Andersson Continues to Impress on the Ice

Erik Andersson is your run-of-the-mill teenager, who studies for midterms and hangs out with friends. But when the junior laces up his skates, he is transformed into one of the best schoolboy ice hockey players in New Jersey.

A varsity starter as a freshman, Andersson quickly showed that he possessed something special on the ice, with an innate ability to score goals and an approach that makes everyone around him more effective.

This season, Andersson’s intangibles have developed into a jaw-dropping stat line that includes the third highest goal-scoring total in the state (33) as well as the highest individual point total in Morris County (48).

All this despite entering the year with a young, new-look Madison team and modest expectations.

“Erik logs a lot of ice time every game and every time he’s on the ice he makes scoring chances happen,” Madison head coach Dave Hanson said. “He brings every other player on the ice up to his level, and it’s very impressive to watch him because he’s very noticeable. He’s a very team-oriented leader and that’s why he’s a captain.”

Coming off of an injury-plagued (yet still impressive) sophomore campaign, the Madison junior committed himself over the summer to, in his words, “rebuild” for the upcoming season. It didn’t take long to deem Andersson’s off-season mission a success, as even those closest to him find themselves astounded at his improvement in his junior season.

“Usually, you see players get better and better every year,” Hansen said, “but when Erik was a freshman I couldn’t really see how much better he could possibly get. But with all his hard work and dedication, he’s now one of the top players in the state. If he keeps working hard he’s really going to step it up and move to the next level.”

While being considered one of the state’s elite players in just his third year of high school hockey is something truly remarkable, the Madison captain remains unfazed by all the fanfare, avoiding a “me-first” mentality, despite owning a scoring tally that trumps the next highest Madison scorer by 29 goals this season.

“I try to stick to just playing my game and lead by example,” Andersson said. “I don’t look into [the stats] too much. Yeah, I look at it a little bit but I just try to be a team player, do what’s best for the team and not all of the individual stuff.”

The more you play, the better you do,” he continued. “Going into the season I don’t think I had the confidence that I have now, but over time your confidence builds up the better you do.”

Those words certainly ring true to Hansen, whose gameplan focuses on getting Andersson as much ice time as possible in each game.

“I know what I get out of him and he gives back 110 percent every time he’s on the ice,” Hansen said. “Erik’s the kind of player, he’s a jokester and he likes to have fun, but once he gets on the bus going to the game, he’s very focused. He makes everyone else understand that there’s a time to horse around and there’s a time to be serious.”

This season, Andersson has helped guide a young Dodger club to a 9-5 mark and has hopes of capturing a Haas Cup title in either of the next two seasons. With a bright future ahead for this Madison star, don’t expect to see him resting on his laurels anytime soon.

“I just hope to get better and better every year,” he said.