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Union College: 2024-2025
- Thread starter Dutchman
- Start date
Congrats to my Dutchmen for making it to the top 4. I had them down at 8th. They had a very weak non-conference schedule and, even against that, did not do well. I saw them play at BU early in the season, and they did not look that bad for the first period. At one point, they had a 10-1 shot advantage over BU but eventually lost 4-1. I saw a much more disciplined team defeat Harvard 2-1 a few weeks ago. Cornell and Dartmouth are 23 & 23 in the pairwise, and Union is 34, which is a reflection of the competition they played. Moreover, the Dutchmen were not able to defeat the better ECAC teams Qpac, Colgate, or Clarkson in six games. In December, they were 0-4, and in January, 5-2-1 and in February, 5-2-1. They are a better road team than a home team. They are a good, well-disciplined team. They will probably have to face Cornell or Dartmouth in the second round. I don't see them making it to Lake Placid.
It's 1/2 mile from the Seward Street Campus Entrance. There should be lots of parking. It's a municipal facility, and we have a lease. It's still under construction.
Good luck to Colgate.
Good luck to Colgate.
In its last four games, Dartmouth is 4-0, having scored 17 goals while giving up six goals. Its record was 1-5 in its previous six, having scored 12 and given up 19 goals. In its two wins against the Dutchmen this season, 4-0 and 2-1, the Dutchmen scored only one goal and were badly outshot. While having some impressive showings against some top teams, Dartmouth has also lost to St Lawrence, Yale, Princeton and RPI. I am picking Dartmouth in two.
The Dutchmen played well but seemed to have run out of gas after the penalty. This could be the last game at Achilles Center, where the lockers for many of the other teams are still located. The new stadium should attract more town folk as it will have better parking. Because Achilles was right on campus, the students had easy access. Now, it will be a 3-4 block walk. I am sure Achilles will still be used for practice.
ecachawkeyfan
Member
There was some footage of the new rink during one of the intermissions yesterday - at least to my eye, the whole thing looks like of small and tight, like it was squeezed in to a space that wasn't big enough.
Look at the visitor's bench - it looks pretty small and not deep enough front to back, and the seating looks kind of steep too.
Look at the visitor's bench - it looks pretty small and not deep enough front to back, and the seating looks kind of steep too.
Rolevio
Union '01
As a wheelchair bound former Union hockey student manager, I've been pretty disappointed with what I've seen from the new rink. The distance from campus alone would have prevented me from being a student manager during my junior and senior years. I wasn't disabled back then, but I have circulation issues that limit how much I was able to walk. Twice a week for games would be testing but doable, but I certainly couldn't do it every day. I was already late for practice most days, and as an engineering student, I had lab sessions most afternoons.
ecachawkeyfan
Member
Aside from being a mile or so from campus, what else has disappointed you about the new rink?
I think Messa, despite its great old school charm, was well past its lifespan as a Division I hockey facility. But that little aerial video of the new rink makes it look tight, too small, and kind of cramped. Maybe the finish product will be more encouraging. I
Here's a better look at it: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/za-_CG9PY3s
The closest facility in the league is probably Colgate's 98,000 square foot facility that opened in 2016 at a cost of $37.8 million. The new event center at Mohawk Harbor is reportedly roughly 97,000 square feet with a $50 million cost. Seating capacity in both rinks are nearly equal.
It would have been nice to keep it on campus, but space was limited, and parking is awful.... the new rink being right next to hotels and restaurants will be a plus.
UnionFan1972
New member
Excited to see the new place open. Achilles will see a renovation of it's own with a turf floor going in as well as new locker room space for other Union teams.
UnionFan1972
New member
Good call on the Colgate comparison as the new facility was designed by and is being built by the same architectural and construction teams. They did RIT's building as well. Similar footprint to both.
UnionFan1972
New member
Both team benches are the standard 24' W x 5.5' D.There was some footage of the new rink during one of the intermissions yesterday - at least to my eye, the whole thing looks like of small and tight, like it was squeezed in to a space that wasn't big enough.
Look at the visitor's bench - it looks pretty small and not deep enough front to back, and the seating looks kind of steep too.
Messa had two problems. The pipes under the concrete could not keep the ice at a high enough temperature to prevent the surface ice from becoming soft. They needed to keep the ambient temperature as cold as possible, often leaving Messa's doors open. The sloppy ice disadvantaged faster teams. Messa also only had a single awkwardly configured men's room. The rink should be a great win for the Marriott, which I think is right next door. Because it's a public venue, I hope they will be able to sell adult beverages.
Rolevio
Union '01
It looks like it's going to have a pretty low ceiling. I have never cared for rinks with low ceilings for spectating games. Though I'm sure it saves a ton on cooling costs.
UnionFan1972
New member
Not so much for cooling costs, as it is a very tight and well-insulated building. 50' to the ceiling, 40' to the steel trusses.
Wicked Slappaahs
I miss Tie Domi
Just to clarify, it's a privately owned rink (not municipal) although plenty of government money was awarded for the project.
Thomas Kaine
New member
He has a nice three years, and I hope he succeeds in the minors. He was a key part of that cluster of transfers that Hauge brought in to keep the program respectable while he rebuilt the roster, which was critical. If things had totally fallen apart, we’d have been way behind the 8 ball in trying to leverage our new scholarships and facilities to get the program back to a consistent contender. Unsung heroes, those dudes.
As for the rink, having seen forty years of games at Achilles, I’ll certainly miss it, but I think it’s impossible to overstate how much of an upgrade the new building is for the program. The current locker rooms and especially the weight room are subpar even by D3 standards - you’ll find more impressive S&C facilities at any large upstate NY high school. I do suspect that we’ll see a bit of a dip in student attendance (it’s hard enough to get today’s students to leave their room, let alone walk or shuttle ten minutes to something). But that will probably be made up by better attendance from locals and non-student members of the college community - the old parking and concession situation was asking folks to put up with a lot of inconvenient nonsense to watch a hockey game. Ticket prices at the new facility will remain very reasonable.
Does anyone know if they’ll serve beer at the new rink? Let us pray yes.
Thomas Kaine
New member
I think you’re misreading the hire. Only time will tell, but after whiffing hugely on the last two presidential hires, she’s a much more interesting hire - she was pretty innovative running Agnes Scott College, and her two marque initiatives were (1) a heavy emphasis on and investment in athletics and (2) modernization of a very stodgy, antiquated curriculum. I’m optimistic that she put a lot more emphasis on athletics than we’ve seen in a long time - it has become the number way to attract the kids whose parents can afford to pay the full, obscene tuition that private schools charge these days. Union’s major challenges are a weak donor base (never that strong, but pretty much wrecked by Roger Hull’s efforts to kill fraternities in the 1990s), an aged faculty that is more interested in protecting turf than adapting to what today’s students want, and Schenectady. She can’t move the school, but hopefully she’s willing to try some innovative ideas to improve the first two - it’s certainly needed after two successive presidents who had absolutely no vision for the college (good or bad) whatsoever.
I could care less she’s a woman - and if anything, female presidents (and ADs) seem to be given a little more leeway in supporting/enhancing men’s sports without claims of bias, so as a Union hockey/football fan, I think that’s exactly what’s needed.