Lettieri suspended, Gophers fall in rankings again; Minnesota State will carry top spot into North Star Cup

Gophers drop to No. 17 after a tie, win against lowly rival Wisconsin.

By jason.gonzalez

January 19, 2015 at 10:17PM

Gophers sophomore forward Vinni Lettieri was suspended one game for his part in the last-minute altercation against Wisconsin, the Big Ten announced on Monday afternoon.

Lettieri, penalized for leaving the bench during the scrum at 19:29 into the third period on Saturday night, will miss the North Star Cup opener against No. 1 Minnesota State.

Wisconsin junior defenseman and Burnsville native Eddie Wittchow received a one-game suspension for his disqualification penalty during the game and was suspended for an additional game on Monday under the conference's supplemental discipline process after the review of what was determined to be a hit to the head.

• The Gophers lost another spot in the USCHO rankings on Monday. They fell to No. 17 after a 2-2 tie and shootout loss on Friday and a 5-2 victory on Saturday against unranked and two-win Wisconsin. Friday's setback pushed them back to No. 18 in the PairWise rankings.

Minnesota State increased its first-place vote total with a sweep against Ferris State and will take the top spot in this weekend's North Star College Cup at Xcel Energy Center. The Mavericks and Gophers meet in the first round at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Minnesota Duluth will face Bemidji State at 4 p.m. The Bulldogs dropped two spots to No. 7 after a tie and loss against Western Michigan.

Michigan jumped the Gophers in the top 20 poll to claim the Big Ten's highest ranking, moving up to No. 16 after a 10-6 blowout of Ohio State.

Saturday replay: This time, shots go in as Gophers bounce back, top Badgers in series finale, read Saturday night's game story and postgame blog. Watch the last-minute brawl and postgame reaction from Gophers sophomore forward Connor Reilly, Gophers senior forward Travis Boyd, Gophers coach Don Lucia.

Friday replay: Despite 49 shots, Gophers can muster only a tie with lowly Badgers and suffer shootout loss, read Friday night's game story and postgame blog with Wisconsin reaction. Watch postgame video of senior forward Travis Boyd, coach Don Lucia, and Wisconsin sophomore forward and former Mr. Hockey Minnesota Grant Besse.

about the writer

about the writer

jason.gonzalez

More from Gophers

card image

What makes Darius Taylor such an effective running back for the Gophers? Many things, but especially his vision and ability to find creases.

card image