Gophers hockey junior defenseman Brady Skjei will miss at least a few weeks with a lower-body injury, coach Don Lucia said on his weekly ESPN 1500 radio show on Monday night.
Skjei and senior forward Travis Boyd were both injured during last weekend's series split with St. Cloud State. Boyd suffered a lower-body injury in Friday night's 4-1 loss in St. Cloud and Lucia said he would miss about a month.
Skjei left Saturday's 4-3 overtime victory midway through the second period and was seen walking fine after the game. Lucia originally listed him as day-to-day before Monday's reassessment. He hopes Skjei can return for the trip to Boston College and Northeastern over Thanksgiving weekend.
The loss of Boyd shakes up the Gophers' third line, power play and penalty kill units. Skjei's absence will open up another spot in the lineup for the three freshman defensemen – Ryan Collins, Jack Glover and Steve Johnson. The three rookies have split time over the first month of the season.
