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2023–24 Arizona State Sun Devils men's ice hockey season

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2023–24 Arizona State Sun Devils
men's ice hockey season
Adirondack Winter Invitational, Champion
Desert Hockey Classic, Champion
ConferenceIndependent
Home iceMullett Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA HockeyNR
Record
Overall24–8–6
Home18–5–3
Road5–3–2
Neutral1–0–1
Coaches and captains
Head coachGreg Powers
Assistant coachesAlex Hicks
Albie O'Connell
Dana Borges
Captain(s)Tyler Gratton
Alternate captain(s)
  • Matthew Kopperud
  • Ryan O'Reilly
  • Lukas Sillinger
Arizona State Sun Devils men's ice hockey seasons
« 2022–23 2024–25 »

The 2023–24 Arizona State Sun Devils men's ice hockey season was the 9th season of play for the program at the Division I level. The Sun Devils represented Arizona State University and were coached by Greg Powers in his 12th season.

Season

[edit]

Arizona State came into its final season as an independent program looking for one final hurrah before it joined the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.[1] The Sun Devils got off on the right foot by winning their first four games of the season and rising up into the national rankings. The team suffered a bit of a setback when they couldn't overcome Miami and then escaped utter disaster when they needed overtime to defeat Stonehill, the worst team in the nation.

The team recovered with a pair of split series against top-10 teams in November and looked to be well-positioned for a potential NCAA tournament berth. The defense was holding up well enough and the Sun Devils were getting decent goaltending performances from T. J. Semptimphelter. The offense, however, was the star of the show; Lukas Sillinger led the way up front, setting a new program record with 48 points while Matthew Kopperud was lights-out on the power play, scoring 17 of his 23 goals on the man-advantage (the 4th-most in NCAA history).[2]

After a decent stretch in December, Arizona State kicked off the second half of its season by winning a pair of in-season tournaments. First up was the inaugural Adirondack Winter Invitational that finished with a shootout win over #17 Cornell. The following week, at its own Desert Hockey Classic, the Sun Devils took down Omaha in overtime to win the tournament for the first time. The wins lifted ASU up to #11 in the polls but the team was lagging behind in the PairWise. While their record was enviable at 16–3–5, the team's ranking was downgraded for two reasons: strength of schedule and margin of victory. Arizona State had played several ranked teams by the mid-way point of the season, however, those games were off-set by several series against bottom-dwelling clubs. To make matters worse, ASU's narrow wins over Stonehill and the loss to Miami kept the team from rising any higher than 16th in the PairWise.

Due to the way conference schedules typically work out, ASU would have little opportunity in the later portion of the season to climb higher in the rankings and they needed a strong performance against Cornell to stake their claim. Unfortunately, the Sun Devils had one of their worst offensive performances of the season and were limited to just 37 shots over the weekend. The Big Red avenged their Winter Invitational loss with a sweep of Arizona State and pushed the Sun Devils outside the playoff picture. To have any real chance of making the tournament, ASU needed to go undefeated down the stretch. However, the team lost its third consecutive game when Augustana arrived and their dwindling hopes faded even further. The loss also caused a change in ASU's goal crease; Semptimphelter had been playing well for most of the season but he would have poor outing from time to time. The Augustana match saw him surrender 3 goals on 6 shots and, to make matters worse, it took the Vikings more than half the game to reach that total. Gibson Homer was inserted into the cage and, while he was unable to secure a victory, he became the starter for the latter portion of the year.

At the close of the season, Arizona State had set new programs records for wins and winning percentage. They had defeated four teams that finished the year with a national ranking and had one of the top offenses in the country. Unfortunately, their habit of playing down to the opponents level doomed the team's chances at a playoff appearance.

Departures

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Cause
Blake Dangos Defenseman  United States Transferred to Sacred Heart
Josh Doan Forward  United States Signed professional contract (Arizona Coyotes)
Chris Grando Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Jacksonville Icemen)
Tanner Hickey Defenseman  Canada Graduation (retired)
Jack Jensen Forward  United States Left program (retired)
Jack Judson Defenseman  Canada Graduate transfer to Clarkson
Demetrios Koumontzis Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Idaho Steelheads)
Ben Kraws Goaltender  United States Graduate transfer to St. Lawrence
Teddy Lagerback Forward  United States Transferred to Miami
Robert Mastrosimone Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Toronto Marlies)
Ryan Robinson Forward  United States Joined club team
Jacob Semik Defenseman  United States Graduation (signed with Utah Grizzlies)
Brendan Studioso Forward  United States Left program (retired)

Recruiting

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Tony Achille Forward  United States 21 Hingham, MA
Cade Alami Defenseman  United States 22 Bedford, NY; transfer from Boston College
Brian Chambers Forward  United States 25 Weymouth, MA; graduate transfer from Massachusetts Lowell
Anthony Dowd Defenseman  United States 20 Point Pleasant Beach, NJ
Cole Gordon Forward  United States 20 Windsor, CO
Tyler Gratton Forward  United States 24 Pottstown, PA; graduate transfer from Penn State
Cole Helm Forward  United States 20 Dallas, TX
David Hymovitch Forward  United States 20 Phoenix, AZ
Hank Levy Goaltender  United States 21 Salt Lake City, UT
Joshua Niedermayer Defenseman  United States 19 Newport Beach, CA
Matthew Romer Forward  United States 21 Chicago, IL
Kyle Smolen Forward  United States 21 Crystal Lake, IL
Brandon Tabakin Defenseman  United States 23 Woodbury, NY; graduate transfer from Yale
Alex Young Forward  Canada 22 Calgary, AB; transfer from Colgate; selected 196th overall in 2020

Roster

[edit]

As of July 1, 2023.[3]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Utah Hank Levy Freshman G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2002-03-11 Salt Lake City, Utah Penticton (BCHL)
2 New York (state) Brandon Tabakin Graduate D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2000-05-21 Woodbury, New York Yale (ECAC)
5 California Ty Murchison Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2003-02-02 Corona, California NTDP (USHL) PHI, 158th overall 2021
9 New Jersey Anthony Dowd Freshman D 5' 6" (1.68 m) 154 lb (70 kg) 2003-04-25 Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey Chicago (USHL)
10 Minnesota Tucker Ness Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 2002-11-25 Plymouth, Minnesota Waterloo (USHL)
11 Michigan Benji Eckerle Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-09-24 Northville, Michigan Tri-City (USHL)
13 New York (state) Cade Alami Junior F 6' 7" (2.01 m) 212 lb (96 kg) 2001-03-13 Bedford, New York Boston College (HEA)
14 Ontario Ty Jackson Senior F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 2001-09-06 Oakville, Ontario Northeastern (HEA)
15 Ontario Dylan Jackson Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2001-09-06 Oakville, Ontario Northeastern (HEA)
16 Michigan Ethan Szmagaj Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2001-09-18 Canton, Michigan Waterloo (USHL)
17 Illinois Matthew Romer Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2002-09-01 Chicago, Illinois Omaha (USHL)
18 Arizona David Hymovitch Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2003-08-14 Phoenix, Arizona Muskegon (USHL)
20 California Jackson Niedermayer Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 2001-03-11 Newport Beach, California Penticton (BCHL)
21 Alberta Alex Young Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 2001-03-22 Calgary, Alberta Colgate (ECAC) SJS, 196th overall 2020
24 California Josh Niedermayer Freshman D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2004-02-20 Newport Beach, California Penticton (BCHL)
25 Illinois Kyle Smolen Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 171 lb (78 kg) 2002-06-18 Crystal Lake, Illinois Fargo (USHL)
26 Massachusetts Brian Chambers Graduate F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1998-07-24 Weymouth, Massachusetts UMass Lowell (HEA)
27 Massachusetts Tim Lovell Junior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 161 lb (73 kg) 2002-02-08 Hingham, Massachusetts Boston College (HEA)
28 Colorado Matthew Kopperud (A) Senior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1999-08-04 Denver, Colorado Dubuque (USHL)
29 Colorado Cole Gordon Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 2002-12-09 Windsor, Colorado Minnesota (NAHL)
31 Michigan Gibson Homer Freshman G 6' 5" (1.96 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 2003-12-29 Grand Rapids, Michigan Chicago (USHL)
35 New Jersey T. J. Semptimphelter Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2002-05-09 Marlton, New Jersey Northeastern (HEA)
39 Texas Ryan O'Reilly (A) Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2000-03-21 Southlake, Texas Green Bay (USHL) DET, 98th overall 2018
43 Texas Cole Helm Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2003-07-17 Dallas, Texas Dubuque (BCHL)
53 Ontario Ryan Alexander Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2002-06-17 Toronto, Ontario Fargo (USHL)
59 Pennsylvania Tyler Gratton (C) Graduate F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1999-08-06 Pottstown, Pennsylvania Penn State (Big Ten)
61 Saskatchewan Lukas Sillinger (A) Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2000-09-14 Regina, Saskatchewan Bemidji State (CCHA)
82 Minnesota Charlie Schoen Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 2001-06-02 Andover, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL)
89 Massachusetts Tony Achille Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 173 lb (78 kg) 2002-01-08 Hingham, Massachusetts Maine (NAHL)

Standings

[edit]
Overall record
GP W L T GF GA
Alaska 34 17 14 3 110 86
Alaska Anchorage 34 15 17 2 95 105
Arizona State 38 24 8 6 129 94
Lindenwood 28 6 18 4 74 121
Long Island 37 16 20 1 115 103
Stonehill 36 2 34 0 62 213
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 6 7:00 pm Arizona* Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona (Exhibition)   Semptimphelter W 16–0   
Regular Season
October 13 7:00 pm #15 Merrimack* Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 1–0 OT 4,680 1–0–0
October 14 5:00 pm #15 Merrimack* Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 4–2  4,569 2–0–0
October 20 7:00 pm Northern Michigan* #18 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 3–2  4,495 3–0–0
October 21 7:00 pm Northern Michigan* #18 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 5–1  4,357 4–0–0
October 27 5:05 pm at Miami* #13 Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   Semptimphelter L 4–5 OT 1,818 4–1–0
October 28 5:05 pm at Miami* #13 Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   Homer T 1–1 OT 1,908 4–1–1
November 3 7:00 pm Stonehill* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 5–4 OT 4,444 5–1–1
November 4 7:00 pm Stonehill* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 3–2  4,487 6–1–1
November 10 7:00 pm #2 Denver* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 6–5 OT 5,102 7–1–1
November 11 5:00 pm #2 Denver* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter L 4–8  4,996 7–2–1
November 17 7:00 pm Alaska Anchorage* #14 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 4–3  4,774 8–2–1
November 19 1:00 pm Alaska Anchorage* #14 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 3–0  4,632 9–2–1
November 24 7:00 pm #9 Providence* #13 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 4–3 OT 4,990 10–2–1
November 26 1:00 pm #9 Providence* #13 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter L 1–2  4,626 10–3–1
December 1 7:00 pm at Colorado College* #12 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Semptimphelter T 2–2 OT 3,519 10–3–2
December 2 6:00 pm at Colorado College* #12 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Semptimphelter W 2–0  3,463 11–3–2
December 8 7:00 pm Dartmouth* #12 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter T 4–4 OT 4,781 11–3–3
December 9 5:00 pm Dartmouth* #12 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer T 1–1 OT 4,837 11–3–4
December 16 5:00 pm at Robert Morris* #13 Clearview ArenaNeville Township, Pennsylvania FloHockey Semptimphelter W 4–1  863 12–3–4
December 17 3:00 pm at Robert Morris* #13 Clearview ArenaNeville Township, Pennsylvania FloHockey, SNP Semptimphelter W 8–3  732 13–3–4
Adirondack Winter Invitational
December 29 5:30 pm vs. Clarkson* #13 Herb Brooks ArenaLake Placid, New York (Winter Invitational Semifinal) ESPN+ Semptimphelter W 5–2  4,170 14–3–4
December 30 5:30 pm vs. #17 Cornell* #13 Herb Brooks ArenaLake Placid, New York (Winter Invitational) ESPN+ Semptimphelter T 2–2 SOW 3,846 14–3–5
Desert Hockey Classic
January 5 7:00 pm Harvard* #12 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona (Desert Hockey Semifinal)   Semptimphelter W 5–2  5,007 15–3–5
January 6 7:00 pm Omaha* #12 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona (Desert Hockey Championship)   Semptimphelter W 2–1 OT 4,912 16–3–5
January 12 7:00 pm #18 Cornell* #11 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter L 2–3 OT 5,007 16–4–5
January 13 5:00 pm #18 Cornell* #11 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter L 1–4  5,124 16–5–5
January 19 7:00 pm Augustana* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer L 4–5  4,836 16–6–5
January 20 7:00 pm Augustana* #16 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 3–2  4,892 17–6–5
February 2 7:00 pm Lindenwood* #17 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter T 4–4 OT 4,829 17–6–6
February 3 5:00 pm Lindenwood* #17 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 5–1  4,789 18–6–6
February 9 7:00 pm Alaska* #18 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 2–0  4,769 19–6–6
February 10 5:00 pm Alaska* #18 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 4–2  4,843 20–6–6
February 23 9:07 pm at Alaska* #18 Carlson CenterFairbanks, Alaska   Homer L 1–3  2,209 20–7–6
February 24 9:07 pm at Alaska* #18 Carlson CenterFairbanks, Alaska   Homer W 4–3 OT 3,984 21–7–6
March 1 7:00 pm Long Island* #20 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Homer W 4–2  4,951 22–7–6
March 2 5:00 pm Long Island* #20 Mullett ArenaTempe, Arizona   Semptimphelter W 4–3  4,774 23–7–6
March 8 9:07 pm at Alaska Anchorage* #20 Seawolf Sports ComplexAnchorage, Alaska   Homer L 3–4  870 23–8–6
March 9 7:07 pm at Alaska Anchorage* #20 Seawolf Sports ComplexAnchorage, Alaska   Semptimphelter W 5–2  909 24–8–6
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Mountain Time.
Source:[4]

Scoring statistics

[edit]
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Lukas Sillinger C/W 38 11 37 48 10
Tim Lovell D 36 5 32 37 48
Matthew Kopperud F 38 23 13 36 45
Charlie Schoen RW 33 8 16 24 31
Benji Eckerle F 35 5 15 20 12
Brian Chambers RW 38 4 16 20 35
Ty Jackson C 21 6 12 18 14
Tyler Gratton RW 36 12 6 18 18
Kyle Smolen F 36 7 9 16 59
Ryan O'Reilly C/W 37 9 6 15 18
Anthony Dowd C 36 3 10 13 12
Jackson Niedermayer LW 33 9 4 13 10
Dylan Jackson RW 15 7 4 11 18
Ryan Alexander C 27 3 7 10 10
Brandon Tabakin D 36 2 8 10 13
Alex Young C/W 37 6 3 9 8
Ethan Szmagaj D 37 3 4 7 29
Ty Murchison D 37 3 4 7 62
Josh Niedermayer D 19 0 4 4 2
Cole Gordon F 30 3 0 3 23
Tony Achille F 12 0 3 3 7
Tucker Ness D 18 0 2 2 60
Cade Alami D 14 0 2 2 16
Cole Helm F 6 0 1 1 17
Matthew Romer F 7 0 1 1 0
T. J. Semptimphelter G 26 0 1 1 2
Gibson Homer G 14 0 0 0 0
Chase Hamm G 1 0 0 0 0
David Hymovitch F 2 0 0 0 0
Bench - - - - - 4
Total 129 220 349 583

[5]

Goaltending statistics

[edit]
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Chase Hamm 1 1:37 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.000 0.00
Gibson Homer 14 795:38 8 3 2 27 362 1 .931 2.04
T. J. Semptimphelter 26 1522:55 16 5 4 64 633 3 .908 2.52
Empty Net - 9:01 - - - 3 - - - -
Total 38 2329:11 24 8 6 94 996 4 .914 2.42

Rankings

[edit]
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR 18 13 16 16 14 13 12 12 13 - 12 11 16 18 17 18 17 18 20 20 20т NR NR - NR
USA Hockey NR NR 19 16 19 17 14 13 13 12 14 13 - 12 16 18 18 18 17 18 19 19 NR NR NR NR NR

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 11 and 25.[6]
Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Arizona State to Join NCHC Starting in 2024–2025 Season". nchchockey.com. July 5, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  2. ^ "Multiple Skaters Finish Record-Setting Careers in #19/20 Hockey's Historic Finish". Arizona State Sun Devils. March 10, 2024. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "2023–24 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Arizona State University. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
  4. ^ "2023-24 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". Arizona State Sun Devils. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  5. ^ "Arizona State Univ. 2023-2024 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  6. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.