Man, 19, charged in University of Minnesota hockey player assault
Prosecutors have charged a man they believe assaulted a University of Minnesota hockey player in September.
The St. Paul man, 19, faces one count of third-degree assault in Hennepin County.
According to the criminal complaint, law enforcement arrived near Fourth Street Southeast and 16th Avenue Southeast shortly before 10 p.m. on Sept. 20 to find the hockey player on the ground with blood coming from his mouth and face.
A witness said he saw two men yelling at the hockey player about his shirt. He said he started to walk away but turned around to see the hockey player lying on the ground, charges say.
Surveillance video of the scene showed the St. Paul man and another man talking with the hockey player and the witness, the complaint says.
The hockey player started to walk away but the St. Paul man punched him in the face, charges say. He started to fall backwards but the St. Paul man punched him two more times.
The hockey player was taken to the hospital and evaluated for his injuries. Sources previously told WCCO they feared the injuries would end his ability to play. The complaint says that his face was broken in multiple places, requiring surgery. He also sustained significant vision loss.
When he was asked about the incident in October, Gophers men's hockey coach Bob Motzko said he couldn't talk about the incident but added the player was back on the ice.
"My goodness, can he skate. Like, he is electric level of skating. And we hope very soon that he's going to be back," said Motzko. "It's really noticeable and we're excited to get him back."