Hamilton College forward Luke Tchor
was one of seven athletes selected as a finalist for the 2026 Sid Watson Award, which is given to the best men's hockey player in NCAA Divisions II and III, on Friday, March 20 when the American Hockey Coaches Association announced their list.
Tchor, who was voted the 2026 New England Small College Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second year in a row, is the only returning Sid Watson Award finalist from last year. Hamilton goaltender Evan Buitenhuis '18 collected the award in 2017.
The Sid Watson Award honors the memory of former Bowdoin College head coach and athletic director Sid Watson. The recipient of this year's award will be announced during the NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Championship after a vote by the nation's head coaches. Utica University hosts the semifinals on Friday, March 27 and the final on Sunday, March 29.
Tchor has 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 24 games. Five of his goals are on the power play, four are game winners and two have been scored in overtime. He's 11th in NCAA Division III in goals per game.
Tchor leads the Continentals into the NCAA championship semifinals on Friday at 3 p.m. when they play Aurora University at Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. Hamilton, which has a record of 21-5-2, is in the national semifinals for the first time.
| Past Winners of the Sid Watson Award |
| 1993 |
Frank Cirone |
Wisconsin-Stevens Point |
Forward |
| 1994 |
Ray Alcindor |
Middlebury |
Forward |
| 1995 |
Charlie Gaffney |
Bowdoin |
Forward |
| 1996 |
Ian Smith |
Middlebury |
Defense |
| 1997 |
Steve Toll |
RIT |
Forward |
| 1998 |
Mark Spence |
Middlebury |
Forward |
| 1999 |
Rob Smillie |
St. Norbert |
Forward |
| 2000 |
Steve Aronson |
St. Thomas |
Forward |
| 2001 |
Keith Aucoin |
Norwich |
Forward |
| 2002 |
Jerry Galway |
RIT |
Defense |
| 2003 |
Maris Ziedins |
St. Norbert |
Forward |
| 2004 |
Kevin Cooper |
Middlebury |
Forward |
| 2005 |
Kurtis McLean |
Norwich |
Forward |
| 2006 |
Adam Hanna |
St. John's |
Goalie |
| 2007 |
Andrew Gallant |
Manhattanville |
Goalie |
| 2008 |
Kyle Jones |
St. Norbert |
Goalie |
| 2009 |
Jeff Landers |
Amherst |
Defense |
| 2010 |
David Martinson |
Gustavus Adolphus |
Forward |
| 2011 |
Chris Berenguer |
Hamline |
Defense |
| 2012 |
Jonathan LaRose |
Amherst |
Goalie |
| 2013 |
Paul Rodrigues |
SUNY Oswego |
Forward |
| 2014 |
David Jacobson |
St. Norbert |
Goalie |
| 2015 |
Drew Fielding |
St. Thomas |
Goalie |
| 2016 |
Jamie Murray |
Babson |
Goalie |
| 2017 |
Evan Buitenhuis |
Hamilton |
Goalie |
| 2018 |
Colin Larkin |
UMass Boston |
Forward |
| 2019 |
Devin McDonald |
Geneseo |
Goalie |
| 2020 |
Tom Aubrun |
Norwich |
Goalie |
| 2021 |
Not Awarded |
| 2022 |
Peter Bates |
St. Norbert |
Forward |
| 2023 |
Matus Spodniak |
Adrian |
Forward |
| 2024 |
Devon Bobak |
Trinity |
Goalie |
| 2025 |
Shane Soderwall |
Curry |
Goalie |
