RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

[fr. joe]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

A bit off track...
but remembrances for Leonard Cohen.

 

[engineerhockeyfan]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

This is the worst skilled team I have seen in years
Pp sucks, zone play sucks, coaching sucks

I couldn't disagree more. This team has great talent from goal line to goal line. The addition of Polino and Hayhurst brings speed and puck skills.
What the team needs, is a goal scorer. We can make great plays but can't finish.
And then there is the outrageous mistakes. They always go for the great play and wind up giving the puck away. They need to play a more simple game until they establish some chemistry.
Hopefully with Wiffen and Polino scoring this weekend, they will have the confidence needed to put the puck in the net on a regular basis.

 

[fr. joe]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

I couldn't disagree more. This team has great talent from goal line to goal line. The addition of Polino and Hayhurst brings speed and puck skills.
What the team needs, is a goal scorer. We can make great plays but can't finish.
And then there is the outrageous mistakes. They always go for the great play and wind up giving the puck away. They need to play a more simple game until they establish some chemistry.
Hopefully with Wiffen and Polino scoring this weekend, they will have the confidence needed to put the puck in the net on a regular basis.

I have only seen them in person four times this season and I share a lot of ehf's comments. While the results have not been good so far, I am hopeful that better play is ahead of us this season. I support the coach's line-up changes last night. Let's see what a week's practice and attention to process brings about.

 

[Havasu M]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Not sure if sitting ET the leading scorer is a good idea for the offense. Sitting Praps was ok he is a good offensive defenseman but has been a liability defensively. Reilly looks really good. Samec had a good first game. Agree with comments on Polino Hayhurst and Wiffen. If Perry doesn't give up a soft second goal and Melanson hits the net instead of the crossbar maybe a different game result. RPITV had Devito at minus 9 maybe he should sit.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

I couldn't disagree more. This team has great talent from goal line to goal line. The addition of Polino and Hayhurst brings speed and puck skills.
What the team needs, is a goal scorer. We can make great plays but can't finish.
And then there is the outrageous mistakes. They always go for the great play and wind up giving the puck away. They need to play a more simple game until they establish some chemistry.
Hopefully with Wiffen and Polino scoring this weekend, they will have the confidence needed to put the puck in the net on a regular basis.

The players have great talent, but I'm not sure the team has it, otherwise we'd be seeing different results.

 

[TucsonMike]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

I think there's more skill there than the record indicates. This team is more competitive than numbers alone show. If you're looking for reasons why 2-8-1, lack of consistency is one thing that jumps out. I'll see one or two good shifts followed by 3-4 not good ones; strong play and good puck control for 10 minutes in a period followed by a mental letdown, mistakes, a bad penalty or two, and backing off the intensity. I also think there are some very predictable aspects of this team's play that opponents have either scouted or quickly figured out - passing lanes, structure of the PP, etc.

It also seems like we've been saying all of these same things for years now. In the postgame Appert was really happy with the game - called it best game they've played all year, fun game to coach, improvement will come with time. I hope he's right, and soon. Lot of empty seats at HFH last night.

I think the second part of your post concerns me more than anything I've seen on the ice this year. What ever happened to accountability? To say that you are "happy with the game" feels like a mask and a front. My God, we're 2-8-1 on the season and you just passed 200 losses faster than any other RPI coach in history - HAPPY SHOULD NOT BE A WORD IN YOUR VOCABULARY RIGHT NOW!!!. I'd have a lot more respect for him if he would just come out and say something like:

Hey, loyal RPI fans - I know you've put up with a lot of disappointment and letdowns recently - and it's on me and my staff to turn this ship around. I know there is talent and skill on this team, but I just haven't figured out how to use it yet. I want to build a culture of winning - but I have no idea how to get there right now.

The time for "playing our way" and "good things will come with time" is beyond this team and its fans at this point, and I for one find such empty statements as insulting.

 

[Ralph Baer]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">FB | <a href="https://twitter.com/RPIFootball">@RPIFootball</a> Headed Back to Post-Season! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RPI?src=hash">#RPI</a> to Play Playoff Game for 3rd Straight Year! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/d3fb?src=hash">#d3fb</a> <a href="https://t.co/HjK2pWWbzH">https://t.co/HjK2pWWbzH</a></p>— RPI Athletics (@RPIAthletics) <a href="https://twitter.com/RPIAthletics/status/798213592361345025">November 14, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/MTimePrivateers">@MTimePrivateers</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/RPIAthletics">@RPIAthletics</a> will meet in the Whitelaw Bowl 11/20 at 5pm <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ECACD3FBFEST?src=hash">#ECACD3FBFEST</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/d3fb?src=hash">#d3fb</a><br>&#55357;&#56507;: <a href="https://t.co/LKAbvCcVIa">https://t.co/LKAbvCcVIa</a> <a href="https://t.co/6LesEaHFk6">pic.twitter.com/6LesEaHFk6</a></p>— ECAC Sports (@ECACSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/ECACSports/status/798212896710758400">November 14, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[son-of-alumn]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

bottom line is RPI has ZERO recruiting presence here in the east/northeast. they don't even look at players who express interest. the staff has decided on a very different approach and seems they really don't have the connections needed to go after top talent in MN or Canada. so basically they're just getting second tier players from those areas, unfortunately.

.

I think the second part of your post concerns me more than anything I've seen on the ice this year. What ever happened to accountability? To say that you are "happy with the game" feels like a mask and a front. My God, we're 2-8-1 on the season and you just passed 200 losses faster than any other RPI coach in history - HAPPY SHOULD NOT BE A WORD IN YOUR VOCABULARY RIGHT NOW!!!. I'd have a lot more respect for him if he would just come out and say something like:

Hey, loyal RPI fans - I know you've put up with a lot of disappointment and letdowns recently - and it's on me and my staff to turn this ship around. I know there is talent and skill on this team, but I just haven't figured out how to use it yet. I want to build a culture of winning - but I have no idea how to get there right now.

The time for "playing our way" and "good things will come with time" is beyond this team and its fans at this point, and I for one find such empty statements as insulting.

 

[engineerhockeyfan]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

bottom line is RPI has ZERO recruiting presence here in the east/northeast. they don't even look at players who express interest. the staff has decided on a very different approach and seems they really don't have the connections needed to go after top talent in MN or Canada. so basically they're just getting second tier players from those areas, unfortunately.

.

Welcome son of alumn.
But I cannot agree with you. We have players from NJ and NY (six in all).
As for the second tier comment, I don't think so. JMO.
What we have not had great success in, is recruiting a genuine scorer. We haven't had one since Polacek graduated.
If someone doesn't step into that slot soon, it is going to be a very long year.
I will hold back judgement on this team until January. A person I respect once told me that the ECAC season doesn't start until then.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

bottom line is RPI has ZERO recruiting presence here in the east/northeast. they don't even look at players who express interest. the staff has decided on a very different approach and seems they really don't have the connections needed to go after top talent in MN or Canada. so basically they're just getting second tier players from those areas, unfortunately.

.

To be fair, there's only three people on staff, only so much time to be able to scour a big continent, not to mention budgetary concerns. Sure, we can cite the great work of Jim Montgomery in bringing in players like Pirri and D'Amigo (even if they left after 1 year), but how many resources were put towards bringing them in, especially considering the recruiting class had, if I'm not mistaken five players? That's another big point to consider, the amount of time the player is here. I'm fairly sure, even with scholarships offered, that the administration is not very happy to see "flight risks" coming in. Also, let's think about academic requirements. Colleges are typically academics first, but cannot deny advertising tool of athletics. Although it's not as big of a problem with ice hockey because they generally have the highest GPA of all student-athletes, are you going to call for the adjustment of academic standards just for a couple of kids that put stick to puck?

 

[sk8tronthepond]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

I will hold back judgement on this team until January. A person I respect once told me that the ECAC season doesn't start until then.

Really....doesn't take much to satisfy you!

 

[Ralph Baer]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

bottom line is RPI has ZERO recruiting presence here in the east/northeast. they don't even look at players who express interest. the staff has decided on a very different approach and seems they really don't have the connections needed to go after top talent in MN or Canada. so basically they're just getting second tier players from those areas, unfortunately.

.

I suspect that the staff thinks that there is too much competition from more local teams in New England which is probably what you meant by northeast. We do have players however were in NE when we recruited the. Jake Wood played at the Gunnery and Charles Manley at the Selects Hockey Academy (South Kent) are the two who come to mind. We do have what must be one of the most diverse backgrounds of any set of players.

As to looking at players who express interest, you obviously know of at least one case. Did this player end up at a comparable or better hockey program? I think that many players who try to sell themselves to schools are of a lower quality.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Welcome son of alumn.
But I cannot agree with you. We have players from NJ and NY (six in all).
As for the second tier comment, I don't think so. JMO.
What we have not had great success in, is recruiting a genuine scorer. We haven't had one since Polacek graduated.
If someone doesn't step into that slot soon, it is going to be a very long year.
I will hold back judgement on this team until January. A person I respect once told me that the ECAC season doesn't start until then.

Based on what I've seen in the recruit threads, I wouldn't say we haven't had scorers. Haggerty, Zalewski, Laliberté, and Nanne come to mind. Is the team using that talent to the best of its potential? Is it being harnessed, rather than hindered, when taking general team process into account?

 

[TucsonMike]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

[/QUOTE]I will hold back judgement on this team until January. A person I respect once told me that the ECAC season doesn't start until then.[/QUOTE]

Perhaps, but last I checked, the NCAA's criteria for tournament selection treats the entire season equally.... Even if we rip through the ECAC the second half, our 2-8-1 start means if we don't win the conference tournament flat out, we are done.

 

[lugnut92]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Perhaps, but last I checked, the NCAA's criteria for tournament selection treats the entire season equally.... Even if we rip through the ECAC the second half, our 2-8-1 start means if we don't win the conference tournament flat out, we are done.

Did we expect an at-large bid anyway? Our best path to the tournament is always going to be the autobid.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Did we expect an at-large bid anyway? Our best path to the tournament is always going to be the autobid.

2010-11 can go to some people's heads...

 

[TucsonMike]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Did we expect an at-large bid anyway? Our best path to the tournament is always going to be the autobid.

Oh, I have no expectations - or delusions for that matter. That includes assuming two easy wins when my family and I finally get to see them live here in AZ in a couple weeks.

 

[vicious]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Based on what I've seen in the recruit threads, I wouldn't say we haven't had scorers. Haggerty, Zalewski, Laliberté, and Nanne come to mind. Is the team using that talent to the best of its potential? Is it being harnessed, rather than hindered, when taking general team process into account?

Laliberte had 30 goals in 138 games (138-30-47-77). That's stretching the definition of "scorer." Brad Tapper was a scorer (106-65-51-116). So was Murley. So were some guys named Oates, Carter, Servinis, and Jooris... the list could go on.

 

[Havasu M]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Oh, I have no expectations - or delusions for that matter. That includes assuming two easy wins when my family and I finally get to see them live here in AZ in a couple weeks.

I have tickets - - where is this arena anyway?

 

[turk181]

Re: RPI Hockey 2016 - 2017: Here we go again! I hope it's a fun ride.

Laliberte had 30 goals in 138 games (138-30-47-77). That's stretching the definition of "scorer." Brad Tapper was a scorer (106-65-51-116). So was Murley. So were some guys named Oates, Carter, Servinis, and Jooris... the list could go on.

I think he was referring to scoring before getting to Troy.