The Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) has announced the winner of the conference's 2025-26 Player of the Year and Josh Kotai (Augustana) has been selected. A junior netminder, he was voted Goaltender of the Year on Thursday.
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Kotai (Abbotsford, B.C.) went 14-8-4 while starting all 26 conference games for the Vikings during the 2025-26 conference season, posting a 1.87 goals-against average and a league-best .941 save percentage. Tied for the conference lead with four shutouts, he stopped a league-high 786 shots across 1576:04 minutes, chipping in with one assist offensively. Recording 14 games of 30 or more saves, he stopped 40+ in three contests. His season was highlighted posting three straight shutouts from January 9-16. He ranks third among all CCHA netminders in single-season save percentage since the league was reconsituted in 2021-22, while his goals-against average is fourth.
In all competitions, Kotai is 20-10-4 with a 1.99 goals-against average and a .938 save percentage with five total shutouts and three assists offensively. He leads the nation in total saves (1030), shutouts and save percentage, while ranking third in goal-against average, fifth in wins and sixth in minutes played (2054:01). A five-time CCHA Goaltender of the Week, he has been named Goaltender of the Month twice.
In 78 career games at Augustana, he is 39-29-9 with a 2.17 goals-against average and a .931 save percentage, which ranks 10th among all NCAA netminders over the last 10 years. He has earned All-CCHA First Team and Second Team honors in his three seasons and is a three-time HCA National Goaltender of the Month. A two-time Richter Award Finalist, he was a Finalist for CCHA Goaltender of the Year in 2024-25 before taking home the honor this year.
Voting for the 2025-26 All-CCHA Teams and year-end awards was conducted by the nine head coaches at each CCHA member institution, based on CCHA conference games only. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players.
The league's year-end award announcements continue on Monday, March 23 (11am ET) with the Finalists for Coach of the Year.
The 2026 Mason Cup Playoffs continue on Saturday with the semifinal round. Every playoff game can be seen live on Midco Sports Plus! For complete bracket, links and news, visit ccha.com/masoncup.
For more information, contact:
Perry Laskaris
Director of Strategic Communications & Brand Advancement
Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA)
Laskaris@ccha.com
(651) 308-1065