Arizona State hockey players ask school president to place coach on leave after workout left Matthew Mayich in a coma

A group of Arizona State men's hockey players have written a letter asking the university to place head coach Greg Powers and his staff on administrative leave in the wake of a workout that left sophomore Matthew Mayich on life support and in a coma in August.

Seven Sun Devils players wrote a 26-page letter to Arizona State president Michael Crow on Monday, which was obtained by The Athletic . They wrote the letter anonymously through an attorney, as they said they fear retaliation from Powers.

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.

"The head coach and his assistant coaches were all on the field on August 20, all remain in their positions, and together they decide our playing time, scholarship levels, and roster status," the players wrote. "No one has separated us from them since that morning. "We should not have to choose between telling the truth about August 20 and keeping what we have worked our whole lives for."

"The head coach and his assistant coaches were all on the field on August 20, all remain in their positions, and together they decide our playing time, scholarship levels, and roster status," the players wrote. "No one has separated us from them since that morning.

"We should not have to choose between telling the truth about August 20 and keeping what we have worked our whole lives for."

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.

While an Arizona State report said players were given a water break around 20 minutes into the workout, the players who wrote the letter Monday said otherwise. 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.

"The first of us to finish had a few seconds at the bottles before being ordered back while others, including Matthew, were still crawling," players wrote. "This was the only water break."

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.

"No one at ASU properly monitored him during the workout and no one intervened," they wrote.

Once Mayich collapsed, they said, he remained in direct sunlight for several minutes. Unlike what Arizona State said in its report, which stated that 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.

"Matthew spent most of his 'off' time in his air-conditioned apartment because the heat was too oppressive for him," the players wrote.

Powers has led the Sun Devils for nearly two decades. He played goalie for them in the 1990s, and he led the team from the club level to an NCAA Division I program in 2015. He signed a five-year extension last November.

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 that 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.

"From what we could tell, at no point did Coach Powers seem to appreciate the severity of the situation," the players wrote.

Mayich was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft. He transferred to Arizona State from Clarkson University (N.Y.) this past summer, and had previously played in the Ontario Hockey League. His l awyer said earlier this month that he has "zero chance of recovery."

Arizona State will open the season Friday at Lindenwood.