HAMDEN, Conn. — Ethan Wyttenbach led the NCAA in scoring as a freshman and is back for more. The Quinnipiac winger, a fifth-round pick of the Calgary Flames, returned for his sophomore season after posting 25 goals, 34 assists and 59 points to lead the nation, becoming the first freshman scoring leader to return for a second season since Paul Kariya in 1993-94. His Bobcats opened the new campaign with a pair of wins over New Hampshire and Merrimack by a combined score of 16-5, with Wyttenbach contributing two goals and two assists.
Wyttenbach beat out first-round picks and older top prospects to join an elite group of freshman scoring leaders that includes Kariya (1992-93), Jack Eichel (2014-15), Kyle Connor (2015-16), Adam Fantilli (2022-23) and Will Smith (2023-24). He considered signing with Calgary but chose to return to Hamden to focus on individual growth and unfinished team business. "The opportunity was on the table, and I just decided, with my family and my team behind me, that I just wanted to come back for another year or whatever it may be, and just do whatever I can to get myself ready," Wyttenbach told TheHockeyNews.com. "You don't get two chances at turning pro. Just making the most of my time here, especially with how amazing this program is and learning as much as I can before I do make that jump, so that when I get there, I stick."
The decision followed a wave of returns after Quinnipiac's second-round NCAA Tournament exit. Linemates Mason Marcellus and Markus Vidicek, defenseman Elliot Groenewold, captain Chris Pelosi and others elected to come back, a domino effect Wyttenbach embraced. "When you start seeing one guy decided to come back, two guys decide to come back, it's like, 'Okay, we're gonna have a really good team,'" Wyttenbach said. "And that might be a decision to where patience might be the smart play here." Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold, who won a national title in 2023, said of the returners: "All the kids that came back, they made new decisions. They realized pro hockey's going to be there for them a year from now; they need to get bigger, stronger, and obviously they're progressing well here with a great strength coach. Our practices are really at tempo, at pace. We push our kids, we develop our kids."
Wyttenbach missed Calgary's development camp the previous summer with an injury shortly after being drafted, but attended this summer after the NHL Draft having already decided to return, using the week to build relationships rather than chase a contract. He then spent the offseason on Long Island skating with professional players, including NHLers, an experience that shaped his approach to every shift. "It's a smaller gap when you get to that pro level, where the best guy and the worst guy is a way closer gap than it would be in college or in junior," Wyttenbach said. "It's just about learning how to maneuver that, and obviously there's some shifts here where you're going against a weaker opponent and you kind of know where to pick your spots. And I think when you get to pro, like first line, fourth line, everybody's a really, really good hockey player."
Last season Wyttenbach hoped to be a point-a-game player and instead averaged 1.475 points per game, more than current NHLers Gavin McKenna, Porter Martone and James Hagens and more than Hobey winner Max Plante, another scoring leader who returned to college. With a deep roster bolstered by transfers Jack Stockfish and Rorke Applebee, expectations are higher. "Obviously I have bigger expectations, especially after what I did last year, but I think just as I'm getting ready to hopefully play in the NHL one day, it's just about getting better every day and learning as much as I can while I'm here to become a full-time NHL player," he said. Through two games he has four points and Quinnipiac has two wins, numbers both expect to climb.