The seniors at the University of Alabama Huntsville led the team to its best record of their four-year tenure, but their departures will leave the Chargers with a reliance on youth heading into the 2018-19 campaign.

Graduated senior Josh Kestner exits the lineup after leading the team in scoring for the second consecutive season. Kestner posted 24 goals and 32 points, and fellow seniors Brandon Parker, Brennan Saulnier, Max McHugh, Richard Buri, and Cody Champagne are also out of the picture.

Starting goaltender Jordan Uhelski is among the departing class after a 12-18-2 record, earning each of the Chargers’ 12 victories during their 12-23-2 season overall. Uhelski finished his senior year with a .907 save percentage and 3.05 goals against average. It came after a .906 SV% and 2.78 GAA in 2016-17 when he played his first game for the Chargers after two years with the program.

Then there’s Tyler Poulsen, who is leaving the team after his junior season. Poulsen broke out for nine goals and 26 points after consecutive six-point seasons as a freshman and sophomore. He finished as the team’s second-leading scorer but is joining the ECHL’s Allen Americans for 2018-19.

With Poulsen’s departure, the Chargers have lost three of their top-five scorers with no certain solution in the fold. With the loss of four forwards and three defensemen, there are openings in the playing rotation for the incoming freshmen.

One of those spots will go to Jack Jeffers, who joins the Chargers after finishing fifth in scoring in the Ontario Junior Hockey League with 79 points (23 goals, 56 assists) in 54 games with the Markham Royals. Jeffers has the size and skill to make a difference for the Chargers but may experience the typical growing pains of adapting to the NCAA.

‼️COMMITMENT ALERT‼️The Royals are proud to announce that @jack_jeffers has committed to the NCAA D1's Alabama-Huntsville Chargers!! Congratulations Jack! #GRG? pic.twitter.com/mt2DN0QpL4

— Markham Royals (@MarkhamRoyals) February 13, 2018

On the back end, puck mover Dyane Finnson leads the incoming defensive class after a 41-point (five goals, 36 assists) campaign with the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL. His stats put him sixth in league scoring for defensemen in 2017-18. Finnson should help bring more offense from the blue line given the lack of production after Kurt Gosselin’s 16 points—which were third in team scoring.

There’s still some regression in the Chargers’ future, but they have strong talent coming in and growth can be anticipated from the youth that’s already with the program. Last season, head coach Mike Corbett led his team to its best record (12-23-2) during his five-year tenure and best record since earning an NCAA tournament bid in 2009-10 (12-18-3).

Corbett has also brought in former Chargers player Lance West, who spent last season as the interim head coach for WCHA foe Alaska Fairbanks. Before his interim role in 2017-18, West spent the previous nine seasons as assistant coach with Fairbanks.

“I am tremendously excited about the opportunity to rejoin the UAH hockey program,” West told the Chargers’ team website. “The chance to return to the program and my alma mater, along with being able to reunite my family, was highly intriguing to me. UAH has always been a special place for me and I'm eager to help this program continue to rise.”

Youth doesn’t have to mean a lost season; the extremely young core of Minnesota Duluth led the Bulldogs to a national title in April and could serve as a template for the Chargers in 2018-19.

Have a question or a comment for Jacob Messing? You can find him on Twitter @Jacob_Messing.