St. Lawrence rebuffed, locals earn USHL honors

AIC coach Eric Lang turned down a job offer to be the new head coach at St. Lawrence. (Courtesy Photo)

As had been speculated for a few days, American International head coach Eric Lang told St. Lawrence officials on Friday morning that he would be declining their offer to become head coach of the Saints. The news was first reported by Mike McMahon of College Hockey News.

St. Lawrence had given Lang a deadline of today, Friday, April 26, to decide whether or not he’d accept the job offer. According to McMahon, he received a contract extension and raise from AIC to remain at his alma mater.

Lang guided the Yellow Jackets to their first ever trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2019. AIC upset top seeded St. Cloud State in the opening round before falling to Denver in the West Regional final. The team earned the trip to the national tournament after winning both the regular season and tournament championships in Atlantic Hockey.

St. Lawrence has been searching for a new head coach since the school announced it was parting ways with Mark Morris and both of his assistants on March 29. Morris had spent three seasons at the Canton, N.Y., school.