This winter marks the finale of a phenomenal career for senior hockey star Drew Carleton. Carleton has skated to amazing heights the past four years, despite almost never setting foot on the ice as a Jumbo.

Heading into his freshman year of college, Carleton underwent knee surgery, and was forced to sit out the first half of his freshman season. Sitting on the sidelines and undergoing strenuous physical therapy, he was discouraged and nearly hung up his skates.

“I didn’t know how well I would recover,” Carleton said. “I didn’t think that I would do as well, or that I would ever have the same skill level. It was extremely discouraging.”

But it was Carleton’s parents who convinced him to persist with his hockey career.

“They knew how much I loved the game,” Carleton said. “I couldn’t just give up such a huge part of my life, and they knew that.”

The Tufts hockey program was blessed by Carleton’s decision to keep playing. “He’s one of the most talented offensive players that this school has ever seen,” coach and former Tufts hockey player Brian Murphy said of Carleton. “He can make things happen.”

This season, Carleton, a forward and second-year captain, leads the team with 15 goals. For the past four years, Carleton’s points-per-game average has risen steadily, and this year, he sits at 23 points, an average of four a night.

Carleton, with a career total of 130 points, is the fifth-most prolific scorer in the modern era of Tufts hockey (separate statistics are kept since the rebirth of Tufts hockey in 1986). Astonishingly, he has accomplished this despite his absence from the ice for the start of two semesters. Last year, he missed the first six games of the season because he was studying abroad in Australia. Based on his career and senior season points-per-game averages, Carleton would finish with 185 points for his career, good for best in the modern era, had he played in those games.

“Anyone who can score at his pace should be recognized as one of the best,” Murphy said. “Last year, he missed the first six games, and only played roughly eight games his freshman year. He could have had the scoring record here.”

As impressive as Carleton’s statistics may be, he never loses sight of his team. “He’s a great leader, and he has the ability to take control of the game like no one else in the league,” junior forward Scott Hayes said. “There’s a better chance that Drew will score over most anyone else, but he always puts the team ahead of himself. It’s never about his stats or anything like that.”

For the past two years, Carleton has earned All-New England and All-ECAC honors, while earning ECAC Northeast Player of the Week several times. Last year, Carleton was also honored with the Boston’s Sports Writers Award. Additionally, last season, he was recognized as Division III Player of the Week, a national recognition, after putting in six goals and an assist in a single game.

“He’s the kind of guy that has the ability to shoot and handle the puck well,” Murphy said. “He brings a lot of things to the table, and can play the game a lot of different ways.”

“I just love getting out there and scoring a goal,” Carleton said. “It’s a great feeling, and I want to do anything possible to achieve success. It keeps me interested and going out there next time.”

Though he’s a team leader, Carleton goes about his job quietly. “He’s a great captain,” Murphy said. “He leads by example, he’s the hardest worker in practice, and I think that other guys see that and follow suit.”

Carleton began playing hockey 17 years ago, and since then has immersed himself in every aspect of the game. “I love the fast-paced nature of the game, the rough physical component is always exciting,” Carleton said. “It’s like a whole different planet on the ice, gliding around at such high speeds. It’s just fun.”

Carleton’s hockey experience at Tufts has been rewarding, but frustrating at times. Tufts is the only team in the ECAC Northeast division that does not have its own rink.

“I knew that Tufts was not a well-funded program when I came here,” Carleton said. “And while at times it is frustrating, I think that the caliber of players that the program sees is much different. We’re just a bunch of guys who are willing to go through everything that we have to just to play the game that we love.”

As a testament to the strengthening of the Tufts program over the past four years, Carleton’s teams have gotten better every season, which has been encouraging for him. Last year, the squad reached the playoffs, and this year, the Jumbos are 7-2 in ECAC match-ups, and are in contention for first place.

Upon graduating, Carleton, an Economics major, has plans of working at an investment banking firm in New York. Although he toyed with the idea of playing hockey in Europe, Carleton has opted to leave the ice for awhile.

“I’d like to go out with a really strong finish,” Carleton said. “It is sad to see this end. It will be really tough… I’ll never be able to play with this competitive nature again. I’d really like to end on a high note.”

“He’s just a great guy,” Hayes said. “We’re going to miss him a lot next year, both on and off the ice”