ASU Hockey: Four Sun Devils sign contracts to next level

Sun Devils extend careers after historic seasons in Tempe

An upperclassmen-heavy Arizona State (24-8-6) roster will bid farewell to four fixtures in head coach Brian Chambers’ lineups after four Sun Devils signed professional contracts for the 2024-25 season.

Senior forward Matthew Kopperud, graduate student forwards Tyler Gratton and Brian Chambers, and defenseman Brandon Tabakin are among the next generation of ASU hockey players to turn pro after a record-setting season for the young program.

Senior Forward Matthew Kopperud

Senior forward Matthew Kopperud signed an amateur tryout agreement with the Bridgeport Islanders, the American Hockey League affiliate for the New York Islanders, for the 2024-25 season.

Kopperud is second all-time in career points and goals at ASU. His 11 game-winning goals and 41 career power-play goals are the most in ASU history.

Kopperud, a four-year veteran of the program, made an immediate impact on Arizona State hockey since his freshman year. In the 2020-21 season, the freshman from Denver led the Sun Devils in points (19) and goals (13). Kopperud tore through his first 16 games as a youngster, leading the NCAA in points by scoring 12 goals in his first 16 games and averaged a point per game in his first 18 in maroon and gold.

Kopperud’s sophomore season officially put him in the Sun Devils’ hockey record books as he finished the season second in career goals, sixth in assists, and second in points per game in 54 games played already. His sophomore season also included his career-high assists (18) and points (40).

Photo by Zac BonDurant/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

In all, Kopperud finished a historic run at ASU. His eight game-winning goals in his senior season helped the Sun Devils eclipse the 20-win mark for the first time in Division I history and keep the Devils in the top 20 for 22 consecutive weeks, every week of the season but one.

Graduate student forward Tyler Gratton

In his fifth year of college hockey, graduate forward Tyler Gratton was elected captain for ASU in his first and only season in Tempe. His three previous years at Penn State were affected by injury, but his skill set and experience profile him as a professional. He signed a professional tryout contract with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the American Hockey League affiliate for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Gratton has ties to the area as a Pottstown, Pennsylvania, native. The Phantoms play in Allentown, 30 miles north of Gratton’s hometown. Gratton will be joined by his older brother, Chris, who is the assistant strength coach and also in his first year with the organization.

Gratton played in 36 games this season for ASU and accumulated 18 points. He scored 12 goals and assisted on six in his final year of collegiate hockey.

Prior to Tempe, Gratton skated in 123 games for the Nittany Lions across four years. He had 34 points in Happy Valley.

Graduate student forward Brian Chambers

Graduate student forward Brian Chambers signed a standard player contract for the 2024-25 season with the Kalamazoo Wings, the East Coast Hockey League affiliate for the Vancouver Canucks.

Chambers played in 30 games in the 2023-24 season as a Sun Devil. He had 20 points, 16 of which were assists. Previously, he played four seasons at UMass Lowell, where he skated in 88 career games and had 30 points. Chambers took over 200 face-offs in the 2023-24 season, the most by any Sun Devil this season. Chambers ranked sixth in the nation in face-off wins this season.

Chambers was also an efficient player on the ice for Powers’ team with a plus-minus of +8.

Graduate student defenseman Brandon Tabakin

Graduate student defenseman Brandon Tabakin signed a standard player contract for the 2024-25 season with the Newfoundland Growlers, the Toronto Maple Leafs affiliate of the East Coast Hockey League.

Tabakin played one year at ASU, where he accounted for 10 points in 36 games played. As a defenseman, Tabakin was a +26 player when on the ice, the third-highest plus-minus in the nation during the 2023-24 season. Tabakin also recorded over 30 blocked shots on the season as a wall in the shooting lanes.

Prior to Tabakin’s year in Tempe, he played four years for Yale. While at Yale, Tabakin skated in 57 games and recorded nine points.