ECHL: Matthew Kopperud Heads Overseas

Worcester Railers center Matthew Kopperud is heading overseas to Denmark to join SonderjyskE of the Champions HL league. In his first full professional season, Kopperud put up 16 goals and 22 assists for 38 points along with 126 penalty minutes in 57 games with the Railers. His 126 penalty minutes would lead the Railers. He would also play in nine games in the AHL with the Bridgeport Islanders. The Denver, Colorado native also saw three games with Worcester and two games with Bridgeport at the end of the 2023-24 season. He becomes the first Railer this Summer to take the overseas route.

Prior to going pro, the 25-year-old center saw time in the BCHL and USHL. He spent parts of three seasons in the BCHL with the Merritt Centennials, where he put up 36 goals and 32 assists for 68 points in 91 games. Matthew Kopperud would then spend a year in the USHL with the Dubuque Fighting Saints, where he’d put up 17 goals and 24 assists for 41 points in 46 games.

Kopperud would then take the NCAA route, spending four seasons at Arizona State. Over the course of his four seasons with the Sun Devils, Kopperud would put up 64 goals and 43 assists for 107 points in 118 games. He rewrote the record books during his time at Arizona State, currently holding the records for career game-winning goals (11) and single-season game-winning goals (8), as well as single-season power-play goals (17) and career power-play goals (41). His 23 goals during the 2023-24 season are also a program record.