For the first time since the 1975-76 season, a sophomore will serve as a team captain for Wisconsin men’s hockey. Luke Kunin, a native of Chesterfield, Mo., the former St. Louis Blues U-16 player led the Badgers in goals scored (19) last season. Senior forward Grant Besse (33 points in 2015-16) and junior forward Cameron Hughes (26 points) were named alternate captains.
Kunin, a first-round draft pick (15th overall) of the Minnesota Wild, was the captain of the U.S. National Team Development Program’s U-18 Team in 2014-15. That team won gold at the 2015 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship and included other future first-round draft picks including Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk.