Hockey coaches at Arizona State University (ASU) didn’t submit a plan for review by trainers before an outdoor workout last month that saw NHL prospect Matthew Mayich collapse, leaving him in hospital in critical condition.
James Rund, the university official leading the review, wrote that the Hamilton-born 21-year-old collapsed just before 8:30 a.m. during the Aug. 20 training session at Sun Angel Stadium on ASU’s Tempe campus.
The report, which calls for a “a blue-ribbon advisory panel,” said the temperature was about 30 C, and the student athletes were involved in “calisthenics, bodyweight exercises such as pushups and planks, and running.”
The hockey coaches asked permission for Timothy Zeisel, who was there for the workout and had “spoken with the ASU Hockey team in the 2025-26 season about topics of leadership and teamwork,” to speak to the team. However, the coaches didn’t “submit a plan of training activities for review by ASU’s strength and conditioning coaches” before training began.
Near the end of the workout, “Matthew appeared to struggle, and then in rapid succession stumbled, dropped the medicine ball and fell to the ground. He attempted to get up and resume running but fell to his knees,” wrote Rund, ASU’s senior vice-president of educational outreach and student services.
Mayich in stable, critical condition, lawyer says
The Mayich family’s lawyer, Rob Carey, said on Tuesday that “Matthew is in stable but critical condition still. The family is still praying for a miracle, but nothing has significantly changed. But even if that happens, we will never have the young man who came to Arizona last month, a hockey star and (by all accounts) a wonderful person.”
In an interview last week from Phoenix, Ariz., with CBC News, Mayich’s father, John Mayich, said “we know Matthew’s a fighter and we’re hoping he pulls through this.”
Before the workout, Matthew was “perfectly healthy,” said his mother, Christina.
Carey said that “when Matthew went down, there was no plan and no preparation, so he was treated in a way that hurt his chances rather than helped them.”
“A month later, nobody’s been named, nobody’s been suspended, nobody’s been fired for violating the very policies ASU published today, and the university wants to appoint a committee.”
He added that “a committee isn’t going to tell us why grown men with a rulebook in their hands let this happen to a young man at his first real workout in the desert. That’s what an investigation is for, and it’s why we’re going to ask the county attorney to do one.”
Carey said in early September that based on his own investigation, he believes Mayich endured a “military-style, brutal, gruelling workout” with no breaks and no water for over an hour.
“You have an elite NHL-drafted athlete showing up on the first coach-led workout, the very first day the team could organize formally, and he left the field with no chance of recovery,” Carey said. “Obviously there’s something wrong.”
Rund said ASU would “be undertaking a comprehensive review of its practices to identify and implement best practices regarding the planning, conduct and monitoring of athletic activities. and the response to emergencies that arise during athletic activities.”
In early September, a spokesperson for the ASU Police Department said they were investigating what happened to Mayich, which is a “standard procedure” for an incident of this severity.
The report said ASU would have a panel of experts provide best practice recommendations for:
- Planning and approval of outdoor athletic activities, including strength and conditioning activities, practices and competitions.
- Staffing, monitoring and conduct of outdoor athletic activities, including adjustments to address changed conditions or adverse reactions.
- Preparation for and response to adverse events or reactions occurring during outdoor athletic activities.
- Use of outside consultants in the planning and delivery of strength and conditioning, and practice activities.
Mayich played minor hockey with the Hamilton Huskies between 2016 and 2020. He was selected in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL draft by the St. Louis Blues.
Doug Armstrong, the Blues’ president of hockey operations, said in a news release in late August, “The entire Blues organization is keeping Matthew Mayich close to our hearts as we pray for his comfort and recovery while he continues to undergo medical treatment in Arizona.”
The organization also extends its “deepest support” to his family, friends and teammates during this difficult time, Armstrong said.
‘A tremendous hockey player’
During his six seasons with the Huskies and one as a member of the Hamilton Jr. Bulldogs, Mayich established “himself as a tremendous hockey player and, more importantly, an outstanding person both on and off the ice,” the Hamilton Steel Hockey Club, formerly the Huskies, said.
The statement was sent to CBC Hamilton on behalf of the organization, former Huskies president Mike Spadafora and former Huskies head coach Chris Travale. Spadafora is currently the councillor for Hamilton’s Ward 14 and running for re-election in the Oct. 26 municipal vote.
“Without fail, whenever [Mayich] is asked, he comes back every year to speak and skate with a new crop of young kids,” Travale said. “His message is always about so much more than hockey — it’s about relationships, friendships, and the experiences you have along the hockey journey.”
Mayich’s father said Matthew “didn’t care if he was at a small rink in Hamilton or a big rink in St. Louis with a lot of people — he just loves the game.”
The incident has made waves in the sports world, prompting the Professional Hockey Players’ Association to speak up about the lack of protections for young athletes.
“When athletes feel pressure to remain silent about an injury, illness, exhaustion or concern because they fear the consequences of speaking up, the system has failed them,” said PHPA executive director Brian Ramsay in a statement on Sept. 10 that doesn’t directly name Mayich.
“Athletes should never have to choose between their health and their careers. Period.”
