RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

[jericho]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Just to restate RPI's playoff hopes. It's just not going to happen. Sorry if that sounds negative but reality is reality.

Flaggy, is that you?

[hab]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Flaggy, is that you?

. The resemblance cannot be denied.

[Ralph Baer]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

and another in the directory:

Name: Ana Amelia Orzechowski
Class: First-Year Student
Curriculum: Business and Management

[shelfit]

Might want to rename this thread, "Goin' back to the drawing board."

[hab]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Might want to rename this thread, "Goin' back to the drawing board."

Nope. I'll give up on this team when one of these two things happens: 1) they are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs; or 2) they start playing like they have given up on themselves. Nowhere close to either of those things happening.

[hkypassion]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Not out of it yet but looks like last year again! So to a point, agree with shelfit. The drawing board starts with the top. I just don't know what they are thinking there anymore.

For today - two comments! I will have more - whether you agree or not - last years collapse and this years performance is telling!

This team needs wins - badly - yet in a 2-1 game this weekend, late, RPI continues to "roll" 4 lines! I don't know any team fighting for conference points would "roll" unless you have the depth of the top teams. RPI doesn't. The top teams play their top players! Period! And they play them a lot! Why? Because they are their top players! At any level of competitive play - this is the way it is! Not at RPI. Something else seems to be going on there. I saw a lot of Bouliere Friday and a lot of Ambrose and Fast Saturday.

Special team play is the difference in college hockey more often than not. Case and point 3-0 loss to Dartmouth. Two PP for Dartmouth + ENG and 0-5 for RPI. This power play - whatever it is - is not very good. No creativity - mostly perimeter. I thought it was lack of hockey sense, so I watched again and they set up that way each and every time! I remember saying the same thing last year with Smelker on the wrong side - unable to shoot off the feed!

There is no denying the players compete!! The problem is team play doesn't improve and adjustments are not made. For a coach, the measurement is wins and playoffs. Hope isn't a strategy. I am no longer sure what the strategy is!

[lugnut92]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Might want to rename this thread, "Goin' back to the drawing board."

As discussed earlier, while it would have been great to get a couple of points this weekend, they weren't really expected or necessary. This upcoming weekend is a different story. We need four points against Union. If we fail to earn even one of the four points at stake this weekend, we we start needing Yale to lose points that they likely won't lose.

[hab]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

Not out of it yet but looks like last year again! So to a point, agree with shelfit. The drawing board starts with the top. I just don't know what they are thinking there anymore.

For today - two comments! I will have more - whether you agree or not - last years collapse and this years performance is telling!

This team needs wins - badly - yet in a 2-1 game this weekend, late, RPI continues to "roll" 4 lines! I don't know any team fighting for conference points would "roll" unless you have the depth of the top teams. RPI doesn't. The top teams play their top players! Period! And they play them a lot! Why? Because they are their top players! At any level of competitive play - this is the way it is! Not at RPI. Something else seems to be going on there. I saw a lot of Bouliere Friday and a lot of Ambrose and Fast Saturday.

Special team play is the difference in college hockey more often than not. Case and point 3-0 loss to Dartmouth. Two PP for Dartmouth + ENG and 0-5 for RPI. This power play - whatever it is - is not very good. No creativity - mostly perimeter. I thought it was lack of hockey sense, so I watched again and they set up that way each and every time! I remember saying the same thing last year with Smelker on the wrong side - unable to shoot off the feed!

There is no denying the players compete!! The problem is team play doesn't improve and adjustments are not made. For a coach, the measurement is wins and playoffs. Hope isn't a strategy. I am no longer sure what the strategy is!

I agree with some of what you have to say here, but have a little different take on the team's difficulties, having watched most of their games this season. First, a couple of things we agree on: 1) special teams have been a huge problem all season; and 2) when the team is at its best is when players are foregoing those low percentage shots from the perimeter and are driving hard to the net. I had thought that the latter issue had been improving a lot in recent games, but not so much on the weekend.

I am convinced that a good part of the reason for this team's weakness on special teams, relative to other teams, is that they lack those handful of stand-out players who can rise to the occasion on PP and PK opportunities. RPI has not been successful in recruiting the kinds of players who have been on the Canada and U.S. U-18 teams, for example, and those are the players who make other teams' special teams click. RPI has good balance, and almost always does...its third and fourth lines can compete quite well against other teams third and fourth lines. So while shortening the bench works well for most D1 teams I'm not sure that it is an obvious coaching decision in this case.

Finally, I see a lot of improvement in this team since the beginning of the year, especially in the area of puck movement, completing passes, cycling in the offensive zone etc. Whether it is enough improvement to put together a string of wins in the last 10 games remains to be seen.

[shelfit]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

I agree with some of what you have to say here, but have a little different take on the team's difficulties, having watched most of their games this season. First, a couple of things we agree on: 1) special teams have been a huge problem all season; and 2) when the team is at its best is when players are foregoing those low percentage shots from the perimeter and are driving hard to the net. I had thought that the latter issue had been improving a lot in recent games, but not so much on the weekend.

I am convinced that a good part of the reason for this team's weakness on special teams, relative to other teams, is that they lack those handful of stand-out players who can rise to the occasion on PP and PK opportunities. RPI has not been successful in recruiting the kinds of players who have been on the Canada and U.S. U-18 teams, for example, and those are the players who make other teams' special teams click. RPI has good balance, and almost always does...its third and fourth lines can compete quite well against other teams third and fourth lines. So while shortening the bench works well for most D1 teams I'm not sure that it is an obvious coaching decision in this case.

Finally, I see a lot of improvement in this team since the beginning of the year, especially in the area of puck movement, completing passes, cycling in the offensive zone etc. Whether it is enough improvement to put together a string of wins in the last 10 games remains to be seen.

I don't think RPI is the type of school that will attract the US and Canada U18 type of players no matter who the coach has been, is now, or will be in the near future. Shortening the bench is always an obvious coaching decision no matter what team you're talking about because you will always have a top 6 list of forwards in all cases. One team's top 6 might not be as strong as the next team's top 6 but you've still got to shorten the bench to try to get that tying goal, keep a one goal lead, or maintain a tie to force OT, etc. You can't just roll the lines in those situations. Sometimes you shorten the bench just to create higher and more focused energy and you'd be surprised how often that leads to very exciting finishes. Coach if you read this it's time to start taking chances because what you're currently doing just isn't working. It's desperation time. You've got nothing to lose (well, maybe that's not entirely true) and everything to gain. You might surprise yourself with the risks you come up with. Sometimes they turn out to not be as risky as you thought. You need to win the next 3 in a row to keep your playoff hopes alive (and Brown needs to help you out this weekend). Go for it and good luck!

[hkypassion]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

I agree with some of what you have to say here, but have a little different take on the team's difficulties, having watched most of their games this season. First, a couple of things we agree on: 1) special teams have been a huge problem all season; and 2) when the team is at its best is when players are foregoing those low percentage shots from the perimeter and are driving hard to the net. I had thought that the latter issue had been improving a lot in recent games, but not so much on the weekend.

I am convinced that a good part of the reason for this team's weakness on special teams, relative to other teams, is that they lack those handful of stand-out players who can rise to the occasion on PP and PK opportunities. RPI has not been successful in recruiting the kinds of players who have been on the Canada and U.S. U-18 teams, for example, and those are the players who make other teams' special teams click. RPI has good balance, and almost always does...its third and fourth lines can compete quite well against other teams third and fourth lines. So while shortening the bench works well for most D1 teams I'm not sure that it is an obvious coaching decision in this case.

Finally, I see a lot of improvement in this team since the beginning of the year, especially in the area of puck movement, completing passes, cycling in the offensive zone etc. Whether it is enough improvement to put together a string of wins in the last 10 games remains to be seen.

Agree with the comments on recruitment (and shelfit's comments as well)! Add to that is the schools uniqueness as a polytechnic engineering school, but thats my point. The other schools have those few players who can make a difference and when they are on the ice who are we matching with? I also have watched many if not most games and I just don't see the passing execution you speak of. I wish I did, but I don't. What I see is forwards who have no direction or purpose in their patterns - three at a time to the left - three at a time to the right. Thats what video is for! I shouldn't see it again and again. Even on something as simple as a tip dump! Seen one lately? I agree there is a level of competitiveness that should allow them to win games - but again there is something missing in their development.
As the premier programs there on the hill - I really wish they could contend.

[lugnut92]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

I know I've said a couple of times that we didn't need any points this weekend to make the playoff dream come alive, but they sure as hell would have helped.

RPI KRACH (RRWP): 20.45 (.2281)

MCTs (Mean/Median/Mode/Range):
Points - 11.02 / 11 / 10 / 4 - 22
Rank - 9.68 / 9 / 9 / 6 - 12
Playoffs - 0.8%
Most likely opponent - Quinnipiac (0.6%)

Conference rankings:

1. Quinnipiac
2. Harvard
3. Clarkson
4. Cornell
   —————
5. SLU
6. Dartmouth
7. Princeton
8. Yale
   —————
   —————
9. RPI
10. Colgate
11. Union
12. Brown

We need to beat Union. Twice.

[ARM]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

...
Playoffs - 0.8%
...

That's harsh.

[Ralph Baer]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

According to a post on the recruit thread, RPI got a commitment from a second goalie, Kira Bombay of Nepean http://nepeanwildcats.com/player-pro...team_id=317464.

She couldn't be related to Gordon, could she?

Edit: it says on RPI University on the upper left of Twitter page.
Forgot the link https://twitter.com/kirabombay.

Edit: Under 11/19/14 http://www.ngha.ca/public/default2.asp

[Eeyore]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

That's harsh.

He could at least round up.

[DaDudester]

Re: RPI 2014-2015: Goin' back to the playoffs

According to a post on the recruit thread, RPI got a commitment from a second goalie, Kira Bombay of Nepean http://nepeanwildcats.com/player-pro...team_id=317464.

She couldn't be related to Gordon, could she?

Edit: it says on RPI University on the upper left of Twitter page.

Edit: Under 11/19/14 http://www.ngha.ca/public/default2.asp

Her Stats are properly documented here : http://pwhl3.stats.pointstreak.com/p...seasonid=13188

And "yes" there is a connection to Gordon Bombay - a character whose "back story" is briefly mentioned in the original movie, parallels also the story of her grandfather's brief hockey career at Bemidji State.