Plante First Red Wings Pick to Win Hobey Baker Award

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David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

The post Plante First Red Wings Pick to Win Hobey Baker Award appeared first on Detroit Hockey Now.

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On the one hand, Detroit Red Wings draft pick Max Plante was continuing a long-held college hockey tradition when he was announced as the winner of the Hobey Baker Memorial Award on Friday.

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On the other hand, he was launching a new tradition that the Red Wings hope will become more of a habit.

Plante is the seventh player from the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs to win the Hobey Baker, which goes to the most outstanding player in NCAA hockey. However, he’s the first Red Wings prospect to win the award.

In fact, since the NCAA introduced the Hobey Baker in 1980-81, no winner of the award has ever played for the Red Wings. So another history-making moment could be in Plante’s near future.

Plante was a second-round pick of the Red Wings in the 2024 NHL Draft. He was the 47th overall selection.

This season, Plante led the Bulldogs with 25 goals and 52 points. That was the most by a Minnesota-Duluth player since the 2011-12 season. He’s one of only 28 players with at least 51 points in the 82-year history of the program.

In 40 games, Plante finished tied for second among NCAA players in goals and was third in points. He was the first player in school history to be earning recognition as National Collegiate Hockey Conference Forward of the Year. Plante was also named an All-NCHC First Team selection. He also a First-Team All-American selection.

He finished the 2025-26 campaign tied for third in the NCAA in game-winning goals (six), tied for eighth in power-play goals (eight), and eighth in points per game (1.30). Plante collected a point in 29 of 40 games. He ended the season on a five-game points streak, posting 3-4-7 totals over that span.

Red Wings Picked Expected To Stay With Bulldogs

While he hasn’t confirmed his intentions for the 2026-27 season, Plante has suggested that he is intent on returning to play his junior season for the Bulldogs.

His older brother Zam is playing for the Bulldogs. Plante’s younger brother Victor is coming to play at Minnesota Duluth next season.

Their father, Derek Plante, played 450 NHL games from 1993 to 2001. He’s currently a professional scout for the Ottawa Senators. Derek Plante was a Hobey Baker Award top-10 finalist as a senior at Minnesota Duluth in 1992-93.

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