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  • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

    Originally posted by brassbonanza View Post
    If it got to the point where games in a new 4-5K facility were consistently selling out well in advance and no one could get a ticket, sure the XL would become an option then. In that very highly unlikely scenario, we'd have a case where the students likely would be willing to bus into Hartford to see a game against a big shot opponent. And then you'd at least have somewhat of a collegiate atmosphere, and it wouldn't be 2,000 people in a 16k facility. Thing is, that's not going to happen anytime soon, and the governor just wants to pander to voters by bringing more things into Hartford, even if they would be failures of events, and ruin the program's chance to build a fan base on campus.
    There's plenty to do in Hartford, unless you're excluding illegal activities. Then, yeah, I guess there isn't much reason to go there.
    Legally drunk???? If its "legal", what's the ------- problem?!? - George Carlin

    Ever notice how everybody who drives slower than you is an idiot, and everybody who drives faster is a maniac? - George Carlin

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    • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

      Originally posted by RIT Winters View Post
      I'm not sure that throwing money at the hockey team is really going to solve the attendance worries anyway. UCONN is a big school but one that is wholly caught up in its basketball teams (and to a lesser extent football).

      They had a pretty good team this year, pushing eventual AHA representative Air Force to a game three that was lost by only a goal. And how many people did they get for their two playoff games at home? 479 and 351.

      Is it realistic to think that in a couple years of getting it handed to them in Hockey East while they rebuild the team with scholarships is going to make attendance increase? Let alone increase 11x in order to fill a 5000 seat building?

      They have absolutely no choice but to play on campus, as that is the only way they will be able to grow attendance. If you are going to make your fans get on a bus and drive downtown to watch, you can kiss your lofty attendance expectations goodbye. They don't have that many fans now with a good team...

      (Disclaimer: I'm very biased towards RPI joining HE)
      They also have one important factor that depresses attendance:

      No marketing.
      UConn -- Clarkson

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      • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

        Originally posted by Fishman'81 View Post
        I don't see RPI being a player again anytime soon. That ship has sailed, and it might not come home to port for a very long time, if ever.
        If Union can make the FF without scholarships, than RPI can win the championship again with them. As to being a player, RPI was in the tourney a year ago.

        And Connecticut can't even win the AHA.
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        • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

          Originally posted by Rover View Post
          There's plenty to do in Hartford, unless you're excluding illegal activities. Then, yeah, I guess there isn't much reason to go there.
          Stew Leonards in Newington! Plus there's duckpin bowling

          And don't forget the totally Gross soda at Avery's
          Who doesn't love some Monster Mucus or Toxic Slime!
          http://www.averysoda.com/TotallyGrossSoda.html
          Last edited by CornwallAce; 04-13-2012, 06:49 PM. Reason: add Avery's Soda

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          • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

            Originally posted by Ralph Baer View Post
            If Union can make the FF without scholarships, than RPI can win the championship again with them.
            Ralph, Ralph, Ralph, you really think that Union doesn't give scholarships? Then what are those foreign student loans which never seem to get repaid?

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            • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

              RIT Winters, how much time have you spent in Hartford? How do you know they won't draw there?

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              • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                Originally posted by RSTuthill View Post
                RIT Winters, how much time have you spent in Hartford? How do you know they won't draw there?
                Because having to get in a bus to drive downtown to watch your college team is just something people won't do. It's the same as not having your own barn.

                Some locals will go, sure. But would that many more people go downtown that wouldn't go to UCONN's campus? Doubt it. Again, less than 500 people for both their playoff games.
                RIT

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                • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                  Originally posted by RIT Winters View Post
                  Because having to get in a bus to drive downtown to watch your college team is just something people won't do. It's the same as not having your own barn.

                  Some locals will go, sure. But would that many more people go downtown that wouldn't go to UCONN's campus? Doubt it. Again, less than 500 people for both their playoff games.
                  You are thinking in the wrong demographic terms. Students have never been a big part of the marketing strategy for any of UConn's major sports. Students do not have many dollars in their pockets. Think corporations and the massive population of corporate employees in the Hartford area. Those people will never go out to Storrs unless Freitas is enlarged and they are playing big name schools. But they will go into the XL Center because that they do all the time.

                  On the attendance thing, I agree it has been abysmal. They haven't tried to market very hard (a league wide problem), the opponents do not have big name recognition, and the W-L record has not been conducive to getting a lot of people to come out. Don't even know if the students were on campus for the first round tournament games, but the league prices were higher than the RS for students, and the opponent was Canisius (need I say more?). I did go back and check the UML games, and the UConn tournament games were actually more well attended than than the UML game at Nashua (Lowell's back yard) and the Bowling Green away games at the beginning of the season.
                  Last edited by RSTuthill; 04-13-2012, 08:12 PM.

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                  • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                    Originally posted by Fishman'81 View Post
                    I don't see RPI being a player again anytime soon. That ship has sailed, and it might not come home to port for a very long time, if ever.
                    *****http://fotos.fotoflexer.com/237c0672436277bc13e8d4acd9edf08e.jpg******
                    RPI

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                    • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                      Originally posted by RSTuthill View Post
                      Ralph, Ralph, Ralph, you really think that Union doesn't give scholarships? Then what are those foreign student loans which never seem to get repaid?
                      I don't believe that. On the other hand, I do not know that those loans aren't being repaid. I have a hard time believing that athletes at all schools don't get preferential treatment -- except for UConn of course.
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                      Let's Go 'Tute!

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                      • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                        Originally posted by RSTuthill View Post
                        I did go back and check the UML games, and the UConn tournament games were actually more well attended than than the UML game at Nashua (Lowell's back yard) and the Bowling Green away games at the beginning of the season.
                        I believe the UML game in Nashua was a sellout. The Conway Arena only has seating of 1,050. Lowell's average attendance this season was 4,904 in 18 home games at the Tsongas.

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                        • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                          While reasonable minds can differ about how much of a factor UConn can be in HE, is there really any serious doubt that they're the better choice..?

                          Hockey East is piling up the hardware of late... That conference is probably as high-profile as any in the country.

                          Furthermore, there is suddenly TV-money available to compete for against the likes of the Big Ten... This is not the time to bring in another obscure school to join Merrimack and UML. (Even though both of the latter programs have been far more successful than RPI of late.)

                          Adding RPI would make no sense at all at this juncture. They just don't bring anything of any particular value to the table, no matter how you slice it.
                          Last edited by Fishman'81; 04-14-2012, 02:41 AM.

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                          • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                            Originally posted by Ralph Baer View Post
                            I don't believe that.
                            It was publicly stated at the time. Not a secret. I was working in Schenectady when it first started.

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                            • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                              Originally posted by RSTuthill View Post
                              It was publicly stated at the time. Not a secret. I was working in Schenectady when it first started.
                              English needs a word like the German "doch," so one can answer a question phrased negatively in an way that doesn't tend to confuse. I was trying to say that I think that Union indeed offers scholarships, and I think that they get around the restruction for American students also.
                              sigpic

                              Let's Go 'Tute!

                              Maxed out at 2,147,483,647 at 10:00 AM EDT 9/17/07.

                              2012 Poser Of The Year

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                              • Re: UConn to apply to Hockey East

                                Ralph, as you know, engineers sometimes have tin ears. Looks like we are in violent agreement.

                                I have a good (American) friend whose son recently played for Union and claims they got zip, though. I also have a good friend whose son played for the 1989 Harvard championship team who claims to have paid full list price (ouch).

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