EAST LANSING ~ MSU Hockey announced Patrick Geary as team captain for the 2026-27 season and Tommi Männistö and Shane Vansaghi as alternate captains in the push for a fourth consecutive Big Ten regular-season championship.
Geary, a senior defenseman entering his fourth Spartan season, sealed his freshman year with an overtime goal against Michigan for the first of his three Big Ten titles. Following his debut college season, Geary was selected in the sixth round of the 2024 NHL draft by his hometown team, the Buffalo Sabres. In 2025-2026, Geary served as an alternate captain for Matt Basgall, who has since graduated and started a one-year contract with the Anaheim Ducks’ AHL affiliate.
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(CONTINUED) Senior winger Männistö, also a fourth-year Spartan, posted a career high 12 goals last season, and another nine assists to match his record. Junior winger Vansaghi was selected in the second round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft by the Philadelphia Flyers, where he will join MSU hockey-alum Porter Martone.
Together, Geary, Männistö, and Vansaghi will lead a veteran core positioned for a rare achievement. Geary, Männistö, and fourth-year Spartan Griffin Jurecki have a unique opportunity to collect the maximum number of Big Ten titles in their college tenure. Despite strong rosters and elite regular season stats, MSU has not appeared in the Frozen Four for almost 20 years.
The Spartans will be joined by a top prospect-stacked rookie class, including three first-round NHL draft picks in Ethan Belchetz, Jack Hextall, and Chase Reid. The Spartans will start their season on Friday, Oct. 9 against Northern Michigan at Munn Ice Arena.
