Buffalo Sabres development coach Tim Kennedy knows what it takes to win a national championship. He scored the tying goal for Michigan State and had the primary assist on Justin Abdelkader’s game-winner with 19 seconds remaining in the 2007 title game.
Kennedy’s heroics marked the last time Michigan State won a national championship. Now, he'll watch as six Sabres prospects – including two from his alma mater – battle on the biggest stage in college hockey during the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
Michigan State defensemen Maxim Strbak and Patrick Geary; UConn forward Jake Richard; Wisconsin freshmen Luke Osburn and Vasily Zelenov; and Minnesota Duluth defenseman Adam Kleber round out the Sabres’ six-man group chasing a national title.
Kennedy and fellow development coach Zach Redmond will be watching all six Sabres prospects this weekend. They’ll see five of the players in regional games in Worcester, Massachusetts on Thursday then make the roughly two-hour drive to Albany to watch Kleber on Friday night against Penn State.
“It’s one of the main times of the year where you can evaluate a kid because it’s such a high-stakes environment for college because unlike pro hockey, it’s one game, winner takes all,” Kennedy said. “The smallest mistake can end your season and it’s seeing how the players handle that environment, whether they’re in their first year or third or fourth year.”
Here’s what to watch for from each of the six participating prospects, with thoughts from Kennedy.
Maxim Strbak (RHD) and Patrick Geary (LHD) – Michigan State
Strbak (second round, 2023) and Geary (sixth round, 2024) have helped power Michigan State to the No. 1 seed in the Worcester Regional and No. 3 overall in the field.
They’ll both be making their third tournament appearances after losing in the regional final to Michigan in 2024 and to Cornell with 8.5 seconds remaining in the 2025 regional semifinal as the No. 2 overall seed.
Strbak has 18 points – the second most by a Michigan State defenseman – in 35 games with a plus-20 rating, which ranks ninth in the Big Ten. The Slovakian eclipsed 100 career games in the Big Ten semifinal – a 3-2 overtime loss to Ohio State – and he’s been a standout two-way defenseman with 19:26 of ice time per game.
Kennedy praised the tenacity that Strbak plays with, a dynamic that’s developed during his three seasons playing against some of the most electrifying forwards in the country every weekend in the Big Ten. Strbak – who began playing collegiately three seasons ago at 18 years old – will continue to have his defensive skillset tested in a challenging regional.
“Max’s maturation process the last few years is very impressive,” Kennedy said. “He was a young kid, got thrown in the fire right away. He’s gotten better and better each year and this year, we’re seeing it with his plus-minus, his point total, he went on the power play earlier in the year. ... He’s a hard-to-play-against, shutdown defender, can skate really well. He’s very physical and that’s what we love about him, that’s where we see him playing.”
Strbak and Geary have been paired together for nearly every game this season, including time on the penalty kill, and they’ll draw the assignment of shutting down UConn’s top talent such as Richard and Lake View, New York native Joey Muldowney.
Geary hails from Hamburg and played four seasons with the Buffalo Jr. Sabres where he was coached by Kennedy at 16U AAA in 2020-21. Geary was also teammates with Muldowney and fellow Sabres draft choice Gavin McCarthy that season.
Kennedy has known Geary since the latter was 12 years old with their shared roots traced back to South Buffalo. Geary is an assistant captain as a junior and he has a career-best plus-15 rating while playing over 18 minutes a game. Much like Strbak, Geary plays with palpable energy that’s made him an exciting defensive prospect.
“He’s always been this athletic hockey player and now going to Michigan State with the coaching staff they have, how they’re taught, plus working with Zach Redmond the last few years, he's really figured out how to play more defensively and been taught that shutdown role where he is,” Kennedy said. “He's a really good skater, shutdown defender. He's competitive, he’s in the other teams’ best players face and that’s something we love about him. That’s something that team really embraces too. ... He embodies how the team wants to play defensively. Tough, aggressive, in your face and he’s had a really good year, too.”
Jake Richard (F) – UConn
Richard (sixth round, 2022) is set to play in his second straight NCAA Tournament after UConn lost in overtime of the 2025 Allentown Regional final to Penn State. The Huskies lost to Merrimack in the Hockey East final but made the field as the final at-large team.
Richard posted 43 points (15+28) in 34 games last year – 11 more than Tage Thompson’s season-high at UConn – but it dipped to 27 points (10 + 17) in 37 games this season.
Despite the drop in production, Richard’s shot volume increased from 84 to 102. Kennedy said Richard has developed into a complete player and played more responsibly in all three zones.
“He’s relied on heavily offensively and he’s really the leader of that team as an offensive catalyst,” Kennedy said. “That’s the one hard thing about producing points every year. I would say Jake’s game is very similar to last year, maybe even better, but just for some years, the puck goes in the net and some years it doesn’t. When I talk with Jake, the main concern isn’t the point total. Yes, he needs to produce for his team to have success but his overall game, his 200-foot game has improved whether it’s on the forecheck, the backcheck, his defensive-zone play.”
Luke Osburn (LHD) and Vasily Zelenov (F) – Wisconsin
The Worcester Regional will feature Osburn (fourth round, 2024) and Zelenov (seventh round, 2024) making their NCAA Tournament debuts for Wisconsin. The Badgers reached as high as No. 2 in the USCHO national poll with a 16-3-2 mark until early January but six straight losses and a 6-9 finish pushed Wisconsin to a No. 3 seed.
Osburn pieced together a dominant first collegiate season after winning USHL Defenseman of the Year in 2024-25. It hasn’t been all perfect for the blueliner, who missed nearly a month due to mono, but he tallied 13 points in 12 games after coming back.
Osburn – who played for the United States in the 2026 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship – has 20 points in 29 games which are the most by a Wisconsin freshman defenseman since K’Andre Miller had 22 points in 2018-19.
The Plymouth, Michigan, native was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and is tied for fourth in the country among freshman defensemen in points. He's helped quarterback the Wisconsin power play to seventh best in the country at 27 percent and he’s played 21:11 per game which is second most on the team.
“Just from their staff this year they’ve had nothing but praise for him and we’ve loved his game,” Kennedy said. “It's hard coming in as a freshman in the Big Ten with all that talent, but he's had a really impressive freshman year. ... I think if their team has success, Luke’s gonna be a huge part of it and he’s gonna have to have big games for them both offensively and on the defensive side as well.”
It’s been a tale of two seasons for Zelenov, who had no goals and just three points in his first 10 collegiate games. In his last 14 games, he had 13 points with five goals and eight assists for a season total of 16 points in 24 games.
Zelenov missed eight games after suffering a lower body injury during a wall battle on Dec. 29. Kennedy described it as a “freak play” and the Badgers went 2-6 without him playing his usual center spot.
Zelenov sustained his injury after playing with Austria at the 2026 IIHF U20 World Champion Division 1, Group A tournament. He led Austria in assists (seven) and points (nine) and Kennedy said Zelenov’s game took off before he got hurt and since he’s slotted back in, he’s provided critical lineup stability.
“I’ve been very happy with Vasily’s progress this year,” Kennedy said. “He's always been that defensively responsible forward but always wanted him to shoot a little bit more. He just by nature is a pass-first forward and you're seeing his offense tick up here a little bit more. I know the coaches at Wisconsin – plus ourselves – we were talking about that. He is a piece that they missed in their lineup. I know they're really happy to have him back, and so are we. Going up against Dartmouth, he’ll be a big part of that as well with Luke.”
Adam Kleber (RHD) – Minnesota Duluth
Minnesota Duluth is back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022 and Kleber (second round, 2024) has been a workhorse for head coach Scott Sandelin by playing 22 minutes a game. He’s guided the Bulldogs penalty kill to an 89.3-percent success rate which is third best in the country.
Kleber was named NCHC Defensive Defenseman of the Year as a sophomore and the 6-foot-6 blueliner will have a tough test against a Penn State offense led by top 2026 draft prospect Gavin McKenna, Predators pick Aiden Fink and Hurricanes prospect Charlie Cerrato.
The Albany Regional has four top-25 scoring teams with Penn State fifth nationally in goals per game (3.75) and Michigan the No. 1 producing offense at 4.57 goals per game. Kleber’s highly-touted defensive prowess will be challenged against Penn State, which plays a run-and-gun, transition style game.
“He’s 6-foot-6, can skate, long length, long reach, everything you want in a defenseman,” Kennedy said. “A big part of their success this weekend versus Penn State if they can get past them is going to be Adam and his defensive partner shutting that top line down. ... They're in a high-power offensive bracket, but because of Adam and his D partner, they can shut you down defensively. If their team’s going to have success, he’s going to be a huge part of it because he’s going to have to neutralize both the Penn State offense and then potentially the Michigan offense.”
