DENVER – The University of Denver hockey team had two players named on Tuesday to the 2025-26 All-Conference Teams by the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. Junior defensemen
Eric Pohlkamp and
Boston Buckberger each picked up honors, as Pohlkamp was recognized on the All-NCHC First Team and Buckberger was selected to the league's Third Team.
This is Buckberger's first time being honored by the NCHC, while Pohlkamp is a repeat all-conference recipient after being chosen to the Third Team last season.
Pohlkamp leads all NCAA blueliners in both goals (17) and points (36) this season while also pacing all players in the country with 160 shots on goal. He is second on the Pioneers roster with a +24 plus/minus rating, and he is first in power-play goals (5), game-winning tallies (3-tied) and blocks (67) throughout the campaign.
The Baxter, Minnesota, native has recorded at least one point in 23-of-37 contests he's played in and has recorded three points in an outing three times this season. He became the 12th Denver defenseman to score three goals in a game with his first career hat trick on Oct. 11 versus Bentley, had two goals and one assist on Nov. 21 at Arizona State and contributed three helpers on Feb. 13 at Omaha. Pohlkamp earned three NCHC Defenseman of the Week honors during the campaign.
He registered seven goals in the month of November, which tied for the third-most by an NCAA defenseman in a single month since the start of the 2002-03 campaign. He earned both NCHC Defenseman of the Month and the National Defender of the Month awards, as he also added three assists to total 10 points in eight contests during the month. Pohlkamp went on a four-game goal streak from Nov. 1-14, the longest stretch by a defenseman in NCHC history and the longest by a DU rear guard since at least the start of 2002-03.
Buckberger is tied for eighth in goals (8) and tied for 10th in points (26) among all D-men in the NCAA this year. On the Pioneers roster, he is tied for fourth in assists (18) and tied for sixth in points but ranks second in scoring amongst rear guards behind Pohlkamp. He leads the team in the plus/minus rating (+28) and power-play points (13) and is second on Denver in power-play tallies (4-tied).
The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native has recorded six multi-point outings for the Pioneers and has won two of his four career NCHC Defenseman of the Week awards this year. Buckberger registered 17 points (7g/10a) in a 15-game stretch from Nov. 1-Jan. 9 and had five goals in five games from Nov. 14-29, which included a career-long three-game goal streak from Nov. 14-21. The alternate captain recorded his first career multi-goal contest on Nov. 29 with a pair of markers to help Denver force overtime against Minnesota in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game at Ball Arena.
Both Pohlkamp and Buckberger are also nominees for the 2026 Hobey Baker Award, given to the top player in college hockey.
On Monday, a third Denver defenseman was honored by the league as freshman
Eric Jamieson was named to the NCHC All-Rookie Team. Jamieson ranks second among all NCAA rookie defenders with seven goals and has added nine assists, 49 blocked shots and 45 penalty minutes this season. The trio of Buckberger, Jamieson and Pohlkamp have combined for 32 goals from the backend this season, and DU is one of just three teams in the country with three defenseman with six or more markers this season.
The All-Conference Teams were voted on by the NCHC's nine head coaches and one media member covering each team (18 voters total). Coaches and media voted for nine forwards, six defensemen and three goaltenders, awarding first-team, second-team and third-team votes for six players (three forwards, two defensemen and one goaltender) for each team. A first-team vote was worth five points while a second-team vote was worth three points and a third-team vote worth one point. Coaches could not vote for their own players.
TICKETS: Tickets for DU hockey's NCHC Semifinal game against Western Michigan this weekend are now available.
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