It’s tough to get noticed when two of the team’s best skaters are ahead of her on the depth chart. But Emily Auerbacher isn’t letting that stop her from trying.

When Auerbacher came to Syracuse, she brought with her an already impressive resume. She was a starter for the Boston Shamrocks of the Junior Women’s Hockey League in high school and helped lead Boston to the playoffs.

“As a member of the Shamrocks, Emily was really an excellent player,” Boston head coach John Hechter said. “It was really due to her hard work that she earned everything that’s accomplished.”

During her final season with the Shamrocks, Auerbacher scored 22 goals and had 10 assists in 28 games.

Auerbacher was both a leader and a comedian in the clubhouse, Hechter said. This translated to her time on the ice and eventually landed her a spot on the Junior Women’s Hockey League East All-Star team.

That positive energy has also been present at Syracuse.

“Emily brings a lot of character to this team,” SU assistant coach Alison Domenico said. “She’s one of those players that all of her teammates love to be around, and that translates to lots of energy on the ice.”

While Syracuse is glad to have her, it wasn’t the only school to offer Auerbacher a spot on its women’s ice hockey team.

Hechter said that Auerbacher received offers from Division-III schools, but she knew she deserved to play at the Division-I level.

“I just loved everything about Syracuse,” Auerbacher said. “It’s great.”

So far this season, Auerbacher hasn’t seen too much time on the ice. Despite her lack of minutes, she has managed to take five shots in the 14 games she’s appeared in.

During her limited time on the ice, Domenico said Auerbacher’s teammates love to cheer her on.

“She’s a great teammate and you can feel the excitement from the team on the bench when she gets out there,” Domenico said.

This past weekend against defending College Hockey America-champion Robert Morris, Auerbacher got some ice time, but didn’t manage to take a shot. But when she does, she is able to score often.

She hasn’t yet logged a goal for Syracuse, but with the Shamrocks that was her strength.

“She has a knack for scoring goals,” Hechter said. “She has a great shot.”

SU is averaging just more than two goals per game and could use Emily’s skills to increase its goal count.

Against RMU this past weekend, Syracuse scored one goal on Friday and four on Saturday. Flanagan said that he wants more consistency on offense and he thinks it could come from anybody, including Auerbacher.

“I like the way she plays,” Flanagan said. “She’s the kind of player that can get those ugly goals for you, but she’s very capable of coming down the wing and teaming it up and getting the beautiful goal for you too.”

If Auerbacher can get going, it might increase her time on the ice during the team’s upcoming conference games.

Ultimately, it’ll take time for Auerbacher to gain the confidence and skill needed to start at the college level. But her Shamrocks coach has no doubt that she will end up succeeding during her time at SU.

“She is one of a kind,” Hechter said. “She is an awesome hockey player, and a better kid.”

Published on December 4, 2012 at 12:04 am

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