ST. PAUL, Minn. — Cornell men's hockey junior forwards Ryan Walsh and Jonathan Castagna have been nominated for the 2026 Hobey Baker Memorial Award, it was announced Wednesday afternoon.

Voting for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, presented annually to college hockey's top player, will run through midnight on Sunday, March 8. Fans can cast their votes online at hobeybaker.com/vote. A second phase of fan balloting from the list of top 10 Hobey Baker finalists will begin on Wednesday, March 18 and go up to Sunday, March 29. The 2026 Hobey Baker Award winner will be announced from a field of three Hobey Baker Hat Trick finalists on Friday, April 10, in Las Vegas during the NCAA Frozen Four. The award ceremony will be broadcast nationally on NHL Network and streamed live on hobeybaker.com.

Award criteria include candidates exhibiting the exceptional character traits of the award's namesake, Hobey Baker. A legendary American hero, Baker was a World War I fighter pilot and known as America's greatest amateur athlete in his day, excelling at hockey and football at Princeton University. Award candidates must demonstrate strength of character both on and off the ice, contribute to the integrity of his team and display outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Consideration should be given to scholastic achievement and sportsmanship.

New for this season, fans can also text their vote for the 87 college hockey players nominated from 48 different NCAA Division I schools. Fans interested in utilizing the text-to-vote option can text either "26089" for Walsh or "26090" for Castagna to 844-623-9688.

Currently serving as Cornell's leading scorer, Walsh has compiled 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) across 17 appearances this season. His 1.06 points-per-game and 0.71 assists-per-game averages both rank seventh among ECAC Hockey players. Walsh's five-assist performance against RPI on Nov. 22 made him the only player with a five-assist game this season and one of eight to register at least four helpers in a single game.

Castagna (9-8—17) is right behind Walsh in scoring, tied with freshman forward Caton Ryan for second on the team in points while leading Cornell in goals (9). Five of Castagna's nine goals have come on special teams — two on the power play and three shorthanded. He is tied with Penn State's Dane Dowiak, Michigan's Josh Eernisse and St. Thomas' Alex Gaffney and Nathan Pilling for the nation's lead in short-handed goals. In addition to his game-winning goals against Harvard (Nov. 7) and Alaska (Jan. 11), Castagna is one of five players nationally with multiple game-winning, power-play and shorthanded goals.

Along with his offensive presence, Castagna has been a force in the faceoff circle, leading the nation in faceoff win percentage among players with at least 200 faceoff wins (65.9 percent). His percentage is three points higher than St. Cloud State's Tyson Gross (62.7 percent) and he is one of seven players this season with at least 200 faceoff wins and a 60.0 percent success rate.

Walsh, Castagna and the 12th-ranked Cornell men's hockey team return to action Friday, Jan. 24, when it faces Dartmouth at Lynah Rink to begin the final weekend of an eight-game homestand. Puck drop between the Big Red and Big Green is scheduled for 7 p.m., with game action streamed live on ESPN+.