Lawyer for Arizona State hockey player who collapsed during workout searching for answers

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — An Arizona State hockey player and St. Louis Blues draft pick is still hospitalized nearly two weeks after collapsing during an offseason workout and an attorney representing his family is searching for answers.

Defenseman Matthew Mayich is still incapacitated from an Aug. 20 on-campus workout and his condition is highly unlikely to change, according to attorney Rob Carey.

“He is twenty-one years old,” Carey told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. “His family is at his side, and they are grateful for the support they’ve received from the hockey community and from Matthew’s teammates.”

Mayich, in his first year with the program, collapsed during an outdoor workout on the first day of the fall 2026 semester, the first time the NCAA allows hockey teams to hold formal activities.

Carey said the outdoor workout on a hot desert day was unsuited for a first outdoor practice, particularly for athletes who hadn’t been in the Valley a full week, calling it “onerous” and “grueling.”

Carey said there were signs of trouble well before Mayich collapsed and that the workout lasted well over an hour, with no rest and one water break for some of the athletes.

“ASU’s only statement so far was to note that coaches and trainers were present to support their claim that this workout was nothing unusual,” Carey said. “It doesn’t. It just means ASU’s own people stood there and watched exactly what they dialed up, and had no problem with it, at least the head coach didn’t. We will find out down the road if other university employees realized the student-athletes were in jeopardy. I suspect some did.”

Arizona State has said it will conduct a thorough review.

“This is not an investigation where someone is suggesting something went wrong,” ASU athletic director Graham Rossini said in a radio interview last week. “We’re just reviewing the facts and understanding the scenario.”

Carey called for Arizona State to conduct an independent investigation and place those involved on administrative leave, along with confirm who authorized the workout and produce details on what was planned in the workout.

“Our focus right now is on our own investigation into what happened on August 20th,” Carey said. “Only when that is complete will we discuss the options available to the family. The family’s focus is on doing everything that can be done for their son and holding each other together.”

The Blues drafted Mayich in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL draft, but he never signed an entry-level contract. The Stoney Creek, Ontario, native played four seasons with the Ottawa 67’s of the Ontario Hockey League before playing at Clarkson University last season.

Mayich transferred to Arizona State for the upcoming season.

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