ASU puts hockey coach Greg Powers on leave in wake of Matthew Mayich’s hospitalization

Arizona State University announced on Wednesday that head hockey coach Greg Powers has been placed on paid administrative leave, a decision that came several weeks after defenseman Matthew Mayich collapsed during an outdoor workout.

ASU announced assistant coach Mike Corbett will run the team as the season begins this upcoming weekend, and an interim head coach will be named “soon.”

Mayich has remained hospitalized and on life support since the incident, which occurred on Aug. 20, the first day NCAA rules allowed hockey teams to practice because classes were underway, according to his family’s lawyers.

Leonard Aragon, an attorney representing Mayich, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Outspoken with Bruce & Gaydos on Sept. 22 that the hockey player is in “stable but critical condition, and his outlook is not good.”

Seven players from the team, speaking anonymously in a letter submitted Monday via Phoenix attorney Tim Casey, told ASU president Michael Crow that safety policies were ignored during the workout and that the coaching staff should be placed on leave so an independent investigation could take place.

The players stated they were speaking anonymously because they feared potential retaliation from the coaching staff.

That fear is not directed at one person. 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. No one has separated us from them since that morning.

The players also disputed an internal review led by James Rund, a senior vice president in ASU’s athletic department. Among the points disputed was that the workout lasted 75 minutes, not 45 as the Rund report found.

The letter called for Crow to act ahead of ASU opening its season with road games Friday and Saturday at Lindenwood, citing Phoenix hockey legend Shane Doan among suggestions for who the university could select as interim coach. The home opener at Mullett Arena is scheduled for Oct. 9 against Holy Cross.

Powers first addressed the incident publicly on Sept. 23 during the National Collegiate Hockey Conference media day with an opening statement before avoiding most of the questions pertaining to Mayich that followed.

As most of you undoubtedly know, it’s a very difficult time for everybody in our program. Matthew Mayich has been hospitalized since Aug. 20, and Matthew and his family are very much in our thoughts and our prayers and at the forefront of our minds as we try to prepare for a new season.

The players, coaches and staff who work with the team, we are all affected by what has happened, and everybody is coping with this in different ways. There is a tremendous university support system in place to help our student-athletes and our staff through whatever we may need. For us, being with each other both at the rink and away from the rink is what is helping us most.

Yesterday, the university shared its first report from (Rund) to ASU president Michael Crow regarding the team activity on Aug. 20. There is also an ongoing ASU Police investigation. I know there will be more questions about Matthew, and we won’t be able to answer those today. I am here today … to talk to you about our hockey season.”

Powers also said he believes he’s still the “right guy” to lead the program.

Aragon told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Sept. 1 that Mayich flew in from Ottawa, Canada, less than a week before his first practice in Arizona’s heat, which was led by a former Green Beret who he claimed pushed the athletes to their limit and beyond with a military-style workout.

He later alleged that student-athletes who did not finish a drill in a certain amount of time did not get water at the next opportunity, and Mayich was deprived of one.

ASU’s Exertional Heat Illness Policy guidelines, which take in advice from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association as well as the Mayo Clinic, state that student-athletes are supposed to be gradually acclimatized to the heat over seven to 14 days.

The university previously indicated that it has institutional guidelines and requirements for non-employees who interact with its student-athletes and sport programs, and azcentral’s Robert Anglen reported the former Green Beret had not signed any of the required forms.

Mayich was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL draft. He transferred to ASU this offseason after spending his freshman season at Clarkson University in New York. 

Powers was entering his 17th season as ASU’s head coach. He was an assistant for two seasons before he was promoted to the top role, where he oversaw the team’s transition into a Division I program.

Powers has gone 153-162-26 in NCAA play over the past dozen years.

“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,” ASU athletic director Graham Rossini said 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.”

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Kevin Stone and Kylie Werner contributed to this report.

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