CHICAGO, ILLINOIS — The Chicago Steel will begin the 2026-2027 season at the USHL Fall Classic, being held for the first time at Blackhawks Ice Center presented by Fifth Third Bank in Chicago, IL, on Friday, September 18, and Saturday, September 19.
Chicago will square off against two Western Conference opponents at their home venue, USG Arena, starting with the Lincoln Stars on Friday, Sept. 18, at 7:00 pm CT. The Steel will conclude their Fall Classic slate against the Omaha Lancers on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 7:00 pm CT.
The Fall Classic begins on Wednesday, September 16 and runs through Sunday, September 20. Each USHL team plays two regular season games during the event which serves as a showcase for over 400 NHL and NCAA scouts expected to attend.
Following a road trip to Cedar Rapids on October 2, the Steel will return home for their Inaugural Opening Night at USG Arena on Saturday, October 3 at 7:00 pm CT as the team opens its first season on Chicago's west side.
The 2026-2027 season is the second year for Chicago Steel head coach Scott Gomez and assistant coach Mike Mottau. The Steel added Casey Mignone as an assistant coach in July.
Along with the excitement of playing in a new, state-of-the-art venue is the anticipation of a team roster that features a plethora of returning skaters including a pair of NHL draft picks. The Steel open the season as the third-youngest roster in the USHL at 17 years, ten months old.
Forwards Dallas Vieau and Patrick Tolan are among nine returning players for the Steel. The Duluth, MN native came to the Steel via trade from Sioux City on Feb. 12 and scored 12 points in 18 games with Chicago.
Tolan and Cole Bumgarner each came to Chicago in a trade with Fargo on January 29 and each had strong showings with the Steel. Tolan potted nine points in 24 games with the new squad. Bumgarner was white-hot to round out his debut year with Chicago. The Minnesotan appeared in his first game of the season on Feb. 28 and scored in seven of his final eight games with seven points (2G-5A).
Two current Steel skaters were selected in the 2026 NHL Draft, Jayden Kurtz by the Anaheim Ducks in Round 2 and Brian McFadden by the Washington Capitals in Round 5. Kurtz was selected by the Steel in Round 6 of the 2025 USHL Phase I Draft and made his Steel debut on November 1, 2025. He rejoined the team in February 2026 and recorded a point in three of his last five games. McFadden will make his Steel debut this fall following a productive second season at Thayer Academy in Massachusetts that featured over 21 minutes of average ice time per game.
Forward Harrison Smith is expected to make his Steel debut Friday. Smith, tendered prior to the USHL Phase II Draft by the Steel on April 29, was the North American Hockey League's (NAHL) scoring champion and lifted the Maryland Black Bears to their first-ever Robertson Cup title. Smith led the NAHL in points (96) and assists (72) during the 2025-2026 regular season, tallying nine more points than the next-highest scorer. He became one of just three skaters in the NAHL to record at least 90 points in a season in the last ten years and was named NAHL MVP, Forward of the Year, and Robertson Cup Playoffs MVP.
Each standing at 6'7" tall, defenseman Trevor Shorter and forward Nolan Shorter rank as the tallest players in the USHL this season. The twin brothers from Elmhurst, IL committed to Notre Dame on August 19. Trevor joined the Steel last season and quickly became a staple on the blue line, appearing in 34 games with a +2 plus-minus rating and 37 shots, and had a three-game goal streak in February. Nolan will make his Steel debut this season, getting to play alongside his twin brother for the first time since the two played hockey for the Chicago Reapers 16U AAA team.
Colorado College commit Easton Pace will look to complete his first full season of play with the Steel after missing the majority of last season due to injury. Pace appeared in the first 11 games of the 2025-2026 season and scored six points (2G-4A). It marks his fourth season of play in the USHL after playing for the USA Hockey NTDP in 2023-2024 and the Tri-City Storm in 2024-2025.
Returning skaters Camillo Milani, Joe Erickson, Jackson Mahley, and Reese Tracy all made their USHL debuts with the Steel last season. Milani recorded his first USHL point in his final game of the season with an assist on March 28. Erickson potted an assist for his first point the night before on March 27. Tracy appeared in three games with Chicago and Mahley skated in one contest for his league debut on Jan. 18.
Rookie forward MJ Campbell will make his USHL debut with the Steel on Friday. Campbell was selected by the Steel in Round 1 of the 2026 USHL Phase I following a dominant season with the Mount St. Charles Academy 15U team, scoring 101 points in 51 games. Campbell grew up not far from Chicago's new home, residing in the Chicago south suburb of Frankfort, IL, and committed to Notre Dame in August.
The Steel will look toward another group of returning veterans to lead the roster this season. Defenseman Jason Millett enters his second season with the team after setting the tone on the blue line last year. He led all defensemen with the best plus-minus rating (+9) and was the only defenseman to play in all 62 games. In a full season of play, he had just 16 penalty minutes.
Forwards Benson Grande and Cade Strom are also set for year two in Chicago. Grande appeared in 48 games last season, while Strom came to Chicago via trade from Sioux Falls on Feb. 5. Strom, an Ohio State commit, scored his lone Steel goal in the second-to-last game of the season on April 3.
Chicago added Czechian goalie Stepan Houdek in Round 2 of the 2026 USHL Phase II Draft. The athletic, 6'3" netminder had an eye-opening campaign overseas with HC Plzen U20 last season, posting a 2.36 goals against average and a .927 save percentage while also recording six shutouts. In his two preseason appearances with the Steel, Houdek stopped 35 of 36 shots.
Goaltender Alex Wang was drafted by Chicago in the 2025 Phase I Draft and made his Steel debut last season. The Concord, MA native was between the pipes for one contest last season, stopping 46 of 50 shots for his first USHL win on March 28 in Lincoln.
Chicago missed the playoffs last season, marking the first time it missed the postseason in consecutive seasons since 2015-2016.
Chicago went head-to-head with the Stars twice last season in Lincoln, falling in the first matchup before outshining the opposition the following night. Returning forward Cole Bumgarner potted a goal and an assist in the team's 6-4 win on March 28 and also scored Chicago's only goal the night before. Fellow returners Camillo Milani, Benson Grande, Jason Millett, and Dallas Vieau all found the scoresheet in the victory.
Lincoln qualified for the 2026 Clark Cup Playoffs, marking its fifth consecutive year in the postseason. The Stars opened the playoffs with a series win over Des Moines and were one win away from advancing to the Western Conference Final, but Sioux Falls came back from a 2-1 series deficit and knocked out the Stars en route to its fourth Clark Cup Championship in team history.
Artt Brey will make his debut as Lincoln's new head coach. Brey has been with the Stars since the 2021-2022 season where he served as an assistant coach and goaltending coach up until last season.
Chicago and Omaha faced off in the USHL Fall Classic last season, also on September 19, with the Steel coming out on top 4-1. The two teams met again in November with Chicago sweeping a pair of games, 8-1 on Nov. 8 and a 3-0 shutout win on Nov. 9.
The Lancers made forward progress last season but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. Omaha rounded out the 2025-2026 campaign with seven wins in its final ten games and had the fifth-most wins in the conference despite finishing seventh.
Chicago will take to the road after the Fall Classic and face Cedar Rapids on Friday, Oct. 2 at 7:05 pm. The Steel will return home for their inaugural Opening Night on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 7:00 pm against Green Bay. After the game, fans can hit the ice for the first Skate with the Steel this season.
Single-game, group, and premium seating tickets for the 2026-2027 season are on sale now.
For more information, call 855-51-STEEL or visit ChicagoSteelHockeyTeam.com.
Chicago Steel Upcoming Schedule:
Friday, September 18 vs. Lincoln Stars (7:00 pm CT) | USHL Fall Classic | Chicago, IL
Saturday, September 19 vs. Omaha Lancers (7:00 pm CT) | USHL Fall Classic | Chicago, IL
Friday, October 2 at Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (7:05 pm CT)
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