Tar Heel Hockey 2025-26 season preview

By Caleb Herrera

Chapel Hill,  NC – After finishing the 2024-25 season with a 15-13-2 record and being eliminated by Penn State in the Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League playoffs, Tar Heel Hockey is now ready to turn the page. 

Despite the losses, last season did have its silver linings. It was the first year of former Hartford Whaler/Carolina Hurricane Steve Rice taking the helm as head coach, following the departure of Adam Dauda to the Greenville Swamp Rabbits of the ECHL. 

Off the ice, the program announced a $25 million fundraising campaign to build a 3,000-seat, multi-use ice hockey arena in Chapel Hill. UNC also partnered with the NC State Icepack and Appalachian State Mountaineers to gather hurricane relief supplies for those impacted by Hurricane Helene. Adding to the season’s highlights, former UNC Football and Carolina Panthers safety Tre Boston made a memorable appearance—in the penalty box—during a game against the University of Alabama. The team also debuted its 50th anniversary jerseys in the New Year’s Classic outdoor matchup against Virginia Tech.

This season, with the move to the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division 1, there’s plenty for fans to be excited about as the organization moves forward. 

To begin the year, the Tar Heels host the University of Tennessee and University of Georgia in a weekend doubleheader—facing the Volunteers on Friday, Sept. 5 and the Bulldogs on Saturday, Sept. 6—in what should be an early test of how much offseason rust remains and a chance to set the tone for the season ahead.

Other notable opponents on the 2025-26 slate include the University of Kentucky, University of Oregon and George Mason Universiy, offering tests against unfamiliar competition in the move to D1. UNC will face off University of South Carolina in a weekend back-to-back on Nov. 14 and 15. Of course, no UNC hockey schedule would be complete without a showdown (or two) against their in-state rivals, the NC State IcePack. 

The regular season will conclude on Feb. 7 against the University of Cincinnati at the Queen City Sportsplex in Evendale, Ohio.

With a challenging schedule ahead, the Tar Heels also looked to strengthen their roster over the summer. UNC added two key player commits who are expected to make an immediate impact as the program prepares for its first full season competing at the Division I level.

Issa Mansour, a right-shot defenceman from the University of Colorado, brings physicality and good hockey IQ, according to head coach Steve Rice. The Maryland native finished the 2024-25 season with 5 assists in 22 games. 

The second commit, Jack Sangster, hails from King’s-Edgehill School in Nova Scotia, Canada. Sangster split his time last season between the CSSHL U18 league—where he recorded 13 goals and 22 points in 24 games—and the Midwest Prep Hockey League, adding one goal and three points. Rice said that he brings skill and speed that will aid the team in the transition to D1. 

As the new players look to make their mark, much of the team’s success this season will hinge on the development of returning talent – particularly Will Smith, who tied for the team lead in scoring last year with 18 goals and 28 points in 25 games. His sophomore campaign will be pivotal along with the leadership that anchors the locker room. 

One key area for improvement this season will be limiting offensive opportunities for opposing teams. Last year, the Tar Heels scored 118 goals but allowed 114, a margin that leaves little room for error against tougher Division I competition. For comparison, Virginia Tech, who finished first in the MD2 ACCHL Premier division last season, posted a +101 goal differential, a defensive efficiency the Tar Heels will need to emulate to compete at the next level. 

With new talent, harsher opponents and the inaugural season for Division 1, the 2025-26 season represents more than just another chapter for Tar Heel Hockey – it’s a statement 50 years in the making. As UNC takes to the ice this fall, the message is clear: the program isn’t just growing, it’s ready to compete.

@calebherrera_ | @UNCHockey