ECHL Worcester Railers HC

Worcester Railers HC Sign Defenseman John Copeland for 2023-24 Season

Published on August 18, 2023 under ECHL (ECHL)
Worcester Railers HC News Release


WORCESTER, Mass. - The Worcester Railers Hockey Club (@RailersHC), proud ECHL (@ECHL) affiliate of the New York Islanders (@NYIslanders), and General Manager and Head Coach Jordan Lavallee-Smotherman announced today that the club has signed defenseman John Copeland to an ECHL contract for the 2023-24 season.

Copeland, 24, was a part of the 2022-23 Boston University Terriers program that won both the Hockey East regular-season and tournament titles while making it the school's 23rd Frozen Four appearance. The 6'6", 181lb defenseman played in 46 games for the Terriers, recording a +3 rating.

"We're excited to add John to our lineup," Railers Assistant Coach Bob Deraney said. "He's a shut down defenseman that brings length and size to our defensive corp. In addition to that, he has an offensive side to his game that we look forward to developing."

Prior to playing collegiate hockey, the Wellesley, MA native spent one season with the Carleton Place Canadians of the Central Canada Hockey League. With the Canadians, Copeland scored ten points (4-6-10) in 45 games to go along with 26 penalty minutes.

"I was looking for a place where I could develop my game and get better" Copeland said. "This is a place I feel I can accomplish that. I'm looking forward to getting there and playing in front of that crowd."

The Railers have announced fifteen players officially signed for the 2023-24 season as Copeland joins Zach White, Quinn Ryan, Christian Evers, Brendan Robbins, Mike Higgins, Blake Christensen, Blade Jenkins, Max Johnson, Nick Fea, Artyom Kulakov, Anthony Callin, Keeghan Howdeshell, Adam Goodsir, and Anthony Repaci as the fifteen signees. More announcements are expected over the coming weeks.

The Worcester Railers HC 2023-24 Opening Weekend at the DCU Center is Sat., Oct. 21st and Sun., Oct. 22nd vs. the Adirondack Thunder & Trois-Rivieres Lions. Season memberships, mini-plans, and group packages for the 2023-24 season are on sale now by calling the Railers front office at 508-365-1750 or by visiting RailersHC.com.

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