), Macklin Celebrini (Chicago Steel), Cole Caufield (NTDP), Adam Fantilli (Chicago Steel) and Jeremy Swayman (Sioux Falls Stampede).
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