CHICAGO -- Sun Devils men's hockey coach Greg Powers was hoping an NHL team would select one of his players at the NHL Draft from June 23-24 at United Center. It would have been the clearest example of the Division I program's rapid growth, or "the icing on the cake," as Powers termed it.
Powers didn't enjoy that final treat, but there were other signs of growth evident at the home of the Chicago Blackhawks. Powers joined Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula – who helped launch Penn State's men's and women's programs with a major gift -- NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, Blackhawks President & CEO John McDonough, and other NHL and NCAA officials at the Draft on Friday to help introduce a new initiative by the NHL and NHL Players Association to fund feasibility studies for potential Division I hockey programs.