Romano update

While it is very early, it appears that Romano is struggling to fit in to the OHL.

[lfpress.ca]

At least Hunter has the cajones to sit him unlike Mike. He was able to break Schremp and turn him into a real hockey player. It appears he isn't going to be afraid to try it with Tony either. That my be the best thing for him in the long run...that is, a coach that will make him play unselfishly and on both sides of the redline, with and without the puck.

DILLIGAF
That my be the best thing for [Romano] in the long run...that is, a coach that will make him play unselfishly and on both sides of the redline, with and without the puck.

You mean like what Schafer wanted him to do?

DILLIGAF
While it is very early, it appears that Romano is struggling to fit in to the OHL.

[lfpress.ca]

At least Hunter has the cajones (cojones?) to sit him unlike Mike.

Well, I again don't know how you make these statements (correct spelling or not). That's especially considering he sat a number of freshman from the NC trip. I don't know of anyone complaining about Coach not being able to give discipline. Maybe I should take my own advice and not respond?

DILLIGAF

At least Hunter has the cajones to sit him unlike Mike.

minor quibble: it's cojones. cajones means drawers, big crates.

DILLIGAF
While it is very early, it appears that Romano is struggling to fit in to the OHL.

[lfpress.ca]

At least Hunter has the cajones to sit him unlike Mike. He was able to break Schremp and turn him into a real hockey player.

are you kidding me? Even after a year in the AHL Shremp still doesn't backcheck, what are you talking about? Shremp worked well in London because they never asked him to play defense, not because hunter 'broke' him.

Josh '99
You mean like what Schafer wanted him to do?

Want??? He is the head coach. He could have actually influenced him with benching him until he played the game he as the head coach "wanted." By not doing so he gave his blessing to Tony's selfish, no defense style of play.

As for not taking him and the others on the road trip, it had nothing to do with on ice play.

DILLIGAF
.that is, a coach that will make him play unselfishly and on both sides of the redline, with and without the puck.

So wait. I thought your problem with Schafer was that he forced gifted players into a 2-way defensive style of play and therefore buried and held back pure offensive talent. Now your criticism is that he's not man enough to force selfish offensive players to become more complete 2-way players. Which is it? Or is it just blind hate?

Before, I think you held Romano to being a talent too good for Schafer. Now he plays a selfish, no-defense style?

One example of Schafer benching a player for selfish play was Pegoraro his sophomore year (I believe).

Try this on for size.

I didn't say he was ever going to be "Defensive Player of the Year", but he is a far cry better defensively than he was early in his career.

Rich:

I was always thought of Tony as a very skilled player with the puck on his stick. His problem, and the team suffered greatly for it, was that he wouldn't use his linemates to open up the ice for him. You have to be willing and able to play away from the puck. The majority of the game for any player is spent without the puck. You only saw Tony play when he had the puck. He would ignore the obvious pass to an open team-mate to try to stickhandle around or through the opposition. Had he had the selflessness to give up the puck to take pressure away and create openings for him, he would have been hugely successful. No coach in Tony's career has required him to play on the defensive side of the blue line or to properly utilize his linemates. Cornell should have been the place for that. Last year's team was characterized by selfish play. Tony fed right into that and by not correcting it and demanding that it stop, it was pervasive throughout the team, throughout the season. That is the coaches fault. Tony was but one glaring example of that.

We have a right to expect better from Cornell hockey that we saw last year. I am objective enought to say it was not great hockey. At times it was bad hockey. The coaches and the captains bear the responsibility for that. We as fans have a right to expect better effort, better execution and therefore, better coaching.

Dilligaf, if Tony was allowed to do whatever he wanted and exepted from playing defense, then why did he leave because he thought the team was too defensive and system oriented? When you read Tony's comments it sounds like he feels that he was being stifled by Cornell's defensive style. Clearly, if Mike wasn't yelling at him to back check and play the system then he wouldn't have felt compelled to leave.

DILLIGAF,

Thanks for the well written and thought-out response. This is certainly qualifies as an decent opinion. I don't necessarily agree with everything you said, but it's a rational, well-stated position. I'll remember this when the bad-cop version of your personality shows up and heaps accusations of rape-advocation and back-stabbing lying onto the coaching staff for no reason.

It seems to me that Dilligaf does know his hockey and he does have some sort of inside contact to the program, he's been right enough that I have to conclude this. It just seems that he has something personal with Mike and he lets this color his views, sometimes to the point of ridiculousness.

RichH
DILLIGAF,

Thanks for the well written and thought-out response. This is certainly qualifies as an decent opinion. I don't necessarily agree with everything you said, but it's a rational, well-stated position. I'll remember this when the bad-cop version of your personality shows up and heaps accusations of rape-advocation and back-stabbing lying onto the coaching staff for no reason.

evilnaturedrobot
It seems to me that Dilligaf does know his hockey and he does have some sort of inside contact to the program, he's been right enough that I have to conclude this. It just seems that he has something personal with Mike and he lets this color his views, sometimes to the point of ridiculousness.

I agree with both of you. The problem is that as has been pointed out with prior posters, he says one thing at one time to slam Schafer, and then the near opposite when it fits his malcontent position of Schafer. By doing that he loses me and most others, and I choose to disregard most of what he says.

I really wish he could see this and give us the nonpartisan view. It's the kind of thing where I'd like to sit down and have a real conversation to try and understand him and his views.

Schremp a real hockey player? Have you ever watched him at the pro level? Will never make the NHL as a regular. Pure garbage. I like the Hunters a lot and they have done some great things in London but Robbie Schremp is not one of them.

evilnaturedrobot
It seems to me that Dilligaf does know his hockey and he does have some sort of inside contact to the program, he's been right enough that I have to conclude this. It just seems that he has something personal with Mike and he lets this color his views, sometimes to the point of ridiculousness.

It's not like he's the first poster who had a low signal to noise ratio. Even RichS makes the occasional good point. Just take it FWIW.

Ditto on the Hunters. Dale was an aggressive defenseman for the Capitals for a number of years and played with a lot of heart. He clearly understands that part of the game. I can't imagine he'd put up with a selfish, one-dimensional game from Romano.

ninian '72
Ditto on the Hunters. Dale was an aggressive defenseman for the Capitals for a number of years and played with a lot of heart. He clearly understands that part of the game. I can't imagine he'd put up with a selfish, one-dimensional game from Romano.

Dale Hunter was a dirty player who was once suspended for 21 games for injuring Pierre Turgeon (one of the classiest players in the league for a number of years, even if he was an Islander) on a hit from behind while Turgeon was celebrating scoring a goal.

This doesn't change the fact that he'll probably influence Romano to play a more well-rounded game, of course, but the term "aggressive defenseman" doesn't adequately describe what a thug he was.

He never taught Shremp how to play defense, and Tony certainly didn't go there because he thought Dale would be tutoring him in his own zone. The simple fact is that Tony left Cornell because he thought that he was being held to too many defensive responsibilities, he said as much. If a player doesn't want to learn the he doesn't want to learn. Hunter's best bet is to just sit him until he breaks, but with the losses of his entire top line (Gagner, Kane, and Kostitsyn) to the pros, I don't see how he'll have the luxury. Hunter's going to need bodies on his top two lines, and Tony's probably one of the more skilled players that he has.

London is a high-flying run-and-gun team that puts very little emphasis on defensive detail. That is what theoretically makes it a good place for Romano. He must be kicking himself now. He only has one year to prove himself there whereas he would have had up to three more at Cornell to build on a decent freshman season. Smart kid.

Schremp did score the OT winner for the Springfield Falcons as they beat Manchester on Sunday night.

I don't know a lot about the guy except that he's from Syracuse, but a first rounder putting up 53 points in 70 games and getting schooled by players like 5th round draft choice Brett Sterling in AHL sounds more like a Patrik Štefan-esque player than anything.

For what it's worth, Hunter later admitted that he'd gone way too far in his hit on Turgeon and was a decent guy off the ice. He was once described as a player who would and did do just about anything to win, reflected by his 4300 career penalty minutes.

You are correct in that he has but one year to "make it". He has nothing left to fall back on. Without a great season in the OHL, he will have a tough time coming back as an overager. The next stop will be the ihl league

Right now in 6 games he has only one point - an assist. He clearly was brought in to put up points and right now he isn't. They won't wait long for him in London. They have already made some trades to improve the team. I think it is safe to say he is struggling with the transition. Is it the shoulder? Is it his inability to play without the puck and his inability to involve his linemates to his benefit. I.E., you give up the puck to a teammate to get it back in a better position. I vote for at least b and maybe c, all of the above.

Tony will likely never be a defensive forward. He will have to become less of a liability in the defensive zone to move up but his biggest problem is his inability to make the right play at the right time and not just try to beat somebody to beat them. Beat them to make a play, not just to make the crowd go ooo!

DILLIGAF
You are correct in that he has but one year to "make it". He has nothing left to fall back on. Without a great season in the OHL, he will have a tough time coming back as an overager. The next stop will be the ihl league

Too bad there is no IHL anymore.

Josh '99

DILLIGAF
You are correct in that he has but one year to "make it". He has nothing left to fall back on. Without a great season in the OHL, he will have a tough time coming back as an overager. The next stop will be the ihl league

Too bad there is no IHL anymore.

Actually there is a new IHL, nothing related to the one that dissolved in early 2000's. It's a reincarnation of old UHL, I believe. If that's his end point, I feel sorry for him. Seeing what's happened to McKee and others, only reinforces my view that unless you're a near sure thing, staying in school is usually the correct option.

DILLIGAF
You are correct in that he has but one year to "make it". He has nothing left to fall back on. Without a great season in the OHL, he will have a tough time coming back as an overager. The next stop will be the ihl league

Right now in 6 games he has only one point - an assist. He clearly was brought in to put up points and right now he isn't. They won't wait long for him in London. They have already made some trades to improve the team. I think it is safe to say he is struggling with the transition. Is it the shoulder? Is it his inability to play without the puck and his inability to involve his linemates to his benefit. I.E., you give up the puck to a teammate to get it back in a better position. I vote for at least b and maybe c, all of the above.

Tony will likely never be a defensive forward. He will have to become less of a liability in the defensive zone to move up but his biggest problem is his inability to make the right play at the right time and not just try to beat somebody to beat them. Beat them to make a play, not just to make the crowd go ooo!

I personally think he just doesn't think the game well at all. His natural ability is outstanding but he really lacks hockey sense - it became a huge liability on Cornell last year and not just because that was a "defensive team" and he is an offensive player. He just doesn't think the game well and it got worse and worse as the games got tougher and more competitive. What you get from college over the CHL is a better ability to think the game. You can have all the skills in the world, but if you lack the hockey sense, you will not cut it in the CHL. At the college level, whether it was at Cornell or anywhere else, he would have really developed in this area. Too late now.

Jim Hyla
Actually there is a new IHL, nothing related to the one that dissolved in early 2000's. It's a reincarnation of old UHL, I believe. If that's his end point, I feel sorry for him. Seeing what's happened to McKee and others, only reinforces my view that unless you're a near sure thing, staying in school is usually the correct option.[/quote

You are correct. It is the old Uhaul league.

That is what I was longwindedly getting at. He is a great skater, has hands that you can never teach, but he refuses to play without the puck, which any player is overwhelmingly without the puck for most of the game, he refuses to play a team game and utilize his teammates to his benefit. He is ultimately a very selfish player. His coach Nikoforov and every one before and after (even Mike and we all know I am not a Mike fan) has done him a grave diservice by not making him play the team game. Ultimately though, it does fall on Tony and he is his own worst enemy in that regard.

Jim Hyla
Seeing what's happened to McKee and others, only reinforces my view that unless you're a near sure thing, staying in school is usually the correct option.

If I'm McKee I have no regrets about taking the money and leaving. Who knows what another year in college would have meant for him financially. Personally, I think he was able to strike while the iron was hot. A year behind a diminished blueline might have severely hampered his pro chances. With what the Ducks gave him as a signing bonus he can pay to finish college - and from the sounds of some of his post signing interviews, he probably isn't interested in paying Cornell for the privilege.

ugarte
If I'm McKee I have no regrets about taking the money and leaving. Who knows what another year in college would have meant for him financially. Personally, I think he was able to strike while the iron was hot. A year behind a diminished blueline might have severely hampered his pro chances. With what the Ducks gave him as a signing bonus he can pay to finish college - and from the sounds of some of his post signing interviews, he probably isn't interested in paying Cornell for the privilege.

Um. Money is not among Dave McKee's worries in life.

Trotsky

ugarte
If I'm McKee I have no regrets about taking the money and leaving. Who knows what another year in college would have meant for him financially. Personally, I think he was able to strike while the iron was hot. A year behind a diminished blueline might have severely hampered his pro chances. With what the Ducks gave him as a signing bonus he can pay to finish college - and from the sounds of some of his post signing interviews, he probably isn't interested in paying Cornell for the privilege.

Um. Money is not among Dave McKee's worries in life.

If his parents are rich, he doesn't need the college degree any more than he needs a signing bonus.

Jim Hyla

Josh '99

DILLIGAF
You are correct in that he has but one year to "make it". He has nothing left to fall back on. Without a great season in the OHL, he will have a tough time coming back as an overager. The next stop will be the ihl league

Too bad there is no IHL anymore.

Actually there is a new IHL, nothing related to the one that dissolved in early 2000's. It's a reincarnation of old UHL, I believe. If that's his end point, I feel sorry for him. Seeing what's happened to McKee and others, only reinforces my view that unless you're a near sure thing, staying in school is usually the correct option.

My bad.

Tony's been traded to the Petes for a conditional 8th round pick.

Here's a link, although there really isn't any additional info there.

[www.peterboroughexaminer.com]

"A million dollar arm, and a two cent head."