Preseason Polls/Teams

Colin Greening chosen to the Coaches' Pre-Season All-ECAC team. Riley Nash and Ben Scrivens are on the Media Pre-Season All-ECAC team.

Coaches Poll:
1. Princeton
2. Harvard
3. Cornell
4. Clarkson
5. Union
6. Quinnipiac
7. Yale
8. SLU
9. Colgate
10. Rensselaer
11. Dartmouth
12. Brown

Media Poll:
1. Princeton
2. Harvard
3. Cornell
4. Clarkson
5. Quinnipiac
6. Union
7. Yale
8. SLU
9. Rensselaer
10. Colgate
11. Dartmouth
12. Brown

Princeton picked for first by both the coaches and media. What's this world coming to?

In case you were wondering, Princeton was picked 2nd by the coaches with two first place votes ten years ago.

something tells me Scrivens got on the preseason team due to overall lack of proven talent, not his own immense talent.

but preseason polls mean nothing.

Dpperk29
something tells me Scrivens got on the preseason team due to overall lack of proven talent, not his own immense talent.

but preseason polls mean nothing.

The fact that he ranked number 1 in both goals against average and save % last season might have had something to do with it.

[www.ecachockey.com]

Still, I agree with your closing.

ithacat

Dpperk29
something tells me Scrivens got on the preseason team due to overall lack of proven talent, not his own immense talent.

but preseason polls mean nothing.

The fact that he ranked number 1 in both goals against average and save % last season might have had something to do with it.

He Did?
wow I didn't realize that. I'll still stand by my initial statement, using games against upper echelon teams where he gave up plenty of goals.

he is a solid goalie, but his "Kamikaze" style can be exploited by good shooters/passers.

Dpperk29
he is a solid goalie, but his "Kamikaze" style can be exploited by good shooters/passers.

I think you are making this assumption more on Scrivens' freshman playing days. He was much more inclined to stay between the posts last season. Granted he played poorly against BU and Clarkson, but next to Joe Scali and Chris Fontas, I thought Scrivens was the most improved.

Scrivens stayed at Cornell well into the summer working on his game, so you can probably expect him to be even stronger this year, especially since Garman will give him a run for his money for the starting job.

Still hard to take Princeton seriously in hockey and not seriously in basketball. I expect every at-Princeton game to have somebody from Cornell score 7 points in a 7-0 win. But that's well in the past now.

Nice thing about Princeton is that when the team doesn't do well. there's not much falloff in attendance at Baker Rink. And conversely when they do well, all you get are a couple hundred faculty and students, plus youth hockey players who got free passes, and students looking for someplace quiet to study.

Baker is the ideal rural prep school hockey rink.

amerks127

Dpperk29
he is a solid goalie, but his "Kamikaze" style can be exploited by good shooters/passers.

I think you are making this assumption more on Scrivens' freshman playing days. He was much more inclined to stay between the posts last season. Granted he played poorly against BU and Clarkson, next to Joe Scali and Chris Fontas, I thought Scrivens was the most improved.

Scrivens stayed at Cornell well into the summer working on his game, so you can probably expect him to be even stronger this year, especially since Garman will give him a run for his money for the starting job.

I suppose you are correct that my view of scrivens is tainted by the three times I saw him play (@Clarkson, vs. Clarkson, and vs. BU).

ithacat

Dpperk29
something tells me Scrivens got on the preseason team due to overall lack of proven talent, not his own immense talent.

but preseason polls mean nothing.

The fact that he ranked number 1 in both goals against average and save % last season might have had something to do with it.

[www.ecachockey.com]

Still, I agree with your closing.

I was told that Richter was the Media's pick, but after he left the team they revoted. The ECAC Media Guide, however, had already gone to press and will show Richter as the choice. I don't know if the coaches also had to revote.

Let's see how they play with a bull's-eye on their back.

Drew
Let's see how they play with a bull's-eye on their back.

Anybody know when the last time was Princeton played a televised game other than in the ECAC or NCAA tournaments?

Beeeej

Drew
Let's see how they play with a bull's-eye on their back.

Anybody know when the last time was Princeton played a televised game other than in the ECAC or NCAA tournaments?

I remember seeing at least two regular-season Princeton games on TV last year. I believe one was at Colgate on Time Warner Sports, and the other was at Q on NESN.

sah67

Beeeej

Drew
Let's see how they play with a bull's-eye on their back.

Anybody know when the last time was Princeton played a televised game other than in the ECAC or NCAA tournaments?

I remember seeing at least two regular-season Princeton games on TV last year. I believe one was at Colgate on Time Warner Sports, and the other was at Q on NESN.

I can second that NESN game.

The press release linked from the ECAC website for the preseason coaches' all-conference team incorrectly says Lane Caffaro plays for Clarkson. Oops.

USA TODAY/USA Hockey men's poll

Sept. 22, 2008 — Preseason poll

Rank School (first-place votes) 2007-08 Record Points Final 2007-08 Ranking

1 Boston College (27) 25-11-8 490 1

2 Michigan (4) 33-6-4 432 2

3 Notre Dame 27-16-4 376 3

4 North Dakota (1) 28-11-4 371 4

5 Colorado College (2) 28-12-1 355 8

6 Denver 26-14-1 299 9

7 New Hampshire 25-10-3 287 6

8 Miami (Ohio) 33-8-1 263 5

9 Minnesota 19-17-9 223 12

10 Boston University 19-17-4 203 NR

11 Clarkson 22-13-4 173 10

12 Michigan State 25-12-5 159 7

13 Wisconsin 16-17-7 103 13

14 Northern Michigan 20-20-4 75 NR

15 St. Cloud State 19-16-5 69 14


Others receiving votes: Princeton University, 51; Cornell University, 30; Harvard University, 30; Minnesota State University Mankato, 28; U.S. Air Force Academy, 24; University of Massachusetts, 9; University of Massachusetts Lowell, 9; Niagara University, 9; University of Vermont, 6; University of Maine, 3; Northeastern University, 3

Interesting that national poll voters seem to consider Clarkson to be the best team in the ECAC by a fair margin, while conference coaches and ECAC media believe it's Princeton and put Clarkson behind them as well as Cornell and Harvard.

I would rank Clarkson #2 and Harvard #4.

Unfortunately I think #3 is about right for us unless our seniors have a stand out year like Harvard's seniors did last year. Perhaps if the Nash brothers are both 1st team All American then we might go somewhere.

Josh '99
Interesting that national poll voters seem to consider Clarkson to be the best team in the ECAC by a fair margin, while conference coaches and ECAC media believe it's Princeton and put Clarkson behind them as well as Cornell and Harvard.

It doesn't surprise me in the least. ECAC coaches and media saw Princeton play last year and have some sense of where the program is headed under Gadowsky. Folks outside the ECAC see Princeton and think forty years of futility. This is especially true for preseason polls where people are largely voting on reputations.

The ECAC media and coaches polls were supposedly done prior to the Richter "time out."

TBRW Predictions up.

The Bottom Line:
1. Princeton
2. Cornell
3. Clarkson
4. Yale
5. Union
6. Harvard
7. Quinnipiac
8. Colgate
9. RPI
10. St. Lawrence
11. Brown
12. Dartmouth

Wow. I understand the methodology which seems reasonable.

This is very much like I would call it.

Two things that give me pause:
Cornell in #3 and Clarkson in #2 when I expect the reverse but I think it is a close call.

Yale so high seems strange but they were very young, no significant graduation losses, and what seems like an ok recruiting class.

I like the look of this much better than the coach or media pools.

pfibiger
Colin Greening chosen to the Coaches' Pre-Season All-ECAC team. Riley Nash and Ben Scrivens are on the Media Pre-Season All-ECAC team.

Coaches Poll: (Actual Finish)
1. Princeton (3rd)
2. Harvard (6th)
3. Cornell (2nd)
4. Clarkson (9th)
5. Union (8th)
6. Quinnipiac (7th)
7. Yale (1st)
8. SLU (4th)
9. Colgate (10th)
10. Rensselaer (11th)
11. Dartmouth (5th)
12. Brown (12th)

Media Poll: (Actual Finish)
1. Princeton (3rd)
2. Harvard (6th)
3. Cornell(2nd)
4. Clarkson(9th)
5. Quinnipiac(7th)
6. Union(8th)
7. Yale(1st)
8. SLU(4th)
9. Rensselaer(11th)
10. Colgate(10th)
11. Dartmouth(5th)
12. Brown(12th)

TBRW Predictions up. The Bottom Line: (Actual Finish)
1. Princeton (3rd)
2. Cornell (2nd) <----nailed that one
3. Clarkson (9th)
4. Yale (1st)
5. Union(8th)
6. Harvard(6th) <-- nailed that one
7. Quinnipiac(7th)<-- nailed that one
8. Colgate(10th)
9. RPI(11th)
10. St. Lawrence (4th)
11. Brown(12th)
12. Dartmouth(5th)

Biggest surprises this year....Yale and Dartmouth with a slight edge to Dartmouth. Biggest bombs were SUCKS (at least on the Coaches & Media polls) and Clarkson. Overall, parity seems to rule.

TBRW lost to the Coaches poll narrowly:

Actual	Team	TBRW	Delta	Sq	Coach	Delta	Sq       
1	YAL	4	3	9	7	6	36
2	COR	2	0	0	3	1	1
3	PRN	1	2	4	1	2	4
4	SLU	10	6	36	8	4	16
5	HVD	6	1	1	2	3	9
6	DRT	12	6	36	11	5	25
7	QPC	7	0	0	6	1	1
8	UNI	5	3	9	5	3	9
9	CLK	3	6	36	4	5	25
10	COL	8	2	4	9	1	1
11	RPI	9	2	4	10	1	1
12	BRN	11	1	1	12	0	0
				140			128

Chris 02
Overall, parity seems to rule.

Not just in the ECAC but all around the NCAA, as the unpredictable tournament has demonstrated.