Who is in the running for the league’s top honors?
June 8, 2026 by Alex Rubin in Rankings, Recap
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Awards Watch
Seven weeks into a thirteen week season, we are just about to halftime on the UFA calendar. As playoff races crystalize and the season begins its crescendo, I’m thinking about the players who have told the story of the season so far and who will be big factors the rest of the way as well.
MVP
Tobe Decraene (Boston) – Decraene cooled off a bit after a very hot start, but he can do everything on the field and has the potential to once again be the best player on the best team. His also sits top five in both goals and assists.
Daan De Marrée (New York) – It’s only been one weekend of games, but it is clear that De Marrée is one of the best players in the league — if not the world. Missing some of the season matters, but his MVP level talent is undeniable.
Alex Atkins (New York) – In his first year in New York, Atkins is becoming the most important offensive weapon on a title contender. His biggest hurdle to winning awards is his superstar teammates like De Marrée and John Randolph.
Walker Frankenberg (Oakland) – With as much talent as Oakland rosters it can be hard to stand out, which is what makes Frankenberg’s game so impressive. It is so obvious how good he is, even when surrounded by top-level talent.
Austin Taylor (Hustle) – The league leader in assists is the fulcrum that keeps the Hustle moving. Without an Offensive Player of the Year award, Taylor could find himself in the MVP race.
Rookie of the Year
Lander Decraene (Boston) – Tobe’s brother made an immediate splash once he started playing stateside. His block generation in the UFA is particularly impressive.
Max Pettenuzzo (Toronto) – Another young player with loads of international experience who made an instant impact in a new city on their UFA team, Pettenuzzo is quickly becoming the on-field leader for the Rush offense.
George Gust (Austin) – A potential Defensive Player of the Year candidate with nine blocks in five games, Gust fits right in to an electric Sol team who have a lot of young talent to squeeze onto their roster now.
Anton Orme (Oakland) – A decorated college player, Orme’s first professional season is displaying the same kind of skills that made him a player of the year candidate this past college season.
Kai Creed (Indianapolis) – Another Team Canada prospect, Creed has become one of the most important disc movers for the AlleyCats’ D-line while also making athletic plays downfield.
Defensive Player of the Year
Lander Decraene (Boston) – As mentioned above, Decraene gets blocks with the best of them.
Cooper Williams (Carolina) – The current blocks leader so far, Williams is helping to revitalize the Flyers’ D-line.
Carter Lankford (Oakland) – Another college star turned young Spiders star is turning heads with his athleticism downfield and length on the mark.
John Randolph (New York) – Able to guard any position on the field, Randolph is the heart and soul of the Empire D-line, which might be the most feared in the league.
Jeff Babbitt (Boston) – After a year on the O-line, Babbitt has been playing some defense recently. Given his MVP pedigree, everyone knows how capable he can be on defense.
Coach of the Year
Liam Kreiss (Oakland) – The first-year coach has the Spiders looking like one of the best teams in UFA history so far.
Nathan Bussberg (Indianapolis) – The turnaround in Indy has not yet produced a whole lot of wins, but it has turned a lot of skeptics into believers and built a new culture around an up-and-coming team.
Ben Feldman (Minnesota) – The Wind Chill look like the lockiest of locks to make Championship Weekend and the consistency they show week to week is a huge reason why.
Michael Avila (Carolina) – After a year away, Avila has the Flyers in playoff position while integrating several new offensive players to a team built on cohesion.
Xavier Maxstadt (DC) – Maxstadt has the Breeze playing better than most pundits expected this early and is setting up the organization for years to come with his reliance on young talent.
Most Improved Player
Daniel Ritthaler (Oakland) – Has there been a bigger glow up in ultimate over the last few years than Ritthaler’s? He is emerging as a two-way playmaker for a championship favorite.
Miles Grovic (DC) – Grovic’s throwing bag improved so much over the last few seasons and helped him become a more dynamic playmaker.
Elliot Hawkins (Indianapolis) – Fifteen assists in one game! After playing a smaller role in previous seasons, Hawkins is in a position now to dominate on the AlleyCats’ O-line.
Christophe Tremblay-Joncas (Montreal) – Like Grovic, CTJ was and still is a top defender, but the way his offensive game blossomed this year stands out as marked improvement.
Mark Turner (Houston) – Though Houston has not pulled off any upset wins, it seems like Turner is becoming the type of offensive player to build a game plan around and gives the team more hope that their breakthrough is coming soon.
News and Notes
- The New York Empire claimed the top spot in the East Division by handing the Boston Glory a 21-17 loss, the Glory’s first of the season. John Randolph’s four blocks led a stellar defensive effort, as the Empire scored five of the first six goals of the game. In his Empire debut, Daan De Marrée led the team with three goals.
- Boston did bounce back the next day with a 17-14 win over the Philadelphia Phoenix. Tobe Decraene’s six assists and Orion Cable’s five goals were Boston’s statistical leaders.
- Likewise, New York won their second game of the weekend, 18-14 over the Montreal Royal. De Marrée’s three blocks added to his case as the most well-rounded player in the league.
- The DC Breeze kept pace in the East, taking down the Carolina Flyers 24-22 in a tight interdivisional contest. After playing from behind in the first half, the Breeze burst ahead with a 5-1 scoring run to start the third quarter. Isaac Lee’s four assists from the D-line were critical for DC’s 75% D-line conversion rate.
- Carolina remain in second in the South Division with a crushing 31-17 win over the Pittsburgh Thunderbirds. Grayson Sanner tallied up eight goals and three assists without a turnover for the Flyers’ offense. Carolina converted 16 of their massive 21 break chances.
- The Austin Sol continued their undefeated season with a narrow 20-19 win in overtime over the San Diego Growlers. A monster game from Evan Swiatek (4A/5G) led the offensive charge for Austin. Daniel Welkener’s block late in overtime essentially sealed the game for the Sol.
- Austin also beat the Vegas Bighorns this weekend, taking home a 27-11 win. Owen Johnson’s four goals and two blocks led the defensive effort.
- The Chicago Union earned their first win of the season and the 100th in franchise history, taking down Madison 18-16 in front of a supportive home crowd. Pawel Janas’ three goals and three assists accounted for a third of the Union’s scoring, while Chicago’s defense held Anthony Gutowsky to just a single goal.
- An 82 yard buzzer beating bomb from Aylen Learned to Hunter May was the final goal as the Colorado Apex pulled off one of the biggest upsets in recent seasons by beating the Salt Lake Shred 23-22. Seth Faris (3A/6G/2B), Quinn Finer (5A), and Nanda Min-Fink (4A/2G/1B) led the charge for the resurgent Apex. Colorado has a lot of ground to make up in the playoff race, but getting this win proves they are capable of beating playoff teams.
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- The Oakland Spiders’ defense was swarming the next day. Behind the stellar defensive effort that totaled 17 team blocks, the Spiders took down the Apex 23-15. Max Zwerin (6B), Sean Liston (4B), and Max Williams (3B) were the standout block-getters for the Spiders.
- Gordon Larson (6A, 698 throwing yards) just barely out-dueled Jacob Felton (6A, 545 total yards) as the Minnesota Wind Chill continued their undefeated season with a 23-19 win over the Indianapolis AlleyCats.
UFA Power Rankings
| Rank | Team | Change | Prior |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oakland Spiders | +2 | 3 |
| 2 | Minnesota Wind Chill | - | 2 |
| 3 | New York Empire | +1 | 4 |
| 4 | Boston Glory | -3 | 1 |
| 5 | DC Breeze | +1 | 6 |
| 6 | Carolina Flyers | -1 | 5 |
| 7 | Austin Sol | +2 | 9 |
| 8 | San Diego Growlers | - | 8 |
| 9 | Atlanta Hustle | +1 | 10 |
| 10 | Salt Lake Shred | -3 | 7 |
| 11 | Madison Radicals | - | 11 |
| 12 | Indianapolis AlleyCats | - | 12 |
| 13 | Seattle Cascades | - | 13 |
| 14 | Toronto Rush | - | 14 |
| 15 | Chicago Union | +1 | 16 |
| 16 | Montreal Royal | -1 | 15 |
| 17 | Colorado Apex | +3 | 20 |
| 18 | Houston Havoc | -1 | 17 |
| 19 | Pittsburgh Thunderbirds | -1 | 18 |
| 20 | Philadelphia Phoenix | -1 | 19 |
| 21 | Oregon Steel | - | 21 |
| 22 | Vegas Bighorns | - | 22 |
The UFA’s Rivalry Week delivered, and as such there are lots of changes this week in the power rankings:
- We have a new top team! Boston drops below New York following their matchup this week, leaving Minnesota, Oakland, and Austin as the only undefeated teams. Given the margins of victories and dominance by the eye test of their wins, Oakland jumps over Minnesota for the top spot.
- Austin and San Diego flip based on their head-to-head results, as do Carolina and DC.
- Colorado jumps up a few spots, and Salt Lake falls towards the playoff bubble following the Apex’s upset over the Shred.
- Likewise, Chicago gets a small bump for their first win of the season and given that they have more runway to make the playoffs than Montreal.
