A few weeks after he quit the Syracuse club hockey team in fall 2015, Keith Lambert begged for his spot back. He phoned head coach Nick Pierandri. But the coach said the Orange didn’t need him.

“We could use you,” Pierandri told him, “but we’ll win without you.”

The next day, Lambert showed up at the team’s lift session anyway. He felt unwelcome and struggled to keep up with his teammates. But the team thought he earned a second chance.

After playing five years at The Harvey (New York) School, Lambert’s career had seemingly ended when he quit. But quickly, he found that he missed the sport he’d been playing since he turned 5. He wanted to get back on the ice. And this season, after re-joining the team last fall, the 6-foot sophomore forward is the third-leading scorer for Syracuse (23-7), which leads all of ACHA Division I teams in goals.

“This season’s been great,” Lambert said. “It’s good to be back.”

Robbie VanRaamsdonk, a junior forward on the team and friend of Lambert’s, explained that he tried to convince him not to quit, but he was “pretty much done,” so there wasn’t much of a discussion.

“I tried to encourage him that he wasn’t making the right decision,” Pierandri said. “And that he would do better in school if he stayed with hockey … I told him I was disappointed.”

Two weeks into his hiatus, Lambert knew he had made a mistake. In mid-November, he made the call to Pierandri. During his first workout, Lambert “huffed and puffed” while his teammates “didn’t break a sweat.” He had hardly skated or lifted, and it showed. Lambert had only played in two intramural games during the break, but over the next few weeks he worked back to his previous level of play.

Despite coming back to the ice, he didn’t receive significant playing time until last February. Lambert had returned to the team during a dry spell for the Syracuse offense. To earn playing time, he needed to produce offensively. He did. His rhythm returned when beating defenders one-on-one became regular again.

“Once I started gelling … making some plays with the older guys,” Lambert said, “I started to feel more comfortable, realizing the guys wanted me on the ice.”

During Syracuse’s game against SUNY Oswego, Lambert regained the same confidence that made him a five-year varsity letter-winner in high school. He had 4 points against the Lakers and, on back-to-back weekends, he totaled nine points in two games. In the national championships, Lambert scored four goals in two games for the Orange and earned a spot on the Honorable Mention All-Tournament team.

As Lambert’s time on the ice increased, so did his teammates’ respect and confidence.

“When he got his shot to get back in the lineup, he ran with it,” VanRaamsdonk said. “At the end of last year, he was probably one of our best players.

“He’s a core part of our team.”

Published on February 15, 2017 at 11:14 pm

Contact Eric: erblack@syr.edu | @esblack34