Former Lake Superior State Lakers captain Lukas Kaelble has been named to the Team Germany's Men's Ice Hockey roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics. He's one of two former Laker captains representing their country at the Olympics, along with Louis Boudon for the French national team.

Kaelble captained the Lakers during the 2020/21 season, when the Lakers won the final WCHA Tournament championship and qualified for the NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. He had served as an assistant captain during the 2019/20 season. During his playing career at LSSU, Kaelble played in 131 games, scoring seven goals and assisting 50 for 57 points while posting a +12 rating. His stout defensive work anchored the Lakers defense from his 2017 arrival onward, and he earned a reputation as a tremendous leader.

During his senior season, Kaelble was nominated for the Hobey Baker and named to the WCHA All-Academic Team. As a junior, he earned WCHA All-Academic Team honors and was named LSSU's Most Valuable Defenseman. He also earned WCHA All-Academic Team honors in 2018/19, his sophomore season. Kaelble scored his first career Laker goal against Bowling Green.

The Mannheim, Germany native wore the number 22 sweater during much of his Lake Superior State tenure in honor of Michael Bakos, one of Kaelble's hockey heroes. Bakos won the DEL Championship with Adler Mannheim, Kaelble's hometown team, in 2001 and competed 100 times for Deutsche Eishockeynationalmannschaft. After Kaelble's graduation from LSSU, Bakos' son, Timo, came to Lake Superior State and proudly inherited the number 22.

After completing his degree at Lake Superior State, Kaelble spent a year at Clarkson University before turning professional with the ECHL's Florida Everblades. He joined the club for nine games in the regular season and played in 20 playoff contests as The Blades won the ECHL's Clark Cup Championship, then repeated in 2022/23, with Kaelble playing in 63 regular season contests and 22 playoff games.

He then moved back to Germany, signing for DEL club Fischtown Pinguins for the 2023/24 season. Kaelble competed in 46 contests as Pinguins won the league's regular season and finished as league playoff runner-up. He also made his senior-level international debut, competing for Germany at the 2024 IIHF World Championships. During the offseason, he signed a three-year contract with his hometown club, Adler Mannheim. The team finished fourth in the league and playoff semifinalists during the 2024/25 campaign.

Internationally, Kaelble has competed 27 times for Team Germany at senior level and played 51 games at U16, U17, U18, U19, and U20 levels. He captained Mannheim's U19 program, Jungadler Mannheim, during the 2015/16 season before coming to the United States and competing for the USHL's Fargo Force in 2016/17.

A dependable, resilient individual with tremendous defensive skills, Kaelble has been a trusted member of every organization he's played with. As the Lakers advanced to the WCHA Tournament Championship in 2021, Kaelble dominated the competition defensively while contributing massively on offense. He scored in a 6-1 quarterfinal win over Alabama Huntsville on March 12^th, 2021, then again in the 4-1 victory over Bemidji State in a single-game semifinal on March 19^th. Kaelble assisted Ashton Calder's key shorthanded goal in the final, as the Lakers took a 5-2 lead and held on for a 6-3 win to clinch the championship and an NCAA Tournament berth. He blocked two shots against Massachusetts in the national tournament as well. During the final 11 games of the season, he took just one minor penalty while playing excellent defense against top competition.

Lukas Kaelble continues the proud tradition of Laker hockey at the highest levels of the sport, and Lake Superior State University congratulates him on his selection to the German National Team at the 2026 Olympic Games.

The 2026 Olympic Games Men's Ice Hockey Tournament begins February 11^th and ends on February 22^nd.