Arizona State men’s hockey coach defends program, avoids questions about workout

Arizona State men's hockey coach Greg Powers declined to answer questions regarding an Aug. 20 team workout that left sophomore player Matthew Mayich on life support. Speaking during the National Collegiate Hockey Conference media day on Wednesday, Powers made his first public comments since the hospitalization, stating he was the right person to coach the program while deflecting inquiries regarding accountability.

An initial report released by Arizona State revealed that Powers and his staff failed to submit the training activities led by a non-university instructor to school strength and conditioning staff for review. ASU police and the university are conducting investigations into the incident, while Powers instead highlighted the university's academic and athletic appeal to prospective recruits.