By Warren Kozireski–
With 12 games remaining in the 2018-19 regular season, Lancaster’s Michael Ederer led the low-scoring St. Lawrence University in scoring with a modest nine points. But it is more through the “A” he wears on his jersey and in the locker room that the senior is having the greatest impact on the rebuilding Saints.
Right after his first season as a college player, the former Buffalo Regals, West Seneca Wings, Nichols School forward experience his first major change as St. Lawrence made a coaching switch from head coach Greg Carvel, who left for the University of Massachusetts, to Mark Morris.
System and other changes followed and the team is now relying on their veterans to develop the winning culture.
“Sometimes things come up and you don’t expect them to happen, but you have to worry about the things you can control and that’s leading by example and giving your best every single day. As a senior, we need to try to establish that culture for the future.
“I think that’s really important that we have to influence…the classes coming up because we have a lot of underclassmen.
“Once you get in here as a freshman, you start from scratch and work your butt off every single day to earn every single opportunity you can and, once you get those opportunities, you have to make sure you’re prepared every single weekend to keep those spots and keep up your ice-time.
Ederer had a three-point weekend on home ice against RPI and Union to give him four goals and five assists through 21 games, but the Saints took a seven game losing streak into the final weekend in January. He led this year’s Saints in career games played was ten games away from the century mark.
The soft-spoken 5”11”, 180 lb. winger left the Buffalo Jr. Sabres after a 30-goal campaign in 2013-14 to play one more junior season with Merritt in British Columbia prior to joining St. Lawrence. There he netted 21 goals and 49 points in 58 games.
He scored his first collegiate point on his first goal at Merrimack Oct. 17, 2015 and now has seven multi-point games on his resume.
What’s next?
“I’m not sure. I just kind of want to see how the season goes and see if there are any opportunities available following the season and we’ll go from there. If not possibly grad school.
“Being my last semester here, I kind of look back at how four years goes by so quick and you really learn to cherish every single day at the rink because there are only two or three months left,” Ederer said in mid-January. “It’s been a big part of my life and I’m just excited to take advantage of these last two months.”
