DANBURY, Conn. – Union College men's hockey junior
Tyler Dunbar garnered All-ECAC Hockey First-Team laurels, the conference office announced Thursday.
Dunbar is the second Union blueliner to be named to the conference's first team in the last three seasons, joining John Prokop in 2023-24. Prokop went on to earn AHCA All-America East Second Team honors that year as well.
Dunbar scored the most goals among ECAC Hockey defenders during conference action, tacking on eight assists to go along with his seven goals. He produced three multi-point games against league opponents in 2025-26 and notched a single-game career-high four points against Quinnipiac on Dec. 6. He was one of four Garnet Chargers to score four points in a game this season, and his two-assist, two-goal game against the then-ranked #8 Bobcats snapped an 11-game unbeaten streak against them and marked only the second shutout of Quinnipiac in program history.
The Colorado College transfer led Union with 35 blocked shots in conference action and was tied with Union's 2025-26 All-ECAC Hockey Second-Team honoree senior Brandon Buhr for the most game-winning goals (2) against ECAC opponents on the team.
RELATED: Buhr Named to All-ECAC Hockey Second Team
Playing in all 35 games so far this season, Dunbar has accumulated 33 points, which is the third-most among all defensemen in the country. He is one of six blueliners nationally with double-digit goals and assists. His 53 blocked shots are the most on his team and the 43rd-most in the country.
Dunbar was tabbed as the conference's Defender of the Month in December and leads the league with four Defender of the Week awards this season. He most recently earned the weekly recognition from ECAC Hockey on March 9 after tallying three assists in Union's shutout over Brown University in the Opening Round of the conference tournament.
Speaking of shutouts, Dunbar has helped Union post seven shutouts this season, including back-to-back clean sheets against Brown on Feb. 28 and March 7. In those seven shutouts, Dunbar blocked a total of 13 shots.
Before transferring to Union, Dunbar had only scored one goal and one assist through his two seasons at Colorado College. With 12 goals and 21 assists this season, Dunbar broke the program's single-season goal record by a defenseman. The record was previously nine, held by five former Union defensemen. Nick DeSimone and Jeff Taylor most recently scored nine goals as defensemen for Union in 2016-17. Dunbar's 21 assists are also the eighth-most in a single season from a Union defender in the program's Division-I history.
RELATED: Rinkrat to Rink Star: At Union, Dunbar Finds Place to Thrive
Dunbar and the Garnet Chargers are ranked #20 in the USCHO and USA Hockey polls. They won 21 games in the regular season, marking the team's most wins in a campaign since 2017-18. Seeded fifth in the conference tournament, Union will visit fourth-seeded Princeton University for a best-of-three series in the quarterfinals of the ECAC Hockey Tournament, beginning Friday, March 13.
2025-26 All-ECAC Hockey First Team
G - Alexis Cournoyer, Cornell
D - Tyler Dunbar, Union
D - Elliott Groenewold, Quinnipiac (unanimous)
F - Hayden Stavroff, Dartmouth
F - Ethan Wyttenbach, Quinnipiac (unanimous)
F - Jonathan Castagna, Cornell
2025-26 All-ECAC Hockey Second Team
G - Emmett Croteau, Dartmouth
D - Isaiah Norlin, Colgate
D - Xavier Veilleux, Cornell
F - Hank Cleaves, Dartmouth (unanimous)
F - Brandon Buhr, Union
F - Antonin Verreault, Quinnipiac
2025-26 All-ECAC Hockey Third Team
G - Arthur Smith, Princeton
D - CJ Foley, Dartmouth
D - Matt Morden, Harvard
F - Kai Daniells, Princeton
F - Mason Marcellus, Quinnipiac
F - Ryan Bottrill, Clarkson
