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RPI 2022 Off-season: Surely, We Deserve Better

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25+years said:
https://fanforum.uscho.com/forum/co...urely-we-deserve-better?p=3724595#post3724595

Whst I meant when I referred to not meeting the coaches or the team was if a recruit stepped on campus without meeting coaches or players, they could see how much an investment the school makes in the program by looking at the facilities. And that new facilities, regardless of what academic qualifications you have to get in or the academic program offered here, would certainly help seal the deal for some and generate interest. If you were visiting with your son and the facilities were new, don’t you think the parents would be impressed? It certainly won’t hurt.
As to Wisconsin. They have been slipping for a few years. They have had some great players of late. They got rid of Mike Eaves and now have Granato, but are no better. Why? Who knows? But they have nice facilities. The womens program is top notch.

One thing is certain. If we dont upgrade, Union will and that will be another program we won’t match facility wise with a good academic program.
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I think some work can and should be done at HFH, but I have no hope it'll happen any time soon. Given the new Prez doesn't start until July 1st, and students will start arriving just weeks later, I doubt that replacing his AD is even on his to-do list....unless of course McElroy has already indicated he will depart.

One thing your argument misses about facilities is the ECAV building just above the HFH. That facility has excellent physical therapy training and rehab facilities which are used by all RPI athletes. In addition there are dedicated meeting rooms, offices, lounges etc. which are heavily used during recruiting. If you haven't been in it, you should take a look -- its really quite nice.

As for Union, they've got their hands full trying to hire a coach and attempting to figure out they'll fund their newly awarded scholarships ....I don't think they'll be breaking ground on a new rink any time soon.
 
Ralph Baer said:
Sunday postgame interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmVzUlBdnnA
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Great interview and comments by Coach Smith....they guy deserves a raise for what he's put up with....just sayin'. The one overarching thought about his teams which I think was especially true this year is that the players understand their assignments and roles they're asked to play within the game plan...which as we all know has not been the case in previous regimes. It shows in every facet of the game and is really great to see as a fan. Hats off to the boys on a heck of an effort at Harvard --wish we could've seen them in Placid.
 
DavidNardolillo said:
I think some people are assuming (hoping?) that a new president will make a change here as part of the general turnover when an administration changes. This chatter has been around for a while because Dr. McElroy had already came out of retirement to jump in as interim AD when Jim Knowlton went to Air Force. But, like you, I am not aware of any concrete information that Dr. McElroy is leaving.
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I understand the possibility as well...and personally think some new blood would be a good thing. But the new Prez starts work July 1 and the first students start arriving just weeks later. Unless McElroy has announced internally that he will depart, I would think the Prez would prefer he stay awhile as he gets the boxes unpacked and the paint dries on his office door. Call me crazy, but I don't view hiring a new AD as the fire that is burning brightest in the Prez' office on Day 1...just my two cents. Getting alumni damage control underway and donations flowing again ...now THAT is a priority...
 
I wondered about that. I suspect we may swap a few grad school eligible 5th year players with other schools. It's a bit of a shame as several fit well in our system and would have normally finished their 4 years of eligibility as role model seniors to help guide the young guys, but, as someone that moved on to grad school at a rival, I can understand using that undergrad to grad transition as an opportunity to try somewhere else. Hopefully we can also be that "somewhere else" for a highly talented player or two.
 
Wicked Slappaahs said:
I think some work can and should be done at HFH, but I have no hope it'll happen any time soon.
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On my trip to watch the first two games of the Dartmouth series (family event prevented me from going Sunday), it was clear that a lot of basic maintenance has been deferred for some time. Same toilets have been broken for at least 2 years, and the visiting team had to walk in front of the stands to get to the ice via the visiting bench because the steps by the Zamboni entrance broke. Others have mentioned the rumors about the ice surface/refrigeration system.

I actually think RPI could get away with having HFH as a long-term home if it made a decent investment in freshening it up that would be a fraction of the cost of a new arena. But so much has been allowed to slide that even basic things--some red paint for the blue seats; clean and functional restrooms; better lighting in the concession areas; and some attention to the east end of the rink (put the band back behind the goal, get rid of those blue drapes)--would give it a noticeable lift.
 
DavidNardolillo said:
On my trip to watch the first two games of the Dartmouth series (family event prevented me from going Sunday), it was clear that a lot of basic maintenance has been deferred for some time. Same toilets have been broken for at least 2 years, and the visiting team had to walk in front of the stands to get to the ice via the visiting bench because the steps by the Zamboni entrance broke. Others have mentioned the rumors about the ice surface/refrigeration system.

I actually think RPI could get away with having HFH as a long-term home if it made a decent investment in freshening it up that would be a fraction of the cost of a new arena. But so much has been allowed to slide that even basic things--some red paint for the blue seats; clean and functional restrooms; better lighting in the concession areas; and some attention to the east end of the rink (put the band back behind the goal, get rid of those blue drapes)--would give it a noticeable lift.
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Much as I love HFH, the building shows its age for the reasons you mention. It's been nearly 40 years since the last major renovation. Don Vaughn tells recruits at Colgate that Class of 1965 Arena is proof the administration absolutely supports the hockey program.

Northeastern has done a nice job upgrading Matthews Arena, at least from the fan perspective. Matthews and HFH are similar facilities in some ways. It might be a model to emulate, if the powers that be are so inclined.

In hindsight it is surprising that major renovations to HFH were not undertaken as part of the ECAV project 15 or so years ago.
 
Today is 16 March 2022. There are 199 days until RPI's next game. There are 107 days until RPI has a new president.


This is based upon 1 October 2022 for the start of next season and 1 July 2022 for the end of @#$%^.
 
DavidNardolillo said:
On my trip to watch the first two games of the Dartmouth series (family event prevented me from going Sunday), it was clear that a lot of basic maintenance has been deferred for some time. Same toilets have been broken for at least 2 years, and the visiting team had to walk in front of the stands to get to the ice via the visiting bench because the steps by the Zamboni entrance broke. Others have mentioned the rumors about the ice surface/refrigeration system.

I actually think RPI could get away with having HFH as a long-term home if it made a decent investment in freshening it up that would be a fraction of the cost of a new arena. But so much has been allowed to slide that even basic things--some red paint for the blue seats; clean and functional restrooms; better lighting in the concession areas; and some attention to the east end of the rink (put the band back behind the goal, get rid of those blue drapes)--would give it a noticeable lift.
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Bingo - I agree with all of these points. They gave the front end lobby a facelift, but for whatever reason stopped short doing anything for the fan experience.

My short list for must-dos:
- New restrooms. (The bathrooms are nothing short of a time warp embarrassment .)
- New seating (You can only paint things so many times.)
- EAST END New end zone seating and BAND STAND. (Right the wrong and return the band back to their rightful home.)
- Utilize the mothballed emperor's suite. Its an insult to the fans for it to be dark for nearly EVERY damn home game. Utilize it as a public group rental suite to raise $$$ for the program. No-brainer.
 
Wicked I agree, the whole barn needs a major renovation. That supposed 20 million might not even cover it. The use of the emperors suite is a great idea. Why would you spend the money to build that thing to only leave it empty 97% of the time. I know the coaches have offices up their but the suite is $$ that can be used for the program. I know many people who would spend the $ to rent it out. I personally would use it twice a season if allowed. If your not gonna build a new barn take care of the one you have? Northeastern is a good example. Wasn’t their rumors years back of a alumni willing to build a new arena but thought otherwise because of the emperor’s ridiculous policies?
 
RPI67 said:
Hopefully the "L" line and Jake Johnson do not enter the transfer portal. Pleased that the team finished in the top 6 of the ECAC.
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You might have missed it but I posted here that Leppanen has already entered as well sadly. I hope the rest of them stay like you do.
 
Wicked Slappaahs said:
Bingo - I agree with all of these points. They gave the front end lobby a facelift, but for whatever reason stopped short doing anything for the fan experience.

My short list for must-dos:
- New restrooms. (The bathrooms are nothing short of a time warp embarrassment .)
- New seating (You can only paint things so many times.)
- EAST END New end zone seating and BAND STAND. (Right the wrong and return the band back to their rightful home.)
- Utilize the mothballed emperor's suite. Its an insult to the fans for it to be dark for nearly EVERY damn home game. Utilize it as a public group rental suite to raise $$$ for the program. No-brainer.
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In order for there to be new east end seating, we would have to find a new place for the zambonis, which adds another thing to the to-do list.
 
sezenack said:
In order for there to be new east end seating, we would have to find a new place for the zambonis, which adds another thing to the to-do list.
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There used to be room for the band at least and the Zamboni (only one in the old days), but maybe there were some safety regulations being ignored with the platform they had set up back there.
 
sezenack said:
Don't think he was injured
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That's too bad. He had some promising appearances freshman year where he scored a couple timely goals and showed some direct play offensively when the team lacked it. He also jumped in to play some defense this year when injuries and COVID hit the defensive corps. It didn't really pan out for him as a forward from a scoring perspective, and the year off could not have helped.
 
I am happy to see the talk of a major renovation of HFH, or even a new barn, but surely the first priority is to figure out whether support for RPI hockey will return (post-covid) to a level that would justify any capital expenditure. How is RPI hockey going to build back the fan base? That should be the focus. The men's team had a season that should support a rebuilding of fan support. And the women picked themselves up off the mat. But will fans return? What mix of students and public? A lot of uncertainties to deal with before anyone can justify spending $$$ on HFH. The barn, as it is, exceeds the requirements of the very diminished fan base.
 
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