Arizona State places men's hockey coach Greg Powers on administrative leave

Arizona State men's hockey head coach Greg Powers has been placed on administrative leave in the wake of an outdoor workout that left sophomore Matthew Mayich on life support and in a coma in August.

"Our focus continues to be on Matthew and his family, and on our student-athletes to make sure they have the support they need during this time and as the season begins," said Arizona State athletic director Graham Rossini in a statement. "We have continued to collect as much information as possible. After thorough and careful deliberation, I believe this is the best move to provide stability for the hockey program."

The decision comes days after players and Mayich's parents called for Powers to be placed on leave. Seven Sun Devils players wrote a 26-page letter to Arizona State president Michael Crow on Monday that was obtained by The Athletic . They wrote the letter anonymously through an attorney, as they said they fear retaliation from Powers.

Mayich was participating in a workout with the team on Aug. 20 when he collapsed and later fell into a coma. The workout was described as "grueling" and run by an ex-U.S. Army Green Beret.

The players disputed several findings from the university's initial review of the Aug. 20 workout that resulted in Mayich's collapse, including that he did not receive water and was provided inadequate medical care after collapsing. A water break was given around 40 minutes into the 75-minute workout, but it lasted just seconds, according to the players. Only about eight players actually received water, they said, as they were the first who had just finished a bear-crawl drill moments before.

At one point, they said, the Green Beret admitted to forgetting that players needed water and said that he didn't drink water during combat.

Mayich, they said, showed obvious signs of distress early in the workout. They said he became disoriented during the bear crawl and could not carry a teammate during a buddy-carry exercise. At one point, they said, he leaned on another teammate in order to stand up while a drill was being explained to them.

Once Mayich collapsed, they said, he remained in direct sunlight for several minutes. Unlike what Arizona State said in its report, which stated Mayich remained on the ground, players said that he twice sat upright, once on the field and later when he was carried into the shade by teammates. The only cooling mechanisms there, they said, were small towels from a cooler, water from squirt bottles and water sprayed from a garden hose.

They also said the team did not properly acclimate players, including those from colder locations — Mayich is from Ontario — to the Arizona heat. The only outdoor workouts they did before Aug. 20, the players said, were roughly 15 minutes long.

"The concerns raised by student-athletes deserve to be heard and thoroughly reviewed," read a statement from the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. "We will not prejudge the findings of that review. Hockey matters deeply to our conference, but the well-being of our student-athletes matters more."

Mayich, a 2023 sixth-round draft pick by the St. Louis Blues , transferred to Arizona State from Clarkson University this past summer and had previously played in the Ontario Hockey League. His lawyer said earlier this month that he has "zero chance of recovery."

Powers was asked about the incident repeatedly last week, but refused to talk about it other than saying it's been "a difficult time" for the program. Powers, the players alleged, downplayed Mayich's condition initially and told them he needed only an IV after suffering "just a little heat stroke." Powers also told them that they were "closer to making the Frozen Four because of the workout and Matthew having pushed himself to the maximum." The next day, they said, Powers told them that he had received "good news" and Mayich would be fine.

Powers has been head coach of the program since 2010 and later he led the team from the club level to an NCAA Division I program in 2015. He signed a five-year extension last November.

The Sun Devils open their season Friday, and assistant Mike Corbett will assume coaching duties while Powers is away from the team. An interim head coach will reportedly be named soon, according to the Grand Forks Herald's Brad Elliott Schlossman .