Pheonix Copley

Copley (born January 18, 1992) is an American professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career

USHL and college Undrafted, Copley played in the United States Hockey League (USHL) with the Tri-City Storm and Des Moines Buccaneers before committing to play collegiate hockey with Michigan Tech of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). At the conclusion of his sophomore season, Copley opted to turn professional, agreeing to a two-year, entry-level contract with the Washington Capitals on March 20, 2014.

St. Louis Blues and Washington Capitals Copley was assigned to AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, to begin his first full professional season in 2014–15. In sharing the crease, he impressed with the Bears, earning 17 wins in 26 games. In the off-season, Copley was included in a trade, which also included Troy Brouwer and a third-round pick in 2016, to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for T. J. Oshie on July 2, 2015.

In the 2015–16 season, Copley made his NHL debut with the Blues in relief in a defeat to the Nashville Predators on February 27, 2016.

During the 2016–17 season, on January 20, 2017, Copley was recalled from the Chicago Wolves of the AHL by the Blues. He made the first start of his NHL career on January 21 against the Winnipeg Jets, where the Blues lost 5–3. After he was returned to the Wolves, on February 27, 2017, Copley was traded back to the Capitals in a deadline trade along with Kevin Shattenkirk in exchange for Zach Sanford, Brad Malone, a 2017 first-round pick, and a conditional second-round pick in 2019. Copley was called up to the NHL during the Capitals' 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs run and although he did not play during the playoffs, he stayed with the team as they won the 2018 Stanley Cup.

Copley made the Capitals opening-night roster to begin the 2018–19 season. He recorded his first NHL win in a 4–3 shootout win over the Calgary Flames on October 27, 2018. He spent the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons with the Hershey Bears, where he earned the Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award with Zachary Fucale for the 2020–21 season's best save percentage.

Los Angeles Kings As a free agent following the 2021–22 season, Copley signed a one-year, $850,000 contract with the Los Angeles Kings on July 13, 2022. After Kings goaltenders Cal Petersen and Jonathan Quick struggled at the start of the 2022–23 season, the Kings called up Copley from the AHL in December 2022. Copley would quickly establish himself as the team's starting goaltender, becoming just the fifth goaltender in franchise history to win seven games in a row.

During the 2023–24 season, Copley played in eight games before sustaining an injury during practice on December 15, 2023, and was then placed on the long-term injured reserve list two days later. On January 6, 2024, it was announced that he would not return during the season due to ACL surgery.

Ahead of the 2025–26 season, on October 1, 2025, Copley was placed on waivers by the Kings; he was subsequently claimed off waivers the following day by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Remaining on the roster to provide depth, Copley without featuring with Tampa Bay was later returned to the Kings in a trade for future considerations on October 15, 2025.

Columbus Blue Jackets As a free agent from the Kings, Copley was signed to a one-year, $850,000 contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets for the season on July 1, 2026.

Personal life Copley was born on January 18, 1992, in North Pole, Alaska, to parents Peter Copley and Mary Sanford. His older brother Navarone also plays ice hockey. At a young age, his family moved to Ohio so his father could pursue an advanced degree. Eventually, his parents divorced and Mary, Navarone and moved back to Alaska.

In 2022, spurred by difficulties related to diet and injuries, Copley founded an athletic tea company called Athletes Apothecary.

Career statistics Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 2009–10 Southern California Titans NAPHL 10 6 1 1 429 22 0 3.08 .871 — — — — — — — — 2010–11 Corpus Christi IceRays NAHL 42 14 23 4 2,376 165 0 4.17 .880 — — — — — — — — 2011–12 Tri-City Storm USHL 25 9 13 0 1,451 76 2 3.14 .905 — — — — — — — — 2011–12 Des Moines Buccaneers USHL 20 7 11 1 1,163 60 0 3.09 .909 — — — — — — — — 2012–13 Michigan Tech WCHA 24 8 15 1 1,322 71 3 3.22 .900 — — — — — — — — 2013–14 Michigan Tech WCHA 30 10 13 6 1,724 72 1 2.51 .911 — — — — — — — — 2013–14 South Carolina Stingrays ECHL 3 2 1 0 147 8 0 3.26 .906 1 0 1 70 3 0 2.58 .923 2014–15 Hershey Bears AHL 26 17 4 3 1,520 55 3 2.17 .925 5 3 1 229 7 0 1.83 .946 2015–16 Chicago Wolves AHL 37 15 16 3 2,088 97 3 2.79 .909 — — — — — — — — 2015–16 St. Louis Blues NHL 1 0 0 0 24 1 0 2.50 .833 — — — — — — — — 2016–17 Chicago Wolves AHL 25 15 6 2 1,452 56 1 2.31 .920 — — — — — — — — 2016–17 St. Louis Blues NHL 1 0 1 0 59 5 0 5.09 .828 — — — — — — — — 2016–17 Hershey Bears AHL 16 11 5 0 920 33 0 2.15 .931 9 5 4 534 19 1 2.13 .933 2017–18 Hershey Bears AHL 41 15 17 6 2,184 106 2 2.91 .896 — — — — — — — — 2018–19 Washington Capitals NHL 27 16 7 3 1,529 74 1 2.90 .905 — — — — — — — — 2019–20 Hershey Bears AHL 31 17 8 6 1,868 77 2 2.47 .905 — — — — — — — — 2020–21 Hershey Bears AHL 15 10 4 1 902 40 2 2.66 .896 — — — — — — — — 2021–22 Hershey Bears AHL 35 18 12 5 2,114 84 2 2.38 .913 3 1 2 184 7 0 2.29 .929 2021–22 Washington Capitals NHL 2 0 1 0 97 5 0 3.11 .878 — — — — — — — — 2022–23 Ontario Reign AHL 11 6 4 1 630 26 0 2.48 .913 — — — — — — — — 2022–23 Los Angeles Kings NHL 37 24 6 3 2,090 92 1 2.64 .902 1 0 0 29 2 0 4.26 .750 2023–24 Los Angeles Kings NHL 8 4 1 2 436 23 1 3.16 .870 — — — — — — — — 2024–25 Ontario Reign AHL 42 24 17 1 2,430 101 2 2.49 .904 2 0 2 117 4 0 2.05 .920 2024–25 Los Angeles Kings NHL 1 0 0 0 27 2 0 4.37 .833 — — — — — — — — 2025–26 Ontario Reign AHL 33 21 11 1 1,971 85 1 2.59 .901 2 1 1 117 5 0 2.57 .9242025–26Los Angeles KingsNHL101058303.07.893————————NHL totals 78 44 17 8 4,320 205 3 2.85 .898 1 0 0 29 2 0 4.26 .750