Men's Ice Hockey | 6/19/2026 10:00:00 AM

The United States Hockey League (USHL) announced the inaugural winners of the annual Clarky Awards, created this season to recognize outstanding achievements, creativity, and work by member clubs across the League throughout the campaign.

Each Clarky Award is described below, with the 2025-26 finalists listed under each. Teams were permitted to submit one nomination for each award. Members of the USHL league office voted to determine the finalists. Team owners ranked the finalists from each category to determine a winner.

Ticketing Initiative of the Year: Dash for Cash, Green Bay Gamblers

The Gamblers’ Dash for Cash incentivized schools in Northeastern Wisconsin to sell tickets, with a portion of the proceeds returned to each school’s individual project. Not only did the Gamblers attract more than 6,500 people to a game through the promotion, with the large majority being first-time buyers, but they also gave back more than $17,000 to 22 local schools and saw an uptick in concession sales and chuck-a-puck participation.

Finalists
Squirt International Tournament Ticket Package, Fargo Force
Dash for Cash, Green Bay Gamblers
Kids Takeover Night, Sioux Falls Stampede

Broadcaster of the Year: Jim Olander, Sioux Falls Stampede

Completing his 23rd season as a broadcaster in the USHL and having called more than 1,500 games in that span, including four Clark Cup titles, Olander serves as the “Voice of the Herd” while also operating as the President and CEO.

Finalists
Josh Starr, Dubuque Fighting Saints
Drew Steele, Madison Capitols
Ezra Gennello, Muskegon Lumberjacks
Jim Olander, Sioux Falls Stampede

Community Engagement Club of the Year: Fargo Force

Raising more than $180,000 for the Fargo-Moorhead area with promotions at home games over the course of the season, the Force made contributions toward Hope Inc. Sled Hockey, the Hometown Heroes Foundation, Cullen Children’s Foundation, North Dakota Autism Center, Veterans’ Honor Flight of North Dakota and Minnesota, and Sanford Children’s Hospital, among others. Additionally, the Force was involved in youth hockey programming, teddy bear deliveries, classroom visits, and more to make their impact felt beyond the ice.

Finalists
Fargo Force
Sioux Falls Stampede

Game Presentation Club of the Year: Fargo Force

Before the puck drops, the show is well underway in Fargo. Complete with player cards, motion graphics tailored for the time of year, and opening videos that hype fans for an exciting night in Scheels Arena, the Force’s nine-person production team ensures every fan leaves with the full experience and an appetite to return.  

Finalists
Fargo Force
Green Bay Gamblers
Sioux Falls Stampede

Mascot of the Year: D.C. Eagle, Madison Capitols

D.C. Eagle is more than a mascot; he’s an official. Kind of. The Capitols’ friendly, energetic mascot married a couple at center ice during a game in January, celebrating his birthday with a hat trick in Madison’s mascot vs. kids game, and has countless dance battle victories under his belt. Simply put, D.C. Eagle brings a flock together.  

Finalists
Bernie the St. Bernard, Dubuque Fighting Saints
D.C. Eagle, Madison Capitols
Stomp, Sioux Falls Stampede
Tommy Hawk, Waterloo Black Hawks

Promotion of the Year: Birds Aren’t Real, Madison Capitols

Playing into a satirical conspiracy theory, Madison became the Surveillance Swans for a night in December. Beyond capturing more than a million eyeballs on outlets including the Pat McAfee Show, Barstool Sports, and Bardown, the Swans generated more than $20,000 in customized merchandise and had the team’s largest jersey auction of the season. Not bad for a night of surveillance.

Finalists
Hometown Heroes Night, Fargo Force
Heavy Metal Night, Green Bay Gamblers
Birds Aren’t Real Night, Madison Capitols
Wiener Dog Night, Sioux Falls Stampede

Sales Professional of the Year: Kyle Ebach, Fargo Force

During the 2025-26 season, Ebach demonstrated excellence in sales leadership, client relations, and revenue generation. He had, and had a significant impact on the organization's success, which averaged 4,123 fans per game in the regular season, the third straight year the team has averaged more than 4,100 fans per game. Leading the Force in revenue generation and guiding a team well beyond its annual sales targets, Ebach was a leader on a successful sales squad.

Finalists
RJ Guse, Dubuque Fighting Saints
Kyle Ebach, Fargo Force
Greg Lynch, Green Bay Gamblers
Drew Steele, Madison Capitols

Social Media Club of the Year: Fargo Force

Winning social media club of the year was a group effort with photo, video, and design contributions from Libby Leonard, Marissa Shiock, Ethan Schreifels, Lilly Voges, and Katie Merrick. With a consistent look and feel, the Force brought influencers such as Nasher, Swaggy P, Jon Gruden, and the Midwestern Mom to help bolster its following. The result was the Force realizing growth across all its platforms, especially TikTok, where the team gained a 27% increase in following from April 2025 to May 2026. Fargo also took advantage of its marquee nights by driving impressions with content pieces such as their ‘Corgi Bloopers’ from on-ice Corgi races and an integration with kids drawing player headshots posted on social media for Sanford Children’s Night.  

Finalists
Chicago Steel
Fargo Force
Muskegon Lumberjacks
Sioux Falls Stampede

Sponsorship Activation of the Year: Score-4-Chicken, Sioux Falls Stampede

Between a Clark Cup championship and the Herd’s Score-4 promotion with Chick-fil-A, the Stampede gave fans lots of reason to smile this year. On Saturday home games, Chick-fil-A and Sioux Falls have partnered to give away a free original chicken sandwich via the Chick-fil-A app if the Herd scores four goals. The activation is prompted by a pre-game animation on the video board, along with updates on how many goals remain until redemption after each goal. Fans will often start a “chicken sandwich” chant when Sioux Falls has three goals. When they reach four, Chik-fil-A reports hundreds of fans will redeem the sandwich and make additional purchases, too.

Finalists
Lap Around the Rink presented by Valor Carts, Chicago Steel
Forever17 Foundation & Green Envy Lawns - Retro Heritage Series Jersey Night, Dubuque Fighting Saints

Sales Rookie of the Year: Jacob Thrush, Madison Capitols

Since joining the Capitols in December, Thrush has made an immediate impact. Transitioning from a food and beverage background, he wasted no time creating genuine relationships with more than 300 fans and clients to surpass his sales goals and make significant contributions to Madison’s playoff attendance despite his limited time with the organization.

Finalists
Jake Francis, Des Moines Buccaneers
Susan Pellegrino, Dubuque Fighting Saints
Jacob Thrush, Madison Capitols
Alec McDonald, Muskegon Lumberjacks

About the USHL

The United States Hockey League (USHL) and its 16 teams are committed to being the world's leading junior hockey league. This season, more than 50% of NCAA Division I men's hockey players and nearly 25% of NHL players have USHL experience. The USHL has developed more than 285 direct NHL Draft picks since 2020, and nine of the last 10 Hobey Baker Award winners, including Macklin Celebrini (Chicago Steel).

Elevated through the recently announced Declaration of Excellence with the NHL and USA Hockey, the league's player-first approach, including a 2:1 practice-to-game ratio and a schedule with 90% 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 Auston Matthews (NTDP), Kyle Connor (Youngstown Phantoms), Jeremy Swayman (Sioux Falls Stampede), and Johnny Gaudreau (Dubuque Fighting Saints).