Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

That was the least of the bad calls, the first night Willman's goal was good, last night the second goal by RPI looked offsides. But they couldn't get the replay back that far. The No goal call was a joke, there had been that type on incidental contact all night. Then the terrible Grant call. Don't know what it is about RPI, but Brown got hosed on both games. ECAC officiating was embarrassing.

First night, the puck was still on the line. Not a goal.
Second RPI goal: Replay's up; wasn't even close to offside. And they DID bring the replay back that far.
Second night no goal: You hit the goaltender. That doesn't count.

Officiating was embarrassing both ways.

[BrunoFan00]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Naclerio and Lappin will be sorely missed next year, but I was very encouraged by the play of Lafferty, Willman, Bird, Brink and Corcoran (in that order) over the past month or so, and especially this weekend. Coupled with the season-long success of Marchin and Gottlieb, the underclassmen look impressive. If the freshman goalie can hold his own and the young defensive corps can continue to improve, the team could be better next year.

On a more sour note, I'm beginning to wonder when I'll be able to stop saying "well, at least next year can't be any worse" at the end of each season. A five-win season is simply unacceptable, no matter how many close calls (of which there were MANY) we had. Too many blown leads, soft goals and mental mistakes that lead directly to opportunities for our opponents.

See you all in November.

I was really not planning on reply again this season on this board, since I admittedly don't have very much positive to say about the state of Brown hockey, or athletics in general. That said, I want to avoid the "ifs" for next year and offer what I think the core issues were.

1. Honestly, the first game of the season gave us a preview of coming attractions, a refrain that became all too common for the Bears this year. In that game, Brown allowed the first goal of the season about three minutes in, with a half minute left in the second, and with two minutes left in the third. Brown allowed 107 goals this year... after some research, more than half of them - an astonishing 58 of them (!) - came within three minutes of the start of a period, three minutes before the end of a period, or three minutes after a prior goal was scored, including one by the Bears. In some of those games, they were the difference, including the games @ Dartmouth, Princeton, Yale (2x), @ St. Lawrence (4 of them, count 'em), UConn, Harvard, Dartmouth (again), Harvard, @ Cornell, and then the last two against RPI. Erase the empty netters, and it's still 53 of 102 goals. That speaks to either not being ready coming out of the locker room, not being able to close out periods or games, or clock watching. Unacceptable. That is a pattern that needs to change... I didn't realize how pervasive that problem was until I actually looked at the numbers.

2. Secondary scoring didn't occur until the final game of the season, when Corcoran and Willman, at times, were the best guys on the ice. Lappin, Marchin, and Naclerio accounted for 36 of the 75 goals Brown scored this year. Pryzbek showed flashes, at times, but there was no depth. I blame Ruth Simmons, in part, for the lack of depth, particularly after Tim Lappin went down and there was hardly anyone left to replace him. Bird, Willman, and Lafferty have combined for 48 career points. Add in Corcoran, the total jumps to 63. If those numbers were even 50% better (another 7-8 points per guy), and we've got a different team.

3. I can't figure out the defense. Dennis Robertson was the best D-man I've seen at Brown since Scott Ford. Since then, we've had some guys who have been ok, but no jump-on-my-back d-men that can carry a team. Maybe Gottlieb is that guy. Every mistake a Brown player made in terms of defensive or PK coverage led to a goal against. When you're already in a -2 hole because of your play in the first or last three of a period, and your offense is only good for 2.5 goals per game, well, there's the difference. I keep waiting for the next guy to step up. I hope Scherer or Schoo is that guy, and that Cooper and Tegtmayer can regain their health.

4. I'm a big Brendan Whittet fan. I have long thought he was the right guy for the job, he exudes enthusiasm for Brown, and he has found a way to attract some incredible talent to Brown. I truly believe that if admissions and financial aid could do their part, Brown would be on the rise. We can look at countless examples of the past decade: Cornell and Yale basketball, Columbia basketball, Cornell baseball, Dartmouth football. (I've tried to leave Harvard off the list, but when they decided to be good at basketball, look at the past few years). Brown needs to do the same. If that means revisiting the Ruth Simmons admissions policies on athletics, please do so.

5. I think what bothers me most about this season was how far south it went considering the optimism we felt following the trip to Ireland, or even after the PC win. How did the ECAC give Brown a weekend off in the middle of the exam break? At least we opened with a couple Ivy foes, which is different than years past, when Brown was playing Quinnipiac or SLU/Clarkson, teams in games 7-8 while Brown is on game 1. But that stretch after the PC game killed momentum, which turned into the Yale sweep, which started the slide.

On to next year. To whomever starts the new thread, nothing witty. Maybe someday we'll be more than a tough out. Which, after all, still makes us an out.

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

I would expect Naclerio to receive some attention (albeit not quite as much) from NHL teams, as well. It also wouldn't surprise me to see Pfeil picked up by a lower level team - probably someone in the ECHL.

At this rate, the likeliest landing spot for Naclerio and Lappin would seem to be New Jersey, which already boasts three Brown alumni (Farnham, Danis, Lorito) in its system. Maybe they can reunite the Lorito-Naclerio-Lappin line in Albany!

Would love to see that line in Albany. I'm not sure Albany, which is having a great season, has room for Mark and Nick to sign them now as it did last year with Matt. The Devils appear to be very happy with Matt's progress and recently Union's Novak is getting more time. The Devils' ECHL affiliate in Glens Falls would seem to be a good fit now for them.

[kdiff77]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

To whomever starts the new thread, nothing witty.

I'm guessing this would be a bad time to bring up my entry for next year's thread: "The Importance of Being Ernst."

EDIT: By the way, BF00, I totally agree with everything you said, especially with regard to the off-the-ice stuff. Revisiting the Simmons-era athletic policies is simply a must if Brown intends to become competitive in its big three sports (football, hockey, basketball). The lacrosse team is succeeding despite the administration, not because of it, and hockey has been losing recruits every year due to heightened admissions standards that far exceed the Ivy League's minimum requirements and are simply unreasonable to ask of the vast majority of high school student-athletes. It would seem as though the administration deemed it more important to maintain moral high ground over Harvard and Yale, rather than attempting to compete with them athletically.

[kdiff77]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Mark Naclerio signed with the Providence Bruins today. Great for him! The Bruins have been taking chances on a number of local undrafted college kids in recent years.

I spoke with Mark's brother, Craig, at the last home game of the season. Craig said Mark aims to emulate Patrice Bergeron's style of play. Maybe one day he'll get to play alongside his idol.

[kdiff77]

Would love to see that line in Albany. I'm not sure Albany, which is having a great season, has room for Mark and Nick to sign them now as it did last year with Matt. The Devils appear to be very happy with Matt's progress and recently Union's Novak is getting more time. The Devils' ECHL affiliate in Glens Falls would seem to be a good fit now for them.

Whadda ya know - the Devils signed Lappin! I'd imagine the prospect of playing with Lorito again helped away his mind.

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Would love to see that line in Albany. I'm not sure Albany, which is having a great season, has room for Mark and Nick to sign them now as it did last year with Matt. The Devils appear to be very happy with Matt's progress and recently Union's Novak is getting more time. The Devils' ECHL affiliate in Glens Falls would seem to be a good fit now for them.

My "prediction" here was as valid as my prediction that Brown would defeat RPI. It is noteworthy that Nick signed after Mike Sislo, the devils leading scorer was called up to NJ. Sislo played on Matt's line for the Devils and at one point Yale's Brian O'Neill was on that line as well. I can see a line of Lorito, Lappin and O'Neill, all ECACers.

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

More on Nick - he plays Friday!!!

http://blog.timesunion.com/hockey/la...-friday/20760/

[vicb]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Looking for the 2nd Round picks for the following contestants in the ECAC Pick the Playoffs:

97osu
aweise
Brett Gobe
jstadts
lugnut92
Nate Owen USCHO
QU2201
Rjm7272
sshablak
TchrBill

You have until 7PM Fri night.

http://board.uscho.com/showthread.ph...81#post6291781

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

One more blog post on Nick. Note he was on Devils first line with Matt and Yale's Brian O'Neill, last year's AHL MVP.

http://www.thealbanydevils.com/lappi...in-devils-red/

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Sunday Game Report of Devils: Lappin scores winning goal with 40 seconds left in third on pass from Lorito. Below is a link to the video of the goal and pass - starts around 3:30 mark. Matt's pass is incredible and Nick knew where to go and how to finish it off:

http://www.thealbanydevils.com/late-...ainst-marlies/

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Now Hathaway:
http://www.calgarysun.com/2016/03/13...st-impressions

[CollegeHockeyRinkReport]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

http://www.sbncollegehockey.com/coll...-draft-00s-99s

Great get for Brown in Jordan Tonelli, a '00 from Taft

[Mike Hutter]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

While the Press Release is not up yet on the ECAC site, Ken Schott is reporting Tim Marcin and Max Gotttlieb made the ECAC All-Rookie team. Can't remember when we last had that happen, if ever.

[vicb]

Re: Brown Hockey 2015-16: (s)Lappin' around the competition

Looking for picks from the following contestants:

engineerhockeyfan
fr.Joe
jstadts
sshablak
StayPuftMMcu
TchrBill
DisplacedCornellian

You have until 4PM today to get your picks in.

http://board.uscho.com/showthread.ph...91#post6297991