Travis Boyd and Brady Skjei won't get a chance to suit up against their alma mater on Friday night.

The injured forward and defenseman will watch from the sidelines as the No. 4 Gophers host the U-18 U.S. National Developmental Team Program for an exhibition game. Boyd and Skjei are two of five current Gophers that were part of the elite program.

Gophers coach Don Lucia said Skjei would begin skating after practice on Wednesday with the hope of returning for next weekend's trip to Boston. The junior defenseman suffered a lower-body injury against St. Cloud State on Nov. 1.

The timeline for Boyd's return is still uncertain. Lucia said Boyd hopes he can start skating on Monday, but more realistically it could be a week from Monday, delaying his return until after Christmas. Boyd also suffered a lower-body injury during the St. Cloud State series.

The Gophers were excited to see college hockey expand on Tuesday when Arizona State announced it would add the men's varsity sport and the race for the Sun Devils' conference affiliation heated up.

Here's some of the reaction:

Sophomore forward Connor Reilly

"I think they've got a pretty good recruiting advantage being in the sun down there. I've been seeing a lot of people tweet about it's only a matter of time before they're a top team just because of the pool parties and all that stuff.

"It's a great expansion of college hockey and hopefully more teams will eventually jump on. And if college hockey is successful and competitive, it can grow and grow."

Sophomore forward Hudson Fasching

"Maybe we can go somewhere warm for a change. That'd be nice. ... It's interesting to hear and it's very exciting hockey has been able to spread out all over the country."

Hear more reaction on Arizona State and the incoming U.S. National Developmental Team Program in Wednesday's access video:

Gophers coach Don Lucia