Upper Deck’s 2025-26 ICE Hockey set is built for collectors who want the clean, premium look of acetate and a tighter chase than past years.
The hobby-exclusive release arrives on September 23, 2026, and the format is a major shift from previous ICE products. Instead of 72 cards per box, this one comes as a single premium pack with 8 cards. On average, each box includes an ICE Premiers rookie card, making the rookie hunt a central part of the product.
That setup gives this release plenty of pull for collectors chasing names like Matthew Schaefer, Michael Misa, and Ivan Demidov. The base checklist includes 100 experienced NHL players, with at least two from every NHL franchise, along with 100 rookies split across four tiers.
Among the standout chase cards is Exquisite Crystal, a plexi-style card that places Connor Bedard over a crystal background. Black Ice is another major insert, featuring 60 players total: 30 veterans and 30 rookies.
The veteran cards fall at 1:6 packs, while the rookies are at 1:3 packs. Gold Spectrum parallels of Black Ice are numbered to 25 and inserted randomly.
Signature Swatches brings a different look, with snowflake-like design elements and players shown in full uniform during action shots. The checklist includes major names such as Alex Ovechkin, Connor McDavid, Tage Thompson, Connor Hellebuyck, and Cutter Gauthier, along with rookies Matthew Schaefer and Ivan Demidov. Depending on the player and parallel, these cards are numbered to 5, 10, 15, 25, 49, or 99.
Fire & Ice splits its design between icy and fiery versions, with some players appearing on both and others showing up on only one version. Wyatt Johnston is one of the featured examples on the ice-themed side. These cards, including the fire parallel, are numbered to 25, 99, or 199 depending on the player.
The biggest rookie focus may be Ice Premieres, which highlights players preparing for their second NHL season as opening night approaches on September 29, 2026. The insert comes in several tiers and parallels, including a Champagne Gold Parallel that is a 1-of-1, Auto Parallels numbered to 199 or 299, Gold Auto Parallels numbered to 25, Auto Jersey Parallels numbered to 35, and Auto Patch Parallels numbered to 10.
With its compact format and loaded rookie checklist, ICE Hockey is shaping up as a product collectors will circle for key 2025-26 rookies like Ivan Demidov, Michael Misa, Matthew Schaefer, and more.
In Other News...
Stars Just Got An Early Answer In Their Backup Goalie Battle
The preseason opener gave Dallas an early look at the backup goalie race, and Casey DeSmith made a strong first impression. He handled a heavy workload against St. Louis and gave the Stars exactly the kind of steady, competitive showing they want behind Jake Oettinger, a point coach Glen Gulutzan and teammates were quick to emphasize afterward.
It was also a busy day for the organization beyond the crease, with the club locking in forward Sam Steel on a four-year extension that begins next season. But for the moment, the clearest immediate takeaway is in goal, where DeSmith has already put a little pressure on the conversation and given Dallas something useful to sort through before the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Stars Just Cut One Of Their Early Camp Standouts
The Stars trimmed their training camp roster by nine players, and one of the more notable moves was parting ways with Jack Becker after a strong start to preseason. Dallas also waived or released Aram Minnetian, Justin Ertel, Christian Fitzgerald, Ayrton Martino, Charlie Paquette, Connor Punnett, Benjamin Gleason and Kyle Looft as camp begins to narrow toward the teams opening-night mix.
Becker had positioned himself as one of the early standouts in camp, which made his exit more surprising than routine. With the roster now down to 39 players, the Stars can turn their attention to the next stretch of preseason games against the Minnesota Wild, where the remaining hopefuls will keep pushing for spots and the separation between fringe players and true contenders should start to sharpen. [Read more 🡒]
Jason Robertson Is Back But The Stars Still Face A Bigger Decision
Jason Robertson is back under contract, and for the Stars that at least quiets one of the most awkward offseason storylines. The forward agreed to a one-year deal worth $12 million, a move that avoids a scheduled salary arbitration hearing and gives Dallas a firm answer for the moment after a summer full of uncertainty around one of its top players.
The bigger question is still hanging out there. Dallas had previously lined up a sign-and-trade framework involving Seattle before Robertson passed on a long-term agreement with the Kraken, and general manager Jim Nill said the club hopes to begin talks on a longer extension starting January 1. For now, the Stars have Robertson in the fold, but the real test is whether this ends up being a temporary fix or the first step toward keeping him in Dallas for good. [Read more 🡒]