Chris Hedden named AHA Defenseman of the Year
3/17/2026 3:00:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Air Force senior Chris Hedden was named the Atlantic Hockey America Defenseman of the Year, as announced today by the league office.
A first-team all-AHA selection, Hedden is the fourth Falcon to earn the award, joining Greg Flynn (2008-09), Tim Kirby (2011-12) and Adam McKenzie (2012-13).
Hedden, from Kalamazoo, Mich., had more goals (9) and points (24) in league play than any other AHA defenseman. He also had two power-play goals, two short-handed goals and was a +7 (tied for third best) in 26 conference games. In all games, Hedden led the team with 12 goals and 34 points. Hedden's 12 goals and 34 points are second in the nation for a defenseman and finished the season with a team-high 63 blocked shots in all games. He is a five-time AHA Defenseman of the Week and was the AHA and HCA (national) Defenseman of the Month for November. He is also on the ballot for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. This season, he became the only active Division I defenseman with more than 100 career points. He is the first Falcon defenseman to score 100 or more career points since Beau Bilek in 1991-95.
Air Force closed out the regular season with an 18-15-4 record, the first winning season since 2018-19. The 18 wins tie (2023-24) as the most since 2017-18. Air Force went 8-4-2 in the final 14 games of the season and earned 11 road wins, the most since the 2017-18 season.
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A first-team all-AHA selection, Hedden is the fourth Falcon to earn the award, joining Greg Flynn (2008-09), Tim Kirby (2011-12) and Adam McKenzie (2012-13).
Hedden, from Kalamazoo, Mich., had more goals (9) and points (24) in league play than any other AHA defenseman. He also had two power-play goals, two short-handed goals and was a +7 (tied for third best) in 26 conference games. In all games, Hedden led the team with 12 goals and 34 points. Hedden's 12 goals and 34 points are second in the nation for a defenseman and finished the season with a team-high 63 blocked shots in all games. He is a five-time AHA Defenseman of the Week and was the AHA and HCA (national) Defenseman of the Month for November. He is also on the ballot for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. This season, he became the only active Division I defenseman with more than 100 career points. He is the first Falcon defenseman to score 100 or more career points since Beau Bilek in 1991-95.
Air Force closed out the regular season with an 18-15-4 record, the first winning season since 2018-19. The 18 wins tie (2023-24) as the most since 2017-18. Air Force went 8-4-2 in the final 14 games of the season and earned 11 road wins, the most since the 2017-18 season.
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