Cornell-RPI Postgame (Game 1) 3/13/09

So, we are squarely against the wall, playing a team that was dead all year -- dead! -- but is riding the proverbial hot goalie and is playing with house money. Our late season problems are apparently carrying over to the post-season, sad to say.

While it's always key to get the lead, I think it's essential tomorrow, and the earlier the better. If the game stays scoreless too long -- or worse, if RPI scores first -- we're going to be gripping the sticks extra tight, and York will be seeing the puck like it's a beachball.

Well, nothing worthwhile ever comes too easily, so hopefully we have a mulligan in our pocket and can put this one behind us.

The team lost because the pep band played Paradise City during the second intermission.

It's time to put Nash and Greening back together.

What I learned about this team this year is that it's easy to see us beating any team in the nation, but it's just as easy to see us losing to any team in the nation. In past years, the malady was "playing up" or "playing down" to the level of our competition. This year is a little different, as we look really good in most of our losses.

Tonight, we outshot 'em 32-14, which included several stretches where there was a string of "ooohhhhhhhh" inducing chances (from audio of RedCast.) York's name was called tons of times by Jason, and maybe those who saw it can comment if it was a great performance by a goaltender, or another game where we lacked the finishing touch, or both. This was our first look at York.

Bad news: we lost to a sub-.300 winning % team tonight.
Good news: we get to play a sub-.300 winning % team tomorrow.

I'd rather be in this position vs. RPI than vs. Dartmouth or Quinnipiac, for example.

It was a classic "steal" win by RPI. Hats off. See you Saturday.

Definitely a case of lacking the finishing touch. We missed some nice open nets. York didn't play badly, but c'mon...

It is difficult to beat a team four times in one year, let alone doing it in four straight games. That being said, at this point I'll happily take 4-1 vs. RPI this year.

It was a combination of both really. York made some OUTSTANDING saves when he needed to, and we also missed the net a few times. The frustrating thing is that there was not a single thing that RPI did better than us tonight. The puck was in their zone for about 3/4 of the game (not even exaggerating), we won just about every battle in the corner. We outplayed them the entire game but just couldn't bang one home. If we play like we did tonight Tomorrow and Sunday, no doubt we're taking this series.

I feel like this is becoming a theme. Multiple games in which we outshoot our competition by a significant amount, yet still lose or come close to losing(Brown), and the opposing goalie looks like he had a good game. We get a lot of shots on goal, yet can't get them in....

As everyone else is already pointing out, its difficult to beat a team every single time you play them, and we played pretty hard tonight, etc. etc.

But honestly, I think Scrivens fell asleep on that goal, and in a 0-0 game it is just inexcusable to lose focus with ~3 minutes left and let in an off angle shot like that.

I don't mean to start a flame war but I think there is a huge discrepancy between his numbers (which are very good) and his skills. At least to me, I can clearly see it deflate the team to play such a hard fought game and then to have him give up a goal like that.

Hopefully we will score 4-5 tomorrow night and all will be well

Cornell is a much better team than RPI and controlled the puck for much of the game. Shots were 32-14, Big Red. I don't know what faceoffs were (box scores are not available yet). RPI compensated for Cornell's skill with a lot of hustle, and relatively clean pushing and shoving. Players on both sides were hitting the ice a lot it seemed. Some of those events looked like possible tripping penalties but it's hard to say when watching over the internet.

If this kid York is really hot, put Greening, Nash and Barlow back together again. If Barlow isn't feeling 100% back to normal, let Gallagher skate on the first line. RPI's margin of victory tonight was ultra slim. They scored what looked like a lucky goal on a forced turnover. Cornell can beat them, but they are going to have to really take it to them tomorrow night. RPI thinks that they are hot right now and like any other sport, a lot of hockey is between the ears.

------------
Edit:

Faceoffs:
Cornell: 34
RPI: 23

York was very solid in net. He's big and doesn't appear to make stupid decisions. That being said, I thought the team needed to get more bodies in front of him and get him moving side to side more than they did. Most of his saves were on shots right into his chest or his pads. The few times Cornell seemed to have him screened, RPI did a nice job of blocking shots. Cornell must have missed 4-5 open nets, and I think they hit a couple of pipes.

RichH
Bad news: we lost to a sub-.300 winning % team tonight.
Good news: we get to play a sub-.300 winning % team tomorrow.

I'd rather be in this position vs. RPI than vs. Dartmouth or Quinnipiac, for example.

It was a classic "steal" win by RPI. Hats off. See you Saturday.

KRACH says we should win about 80% of our games vs. RPI. 4-1 on the season will be fine.

And tomorrow, I would think, we're going to be crashing the net very, very hard. Not a bad thing to remind the team to do.

Cornell 32 shots on goal, RPI 14. Final RPI, Cornell 0. We've heard this song before. Disappointing. I still assume we'll advance -- we will, won't we? -- but the wear and tear of a three-game series won't help us in Albany.

oceanst41
It is difficult to beat a team four times in one year, let alone doing it in four straight games. That being said, at this point I'll happily take 4-1 vs. RPI this year.

It is also difficult to flip a coin and have it turn up heads four times in a row. But if you have already done it two times in a row then the odds are still 50/50 that it will do it the third time.

Are you saying that there is an intangible, like a letdown, factor affecting the outcome?

I would like to see that stats on which team wins a third or fourth game after a 2-0 series lead. I'll bet the odds favor the 2-0 team. (I'll also bet that someone here will have some data).

lynah80
They scored what looked like a lucky goal on a forced turnover.

Disagree, that was a goal scorers goal. Cullen is one of their top goal scorers and put it top shelf, over Scrivens' shoulder. A good goal. RPI will be a good team in years to come; if they continue to mature that is. One problem they've had, over the years, is underclassmen not continuing to improve. But they have good underclassmen and unfortunately if they get great goaltending, like they did tonight, they will be tough.


That said, I'd not change anything for us, but of course I'm not as smart as Coach is. All 4 lines looked goods. I was especially impressed by Punches, Scali, and Nicholls. Also Krueger continues to impress me. He carries the puck well and he and Devin do well moving in on the offense. Unfortunately there were a couple of times that a forward didn't notice it and drop back. However it never hurt us. Except for his terrible attempt at a clear which almost gave up a goal, Scrivens looked good, the goal wasn't his fault,

Let's hope coach can tweak things and they can come out with the same intensity tomorrow. If the game plays like tonight and we lose, well there's nothing we can do if no goals on >30 SOG.

Comments from Brendon Thomas' blog:

Third period:

13:58 to go:

"with Morissette on the forecheck, Scrivens put the puck right on the tape of Rabbani high along the right boards. Rabbani's shot clanked off the outside of the vacated net to the near post..."

11:49 to go:
"another York save through traffic. This kid looks unflappable"

9:15 to go:
"it's starting to take on that playoff feel where bloody murder is the only way a penalty will be called..."

about 6+ to go:
"it's a tight game, but remember that RPI is a team that tends to wilt in the third period"

2:30+ to go
RPI goal: "just a harmless-looking wrister from the top of the left circle that sailed through traffic and over Scrivens' left shoulder before he could pick it up"

[www.theithacajournal.com]

lynah80
Comments from Brendon Thomas' blog:


2:30+ to go
RPI goal: "just a harmless-looking wrister from the top of the left circle that sailed through traffic and over Scrivens' left shoulder before he could pick it up"

I'd agree with that. However, I certainly can't blame Scrivens. The shot had perfect location, through traffic; as I said a goal scorers goal.

Wow, what a frustrating game. RPI showed nothing--really, they're a sadly mediocre team. Their PP is clocking at about 9 percent for the season, and we saw why tonight. We should be burying teams like this.

No Schafer-coached team is ever going to be an offensive powerhouse, but geez, we've got to do better than this. York was good, but the truth is he did not have to make many phenomenal saves tonight.

I had a good view of the goal, and I can't really fault Scrivens. It was a lucky shot, through a screen. He made one superb glove save in the second period; other than that, he had virtually nothing do to (and he almost gave it away in the third with one of his now-patented clearances, which gave RIP an open-net chance; Schafer gave him a lengthy if-looks-could-kill stare after that one).

The only good news is we get another chance tomorrow night. Let's Go Red.

Schafer has to do his part. He has a team that can beat RPI. He has to work on their heads and remind them that they have outplayed RPI all year.

He needs to come up with ways to make York uncomfortable. Stack the first line. Keep someone in front of him in the slot. Pass the puck, across the top the crease more and make him wiggle around in his pads. Keep him anxious. This kind of stuff:





RPI sees Cornell as a predictable, conservative team. Schafer needs to give them more to think about.

Robin
I feel like this is becoming a theme. Multiple games in which we outshoot our competition by a significant amount, yet still lose or come close to losing(Brown), and the opposing goalie looks like he had a good game. We get a lot of shots on goal, yet can't get them in....

Which is why I was beggign for us to find some way to recruit a finisher/scorer talented guy in another thread. We're never going anywhere without at least one. THere's got to be a way to get ONE.

Well, it's unfortunate that I have to work tomorrow, or I'd come tomorrow night. Since I can't, here's hoping I don't have to work Sunday night. I can't pass up a game 3 no matter who is playing, and seriously... I can't lose. "Rival" against "rival" so either way a Clarkson "rival" loses. Win-win for me.

Roy 82
I would like to see that stats on which team wins a third or fourth game after a 2-0 series lead. I'll bet the odds favor the 2-0 team. (I'll also bet that someone here will have some data).

That's the beuty of being a Sox fan. After eight decades, you do reverse that 3-0 series lead.

Against RPI, we shouldn't have lost. Randomness caught up with Cornell. After last night, a one-game letdown will be terminal.

Schafer explodes at the refs.

[www.theithacajournal.com]

No doubt there's heat-of-the-moment frustration here, but he has a point. Dell in particular was terrible.

billhoward
I still assume we'll advance

You know what they say about assuming, though, don't you Bill?

HockeyMan
Schafer explodes at the refs.

[www.theithacajournal.com]

No doubt there's heat-of-the-moment frustration here, but he has a point. Dell in particular was terrible.

Mike was critical of both the league and the refs.

Total (both teams) PIM for the 4 games last night were:

Yale-Brown: 35
Cornell-RPI: 14
Princeton-Union: 18
St. Lawrence-Quinnipiac: 29

mean: 24

For the regular season, the ECAC intra-conference mean PIM was 29.96 (both teams).

By saying what he did, he probably irritated the refs. But if he didn't say anything, then the overlooked calls (and my primary point of reference is Jason Weinstein) would probably continue. I saw some trips by RPI that could have been called, but the it's always hard to judge over the internet. Let's hope for a cleaner game tonight.

Dell was one referee last night, right? Criticim of his work has been a near-constant for many years in the ECAC.

I've seen him loose control of a number of games over the years. If he has ignored the directives of Stewart, that's a problem and Schafer is properly upset.

But that said, let's not lose sight of the fact that the style of play Schafer was critical of in his comments were a staple of his teams for many years, i.e, the holding along the boards, the open arm grabbing, etc.

I agree that "it's not hockey" and to allow it to continue damages the ECAC in several ways.

Having seen RPI just a few weeks ago, I'd be stunned if Cornell doesn't take the next two games. RPI appeared to me to be very fragile against Clarkson at Troy, and collapsed after allowing two early PPGs. Yor's misplay was a killer and the 4th was a SHG as I recall.

To their credit they came back, played hard in the third and closed to within 4-2. But Cornell has more positives and should prevail, York's fine play notwithstanding.

RPI survived last weekend and last night by clutching and grabbing and getting away with it. They took advantage of the fact that the refs were letting everything go, and played as well as they possibly could have with their skill level and system. Give them credit for hanging around and making it more difficult for Cornell than it needed to be. Hopefully a change in refs will create a game, as Schafer pointed out, a little more similar to hockey. Granted, Cornell was (theoretically) guilty as well, but there were several long shifts when RPI players repeatedly held, hooked, and high-sticked Cornell players. Infuriating, but with one or two bounces and conversions on power plays (however infrequent they may be), they'll be all right.

I felt that the officials let too much stuff go- both ways. I was outraged, at one point, to see an RPI player punch one of our guys in the back of the head, with Alex Dell standing there watching. BTW, no call! But, in other parts of the game, I saw our guys doing the same thing.

I thought the officiating was poor. But, I didn't think it was unfair. They were equally poor in both directions.

Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

Another grinder of a game. Shots on goal were 32-14 and yet we lost 1-0? It's so painful. Thankfully we're not out of it yet. I know Schafer will tweak things to disrupt York. No way he stands on is head again.

I know it's been said before but the bottom line is we just don't have the finishers needed to win these types of games on a consistent basis. Our D only gave up one goal last night. Can't ask too much more than that.

I think there was more hooking out there than in Las Vegas or Times Square in the 70s and I don't think there was a single hooking call the entire game. I'm amazed they actually called an interference penalty once because guys were getting tackled away from the puck left and right. It did go both ways, and I was pretty happy with the call on Burgdorfer for intentionally shooting the puck right in to section A. I think us not capitalizing on that gift of a power play opportunity was really deflating, and RIPs goal came just after that. I think its amazing that York has been playing so well, he had some of the worst body language I've ever seen on a goaltender during stoppages of play. He'd either be bent over hands on his knees like he was really tired, or turned around leaning on the net looking like he was going to puke. He also seemed really nervous early in the first period when he kept covering up the puck when no one was near him. I think if we could get a goal early tonight we could rattle him.

imafrshmn
Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

The crew for tonight will be John Murphy and Tim Kotyra as refs, with Prusak and Emanatian as linesmen. Emanatian is the only holdover from last night's game.

sah67

imafrshmn
Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

The crew for tonight will be John Murphy and Tim Kotyra as refs, with Prusak and Emanatian as linesmen. Emanatian is the only holdover from last night's game.

Nice to see the change, but Emanatian was pretty bad, too. He was the one standing right next to Kennedy along the boards in the 1st period when he was being held...it was one of those obvious calls, as the RPI guy had his arm around Kennedy from behind; Kennedy's legs were moving but he wasn't going anywhere. There hadn't been any penalties called yet in the game and I was left wondering what it would take for one to be called.

Germ
Another grinder of a game. Shots on goal were 32-14 and yet we lost 1-0? It's so painful. Thankfully we're not out of it yet. I know Schafer will tweak things to disrupt York. No way he stands on is head again.

I know it's been said before but the bottom line is we just don't have the finishers needed to win these types of games on a consistent basis. Our D only gave up one goal last night. Can't ask too much more than that.

But that's just it: York did NOT stand on his head last night. He was good, but this was not one of those classic playoff hockey games in which a hot goalie steals a win. He was hardly specacular; he didn't need to be.

All of which underscores the veracity of your second point. We don't have enough finishers.

From Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette (posted on the RPI-Sports list):

Paul Stewart was at last night's Union-Princeton game, and got a call from one of the officials from the RPI-Cornell game. Let's just say that Stewart won't put up with Schafer's antics. He was very angry.

No comment from me.

ebilmes

sah67

imafrshmn
Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

The crew for tonight will be John Murphy and Tim Kotyra as refs, with Prusak and Emanatian as linesmen. Emanatian is the only holdover from last night's game.

Nice to see the change, but Emanatian was pretty bad, too. He was the one standing right next to Kennedy along the boards in the 1st period when he was being held...it was one of those obvious calls, as the RPI guy had his arm around Kennedy from behind; Kennedy's legs were moving but he wasn't going anywhere. There hadn't been any penalties called yet in the game and I was left wondering what it would take for one to be called.

Now that we're back to the two ref system can the linesmen still call penalties? I would have guessed they couldn't.

KeithK

ebilmes

sah67

imafrshmn
Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

The crew for tonight will be John Murphy and Tim Kotyra as refs, with Prusak and Emanatian as linesmen. Emanatian is the only holdover from last night's game.

Nice to see the change, but Emanatian was pretty bad, too. He was the one standing right next to Kennedy along the boards in the 1st period when he was being held...it was one of those obvious calls, as the RPI guy had his arm around Kennedy from behind; Kennedy's legs were moving but he wasn't going anywhere. There hadn't been any penalties called yet in the game and I was left wondering what it would take for one to be called.

Now that we're back to the two ref system can the linesmen still call penalties? I would have guessed they couldn't.

I think they are restricted to too many men and things that are not in the view of either referee (which should be essentially nothing if the referees are playing the 2man system properly).

KeithK

ebilmes

sah67

imafrshmn
Full transcript from Schafer's post-game conference

Brandon Thomas reports that tonight's game will have a different officiating crew.

The crew for tonight will be John Murphy and Tim Kotyra as refs, with Prusak and Emanatian as linesmen. Emanatian is the only holdover from last night's game.

Nice to see the change, but Emanatian was pretty bad, too. He was the one standing right next to Kennedy along the boards in the 1st period when he was being held...it was one of those obvious calls, as the RPI guy had his arm around Kennedy from behind; Kennedy's legs were moving but he wasn't going anywhere. There hadn't been any penalties called yet in the game and I was left wondering what it would take for one to be called.

Now that we're back to the two ref system can the linesmen still call penalties? I would have guessed they couldn't.

This is from the NCAA rule book:

SECTION 4. The linesman’s duties are as follows:
a. Determine infractions of the rules concerning offsides and icing.
b. Conduct faceoffs.
c. Stop play:
1. When the puck goes outside the playing area;
2. For encroachment into the faceoff area;
3. For the puck being played with a high stick or hand pass;
4. For the goal cage becoming dislodged;
5. For premature substitution of a goalkeeper (see 2-5-a);
6. For injured player(s) (see 2-6-a, d) and officials;
7. For too many players on the ice;
8. When a stick, puck or any foreign object is thrown on the ice;
9. To report a goal not observed by the referee;
10. To report an ineligible player playing the puck; and
11. When a player or goalkeeper’s helmet becomes dislodged.
d. At the first stoppage of play, the linesman

So, for most penalties, the ref or the asst ref have to make the call.

During the game I was told that at the Friday luncheon Coach Schafer said he heard there was a directive to let them play during the playoffs. I don't know where it came from, but if true, it obviously primed his pump. It will be interesting to see how they try and reprimand him. As an aside officials for Sundays game are listed as TBA in the game program.

More on RPI's goal

from the Troy Record
It was deflected, Cullen knocked the puck down, turned and fired it toward the net.

“I was trying to stay high slot there,” Cullen said. “I was just trying to get it on net. I knew Frich (Tyler Helfrich) was going to the net, so I was thinking deflection, screen or rebound.”

Helfrich screened Cornell goalie Ben Scrivens, who never saw the puck deflect off one of his defenders.

I admit, I never saw a deflection either.

Schafer suspended for tonight's game.

Avash
Schafer suspended for tonight's game.

What a day to fall on your sword.

Avash
Schafer suspended for tonight's game.

Any chance Dell and Carusone are replaced?

JDeafv

Avash
Schafer suspended for tonight's game.

Any chance Dell and Carusone are replaced?

Yes, it's in this thread.

Avash
Schafer suspended for tonight's game.

I was counting on his getting a bench penalty or two tonight. Here's a link [www.ecachockey.com]

These sorts of suspensions really piss me off.

The league: "You can't criticize us! You don't get to be angry after a loss and bad officiating!"

He didn't swear. He didn't say bad things about the officials by name, he just said that he didn't like how the game was called.

Yeah, let's get him for voicing his opinion.

There's often a blanket league policy that bars the coaching staff from specifically calling out the referees in a public forum. The motivation behind that is sound -- if you have a problem with officiating, you send comments and tapes to the league office and allow the league to police itself. As soon as you try it in the court of public opinion, stupidity ensues, as anybody who's ever seen a flamewar or a political TV show can attest.

The comments as reported by Brandon are reasonable and targeted -- for feedback to the the league. But they also exactly the sort of statement that's banned by the league. So: do the crime, do the time; he wanted to get something on the public record, and he knew the price to be paid. I don't think he went off half-cocked and regretted it later.

Let's face it, RPI's best chance to beat us is to hook us and hold us and mug us. If the refs let them get away with it, as was apparently the case in Game 1, they have a good shot to beat us. Schafer's tirade and subsequent suspension are worth it if the game gets called tighter tonight.

Schafer's suspension may work in our favor - team may have more fire and maybe Casey Jones can extract a little more offense...Then if it goes to a third game (sacrificing a chicken to the woofing gods) it'll be a bigger mental boost.

Dafatone
These sorts of suspensions really piss me off.

The league: "You can't criticize us! You don't get to be angry after a loss and bad officiating!"

He didn't swear. He didn't say bad things about the officials by name, he just said that he didn't like how the game was called.

Yeah, let's get him for voicing his opinion.

This isn't uncommon. Essentially every major organized sports league has similar rules and punishments.

Jordan 04

Dafatone
These sorts of suspensions really piss me off.

The league: "You can't criticize us! You don't get to be angry after a loss and bad officiating!"

He didn't swear. He didn't say bad things about the officials by name, he just said that he didn't like how the game was called.

Yeah, let's get him for voicing his opinion.

This isn't uncommon. Essentially every major organized sports league has similar rules and punishments.

True. Doesn't mean I can't get upset at all sports, though.

Trotsky
There's often a blanket league policy that bars the coaching staff from specifically calling out the referees in a public forum. The motivation behind that is sound -- if you have a problem with officiating, you send comments and tapes to the league office and allow the league to police itself. As soon as you try it in the court of public opinion, stupidity ensues, as anybody who's ever seen a flamewar or a political TV show can attest.

The comments as reported by Brandon are reasonable and targeted -- for feedback to the the league. But they also exactly the sort of statement that's banned by the league. So: do the crime, do the time; he wanted to get something on the public record, and he knew the price to be paid. I don't think he went off half-cocked and regretted it later.

He even mentioned that he got suspended the last time he did this. He had a pretty good idea what the penalty would be.

There will be less profanity at Lynah.

lynah80
There will be less profanity at Lynah.

Nah, he'll still be in the stands.

Trotsky

lynah80
There will be less profanity at Lynah.

Nah, he'll still be in the stands.

Hopefully on the townie side or he might be listening to the game in his office.

Rita

Trotsky

lynah80
There will be less profanity at Lynah.

Nah, he'll still be in the stands.

Hopefully on the townie side or he might be listening to the game in his office.

Don't suspended coaches normally stand in the corridor (staircase) between the bench and the locker room?

Kyle Rose

Rita

Trotsky

lynah80
There will be less profanity at Lynah.

Nah, he'll still be in the stands.

Hopefully on the townie side or he might be listening to the game in his office.

Don't suspended coaches normally stand in the corridor (staircase) between the bench and the locker room?

Well, Jackie Parker sat in the press box with an intercom to the bench. But then was suspended for that prank, too.

Greening.

Oops...wrong thread.

Trotsky
There's often a blanket league policy that bars the coaching staff from specifically calling out the referees in a public forum. The motivation behind that is sound -- if you have a problem with officiating, you send comments and tapes to the league office and allow the league to police itself. As soon as you try it in the court of public opinion, stupidity ensues, as anybody who's ever seen a flamewar or a political TV show can attest.

The comments as reported by Brandon are reasonable and targeted -- for feedback to the the league. But they also exactly the sort of statement that's banned by the league. So: do the crime, do the time; he wanted to get something on the public record, and he knew the price to be paid. I don't think he went off half-cocked and regretted it later.

"Well, the league forbids me to say anything about the quality of officiating. No matter how bad it is, no matter what poor level of officiating is seen on the ice, I can't say anything about it."
- Jack Parker, not fooling anyone