In the PodKaz for Feb. 17, 2026, hosts Nicole Haase and Todd Milewski from USCHO.com open with a look back on a wild finish to the ECAC Hockey regular season. Yale and Princeton tied for the championship after Saturday games that both involved extra-attacker goals.

No. 2 Ohio State solidified a top-two spot in the WCHA with a home sweep of No. 3 Minnesota, and the Buckeyes still have hope of passing No. 1 Wisconsin on the final weekend.

The race for the NEWHA championship is going down to the final weekend, with Franklin Pierce, Assumption and Saint Anselm having chances at the title.

RIT earned its first win at No. 4 Penn State in 12 years with an overtime triumph last Friday, and Syracuse earned a tie and shootout win over Mercyhurst to add some intrigue to the upcoming playoffs.

Minnesota, Penn State and Northeastern didn't lose ground in the NPI despite losses last week.

Our second segment includes a discussion of the upcoming Olympic gold-medal game. The U.S. and Canada will play in the final for the seventh time in eight tournaments, and even though the Americans have won each time the countries have played this season, Thursday's game still feels like a toss-up.

We wrap up this week's show with a look ahead to the start of the postseason in ECAC Hockey and Atlantic Hockey and other important games around the country.

The PodKaz is a production of USCHO.com. Have a question for us? Reach out to Nicole (@NicoleHaase) or Todd (@ToddMilewski) on social media or email [email protected].