Isaac Howard, a Tampa Bay Lightning forward prospect, won the 2025 Hobey Baker Memorial Award on Friday.
The 21-year-old Michigan State junior was voted the top men's player in NCAA ice hockey ahead of two other finalists: Boston College forward Ryan Leonard, now playing for the Washington Capitals, and University of Denver defenseman Zeev Buium, a Minnesota Wild prospect.
He is Michigan State's third Hobey Baker winner, following forward Kip Miller in 1990 and goalie Ryan Miller in 2001.
“I think it could have went any way,” Howard said after the ceremony at the Stifel Theatre in St. Louis. “‘Lenny’ and ‘Z’ were incredible players and had unreal seasons. I didn't know which way it could go. Obviously when my name was called, it was super exciting. Such an incredible honor and I was really pumped.
“This award shows you had a great season. I've absolutely loved my transition to Michigan State. I couldn't be happier and it's definitely fun to get this award.”
Howard, a first-round pick (No. 31) in the 2022 NHL Draft, led Michigan State and is fifth in the NCAA with 52 points (26 goals, 26 assists) in 37 games. He was named Big Ten Player of the Year this season, his second at Michigan State after transferring from Minnesota Duluth.
His 26 goals matched Adam Hall (1999-2000) for the most in a season by a Michigan State player since Sean Berens scored 36 in 1997-98. He also had the most points in a season since Shawn Horcoff had 65 in 1999-00.
Asked what his goals are now that he plans to return to Michigan State for his senior season, Howard said, “I want to win a national championship. I didn't play to win a Hobey. At the end of the day, I want to win a national championship. I think we're going to have the group to do it. It comes down to the tournament at the end of the year. We've just got to be ready and make sure we don't leave anything on the table.”
Michigan State lost to Cornell 4-3 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on March 27.
Leonard, the No. 8 pick of the 2023 NHL Draft, signed his entry-level contract with the Capitals on March 31. He scored into an empty net for his first NHL goal in his third game, a 5-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 4, when Washington forward Alex Ovechkin scored the 893rd and 894th goals of his NHL career to tie Wayne Gretzky for most in history.
The 20-year-old, who had 49 points (30 goals, 19 assists) in 37 games as a sophomore, was the first NCAA player with back-to-back 30-goal seasons (31 in 2023-24) since Cam Atkinson for Boston College from 2009-11 and the first Eagles skater to be named Hockey East Player of the Year since Johnny Gaudreau in 2014. Leonard also was the captain for the United States team that repeated as a gold-medal winner at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship. He was named the tournament's most valuable player after he had 10 points (five goals, five assists) in seven games.
Buium, a Denver sophomore, leads NCAA defensemen with 48 points (13 goals, 35 assists) in 41 games and is second among NCAA players in assists. The 19-year-old, selected by the Wild in the first round (No. 12) of the 2024 NHL Draft, was named National Collegiate Hockey Conference player of the year, won the conference's offensive defenseman of the year award for the second straight season and was a unanimous First-Team All-NCHC selection for the second straight season.
He also won a second straight gold medal with the U.S. at the World Juniors. He had six points (two goals, four assists), was plus-10 and led the U.S. with an average ice time of 25:13 in seven games.
Buium and Denver lost their chance for a second straight NCAA championship with a 3-2 double-overtime loss to Western Michigan University in the national semifinal at Enterprise Center in St. Louis on Thursday.
Western Michigan will play Boston University in the national championship game on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET; ESPN2).
NHL.com independent correspondent Lou Korac contributed to this report
