TEMPE – No. 15 Sun Devil Hockey is back at Mullett Arena for another weekend slate of games as host of the 29th annual Ice Breaker Tournament on Oct. 10-11. The participating teams, No. 8 Quinnipiac, Notre Dame, and Alaska, will each complete two games over the weekend in the chase for the Ice Breaker Tournament trophy.
ASU (0-2-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) will open the tournament against Big Ten competitor Notre Dame (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) on Friday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. MST. The Sun Devils are looking to bounce back in front of a home crowd after suffering a sweep at the hands of then-No. 5 Penn State at last weekend’s season opener.
Schedule of Ice Breaker Tournament games
Game 1 - Friday, Oct. 10 at 3 p.m. MST: Alaska vs. No. 8 Quinnipiac
Game 2 - Friday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. MST: No. 15 Arizona State vs. Notre Dame
Game 3 - Saturday, Oct. 11 at 3 p.m. MST: Notre Dame vs. Alaska or No. 8 Quinnipiac
Game 4 - Saturday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. MST: No. 15 Arizona State vs. Alaska or No. 8 Quinnipiac
ASU will play at 7 p.m. MST on both nights regardless of Friday night’s result.
“We’re going to have to be very good,” said Sun Devil Hockey Head Coach Greg Powers. “We’ve never had a harder start to our season competition-wise, and I think it’s the best thing we could do with a young team … to cut our teeth, and get grizzled real quick because that’s what it’s going to be like every night in our league.”
Tune in
ASU’s Tyler Paley and Alex Coil will bring the game to the airwaves locally on FOX 10. All four games of the four-game tournament will also stream on NCHC.tv for a subscription fee. Listen to Alex and Tyler on the radio with Sun Devil Hockey’s radio partner, FoxSports910AM.
Icebreaker participating teams
Alaska Nanooks (0-2-0, 0-0-0 Independent)
Alaska-Fairbanks wrapped up its 2024-25 season with a 12-14-6 record. Despite starting the year 0-5-0, the Nanooks stirred up a six-game win streak, defeating ranked Notre Dame, Clarkson, Minnesota, and Union and also sweeping Augustana.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten)
The Fighting Irish started their season with Brock Sheahan as the new bench boss, becoming the program’s fifth head coach. Winning the Ice Breaker tournament in 2012 and 2018, Notre Dame looks to reclaim the trophy. The Fighting Irish closed out the 2024-25 season with a 12-25-1 record, finishing seventh in the Big Ten conference.
Quinnipiac Bobcats (1-1-0, 0-0-0 ECAC)
Coming off a successful 2024-25 season, the Bobcats return to the Ice Breaker tournament for their second appearance. Quinnipiac won its fifth straight ECAC Cleary Cup and finished as ECAC regular-season champions. The Bobcats made a deep run in the NCAA playoffs, making it to the Regional Semifinals.
History vs. participating teams
Arizona State vs. Notre Dame (2-4-0)
ASU and Notre Dame have met six times, with the Sun Devils winning two matches against the Fighting Irish. The last matchup took place in 2021, with the Sun Devils securing a win over the Fighting Irish, who were ranked No. 18 at the time.
Arizona State vs. Alaska (7-9-1)
The Sun Devils and Nanooks have been competing since 2015. The last matchup took place in February, with ASU winning 4-3 in overtime. The Sun Devils are 7-8-1 against the Nanooks and are looking to potentially tie the record.
Arizona State vs. Quinnipiac (3-3-1)
Facing the Bobcats, the Sun Devils have taken home three wins. Their last meeting dates back to the 2021-22 season, where Quinnipiac hosted ASU.
Serving offense
The forward line of Ty Nash, Logan Morrell, and Sam Alfano combined for four points in the two games (2G, 2A). Despite having more defensive zone starts than any ASU forward line against then-No. 5 Penn State, the trio created more scoring chances than any other line. Nash and Morrell are two Arizona natives who grew up playing hockey alongside each other and occasionally both coached by Nash's father and NHL alum Tyson Nash (St. Louis Blues, Phoenix Coyotes) in the rinks of Phoenix.
NCHC’s top returning scorer
Heading into his senior year, forward Bennett Schimek looks to build on his career-best season after transferring to ASU in 2024. He is the NCHC’s highest point-scoring player returning to college for 2025-26. The Minnesota native finished his junior year campaign doubling his point totals from his first two collegiate seasons at Providence, ending with 15 goals and 22 assists in 35 games. Schimek was also top 10 in points in the NCHC with 37 and top 10 in goals with 15 on the year. He returned to the scoresheet on Saturday night versus Penn State with his first goal of the season, assisted by Justin Kipkie and Cullen Potter.
In the crease
Connor Hasley transferred to ASU in the summer of 2025 from Bentley University. The senior goaltender spent three seasons with the Falcons, boasting a .925 save percentage and 1.96 goals against average, complete with a 21-13-2 record last year. Hasley also posted 11 shutouts with three of which coming in the postseason and made 41 saves against Boston College in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
He’s backed by Samuel Urban, who rose from the juniors after three seasons with the Sioux City Musketeers. The Slovakian freshman appeared in 40 games in the 2024-25 season with a 22-15-1 record, 2.96 goals against average and .899 save percentage. Hasley earned both starts last weekend against Penn State, making 82 saves through the weekend.
Pro turned Devil
Jack Beck played 40 professional games between the American Hockey League (AHL) and ECHL last season and joined the Sun Devils in late September after the NCAA ruled on his eligibility.
Beck was drafted 168th overall (6th round) of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft by the Calgary Flames. He has since waived his draft rights and is a free agent. The 22-year-old left-handed winger joins ASU after a point-per-game performance in his first year of professional hockey. According to the NCAA Eligibility Center, Beck will have three seasons of eligibility to play in five years.
As part of the NCAA's delayed enrollment rules, Beck is not eligible to compete in the first six games of the 2025-26 season. Beck lost one season of eligibility as a penalty under the NCAA delayed enrollment rules. If an athlete plays seven or more games in another league once delayed enrollment has begun, one season of eligibility is removed.
The games played by Beck in the AHL and ECHL, dating from his 21st birthday on April 12, 2024, through April 11, 2025, cost Jack a season of eligibility. The six-game suspension for 2025-26 comes into play to address the six games played by Beck from April 12, 2025 (his 22nd birthday) through his initial enrollment at Arizona State University in September 2025.
CHL pipeline
Before the CHL rule change was a sure thing, Braxton Whitehead (Regina Pats) and the Sun Devils were the first to take a risk and make an official move, shaking up the hockey world in anticipation of the results from the a class action lawsuit, Rylan Masterson v. NCAA, which accused the NCAA of illegally preventing Canadian Hockey League (CHL) players from competing for American university teams.
“I’ve always thought that rule was antiquated in so many ways,” said Sun Devil Hockey Head Coach Greg Powers. “With Braxton, I simply believed in getting ahead of the curve by handicapping the situation. Change was coming, and it felt right. It’s going to make college hockey so much better.”
ASU now boasts seven players who competed previously in the CHL, including Sean McGurn (London, OHL), Austin Zemlak (Tri-City, WHL), Ty Nash (Edmonton, WHL), Justin Cloutier (Soo, OHL), Sam Alfano (Erie, OHL), and Whitehead (Regina, WHL). Before turning pro and competing in the ECHL and AHL, Jack Beck played for the Soo Greyhounds (OHL).
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