What's new
By:
USCHO Fan Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.

RPI 22-23: Objective needs to be top 6

hab said:
I should clarify that my comments were not meant as a criticism of the current coaching staff. I am not close enough to the team to know one way or the other whether we have the right coaches to do the job, so I am always prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt. I was merely offering some observations as a fan, that in a tough conference like the ECAC we may have little success playing the game that our opponents want us to play. We need to move the opponent out of their comfort zone...surprise them a little with a more "in your face" style of hockey. Take some chances. We probably have the goalie who can bail us out a few times each game when those chances backfire with odd man rushes or penalties for being too aggressive on the forecheck or on the edge of the blue paint.
Click to expand...

Again - agree fully. The decisions about how a team plays is not left to the players. That part falls upon the coaches. I have always appreciated how much of a team sport hockey has been and remains. Like a team of horses pulling a stage coach, someone still has to hold onto and control the reins.
 
Yet another shutout loss (2-0 to Mercyhurst) but I found this game quite encouraging. RPI has a deep roster: I think that 13 forwards and 6 D saw a good deal of ice time and none of them looked out of place. Nice to see freshmen Jones, Toye, Beaudoin respond well to getting good ice time. Kaiser was probably our best offensive threat. Riena Jahnke was given a shot at the first line and showed some pretty slick skills. The real question is who is going to take their game to the next level and put some pucks in the net?
 
sezenack said:
We need a coaching change
Click to expand...

Fully understand the frustration. This is a very discouraging start to the season, for fans, and for the players too, I am sure. I have followed this team for about 20 years now, and there have been too many of these moments where one just wants to throw up your hands. However, I am not inclined towards simple solutions like 'fire the coach'. The program needs some serious attention. However, in the meantime, all that I care about is that the players find a way to meet THEIR expectations for the season, whatever those expectations are, and that they enjoy the great game of hockey en route.
 
hab said:
Fully understand the frustration. This is a very discouraging start to the season, for fans, and for the players too, I am sure. I have followed this team for about 20 years now, and there have been too many of these moments where one just wants to throw up your hands. However, I am not inclined towards simple solutions like 'fire the coach'. The program needs some serious attention. However, in the meantime, all that I care about is that the players find a way to meet THEIR expectations for the season, whatever those expectations are, and that they enjoy the great game of hockey en route.
Click to expand...

I agree with everything you just said. The program needs more attention and support from the school, and the players deserve to enjoy their careers as student athletes to the fullest. I still do think that the coaching is part of the problem though. I haven't seen any evidence in his 5 years that Vines is capable of making this program a competitive one year in and year out. The ECAC is an outstanding league and I think we can do better just by simply pulling a top assistant from Clarkson, Colgate, etc.
 
sezenack said:
I agree with everything you just said. The program needs more attention and support from the school, and the players deserve to enjoy their careers as student athletes to the fullest. I still do think that the coaching is part of the problem though. I haven't seen any evidence in his 5 years that Vines is capable of making this program a competitive one year in and year out. The ECAC is an outstanding league and I think we can do better just by simply pulling a top assistant from Clarkson, Colgate, etc.
Click to expand...

A very legitimate perspective. One way or another, RPI needs to raise its expectations for the women's hockey program, which is the sentiment behind my choice of the title for this thread. If we do go the route of selecting a new coach, we need to go beyond the standard lazy RPI practice of simply transferring an assistant coach from the men's team. That move clearly demonstrates a lack of understanding of the women's game and a lack of ambition for the program.
 
hab said:
A very legitimate perspective. One way or another, RPI needs to raise its expectations for the women's hockey program, which is the sentiment behind my choice of the title for this thread. If we do go the route of selecting a new coach, we need to go beyond the standard lazy RPI practice of simply transferring an assistant coach from the men's team. That move clearly demonstrates a lack of understanding of the women's game and a lack of ambition for the program.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. I think that the state of the women's program is more due to the fault of the administration and AD than the coach.
Not all hope is lost until we start losing ECAC games, but it's tough to see us getting a playoff spot
 
For the first time this season I would probably rate the Engineers as slight favorites going into their weekend series, against RIT. A big weekend for both teams, getting ready for conference play with disappointing results in pre-conference games. RIT is rated above the Engineers on the RPI index etc. but only because they had the opportunity to beat up on St. Michael's for one weekend. RPI has done a good job of putting together a non-conference schedule: tough teams, middle of the pack or slightly better...no patsies but no top 10 teams. RIT will not be an easy opponent, but I am looking for a couple of home game wins this weekend.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQitj-ih9Gk
 
Last edited:
Engineers sweep RIT, 2-0 and 3-0. I have predicted their performance pretty accurately over the last 6 games, but I have to say that I like the progress that I see. While I expected the wins over the Tigers, RPI controlled the play more than I expected, and I now feel more comfortable that they are ready to open their conference season with the important North Country trip next weekend. I am going to go out on a limb here and say that they will win one of those games. Coach Vines has used the last few games to give ice time to most of the players on his large roster, and I don't envy his position now, of having to choose his lines for next weekend.
 
I just noticed that Neutral Zone states that RPI received a commitment a month ago from Aylah Cioffi of the CT Polar Bears 19U team.

List:
Code: 
 # Name                 Ps commitm. Team (League)                    Year  DOB      Ht    Wt  Hometown          NZ*s
19 Georgia Bailey        F 01/05/22 Northwood School (NAPHA)         2023  03/17/05 5'09" 125 Sherbrooke, QC    x.xx
 9 Alexis Brunet         F 12/06/21 Kingston Ice Wolves (OWHL)       2023  02/07/05 5'06" 165 Kingston, ON      3.25
15 Aylah Cioffi          F 09/24/22 Connecticut Polar Bears 19U      2023  08/23/03 5'05" 134 Revere, MA        x.xx
22 Taryn Rathwell *      D 11/24/21 Kingston Ice Wolves (OWHL)       2023  01/28/04 5'04" 136 Belleville, ON    x.xx
xx Morgann Skoda         F 04/21/22 College Champlain Cougars (QCHL) 2023  10/26/03 5'10" 170 Mont-Royal, QC    3.50
 4 Charlotte Wensley     F 10/01/22 St. Paul's School (Lakes Region) 2024  08/29/05 5'03" 130 Dover, NH         3.00
 
Ralph Baer said:
I just noticed that Neutral Zone states that RPI received a commitment a month ago from Aylah Cioffi of the CT Polar Bears 19U team.

List:
Code: 
# Name Ps commitm. Team (League) Year DOB Ht Wt Hometown NZ*s
19 Georgia Bailey F 01/05/22 Northwood School (NAPHA) 2023 03/17/05 5'09" 125 Sherbrooke, QC x.xx
9 Alexis Brunet F 12/06/21 Kingston Ice Wolves (OWHL) 2023 02/07/05 5'06" 165 Kingston, ON 3.25
15 Aylah Cioffi F 09/24/22 Connecticut Polar Bears 19U 2023 08/23/03 5'05" 134 Revere, MA x.xx
22 Taryn Rathwell * D 11/24/21 Kingston Ice Wolves (OWHL) 2023 01/28/04 5'04" 136 Belleville, ON x.xx
xx Morgann Skoda F 04/21/22 College Champlain Cougars (QCHL) 2023 10/26/03 5'10" 170 Mont-Royal, QC 3.50
4 Charlotte Wensley F 10/01/22 St. Paul's School (Lakes Region) 2024 08/29/05 5'03" 130 Dover, NH 3.00
Click to expand...

NZ has rated Aylah Cioffi as 4.00 *'s with her name misspelled as Crioffi.
 
The 3-0 loss to SLU indicates just how much more work the Engineers have ahead of them, to contend for a playoff spot. They were outplayed, but not by a wide margin. The big difference is that the top SLU forwards beat two of our top defensemen with nice moves and then Hustler added another one with a nice shot from the slot. Rampado made some saves worth watching: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwqCR-Dc5cU.
 
hab said:
Those who have followed the Engineers back as far as the transition years between D1 and D3 may remember Lane Dielwart. This is an interesting article about her, highlighting a few things: the ongoing positive impact of hockey and an RPI education; the potential for competitive women's hockey after college; and the love that everyone had for former coach Bill Cahill: https://womenshockeylife.com/rpi-al...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer.
Click to expand...

i remember Lane. She was on the womens team when I first started broadcasting. Solid presence for the Engineers on the blue line with a monster of a shot. If I’m coach Smith, I’m calling her on the phone to inquire about how much her son loves playing..
 
After losing games 3-0 and 6-1 I know this will sound like the delusions of a totally biased RPI fan, but...I actually liked a lot of what I saw from the Engineers this weekend! Their forwards are starting to get a decent number of good scoring opportunities and they need to find a way to convert on more of them, and the defense needs to get tougher against the top players of the opposition...they are getting beaten one on one when they shouldn't. But they are a tough, hard nosed team that finishes their checks and plays the same way no matter who the opposition is or what the score is.... and I am sure that they are not easy to play against, no matter what the score. I think the coaches are on the right track with this team. This is the style of hockey that might work for them.
 
hab said:
After losing games 3-0 and 6-1 I know this will sound like the delusions of a totally biased RPI fan, but...I actually liked a lot of what I saw from the Engineers this weekend! Their forwards are starting to get a decent number of good scoring opportunities and they need to find a way to convert on more of them, and the defense needs to get tougher against the top players of the opposition...they are getting beaten one on one when they shouldn't. But they are a tough, hard nosed team that finishes their checks and plays the same way no matter who the opposition is or what the score is.... and I am sure that they are not easy to play against, no matter what the score. I think the coaches are on the right track with this team. This is the style of hockey that might work for them.
Click to expand...

I hope you are right. There seem to show some spark of competitiveness but not for 60 minutes against teams that play the full game with intensity.
 
DrDemento said:
I hope you are right. There seem to show some spark of competitiveness but not for 60 minutes against teams that play the full game with intensity.
Click to expand...

Big test coming up: 2 of the teams that they may need to put behind them in the standings to make the playoffs. Dartmouth has always been rated as one of the 4 teams likely to miss the playoffs but they will be no push over. On the other hand, most people seem to assume that Harvard will make the playoffs but they have not done anything yet, and may be vulnerable. Always tough to tell with the Ivies 'though, because they are late starters. Key is, however, that these are home games for the Engineers. Hope they can put some noisy fans in the stands.
 
hab said:
Big test coming up: 2 of the teams that they may need to put behind them in the standings to make the playoffs. Dartmouth has always been rated as one of the 4 teams likely to miss the playoffs but they will be no push over. On the other hand, most people seem to assume that Harvard will make the playoffs but they have not done anything yet, and may be vulnerable. Always tough to tell with the Ivies 'though, because they are late starters. Key is, however, that these are home games for the Engineers. Hope they can put some noisy fans in the stands.
Click to expand...

Girls are even to 1/2 goal favorite against DC and a 1.5 goal underdog to Harvard. I am hoping for a split at the very least but they will have to go all out for the entire game with no third period let down.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top