Anyone else think we should switch ends in Albany?

I don't mean to be controversial, and second-guess Schafer here. But based on all the bad bounces at the end of the rink that we defended twice last night, particularly the bad bounces in the Harvard-Colgate game, does anyone else here think that perhaps we should be shooting into that end twice? There were a number of reall weird bounces off the boards in that end, with the puck coming right out into the slot a couple of times. And both Silverthorn and Hyphen had issues going behind that net, falling, stumbling, etc., due to either weird bounces or weird ice or both.

Add in the fact that that is also the end with all the loud, raucous Cornell fans, and I would think that might offset whatever benefit there is to the team of "feeling like home" to shoot the other way twice.

Anyone agree? Disagree? Know if Schafer, having watched the Harvard-Colgate game last night and seeing what we saw, could switch now, if he wanted to?

Again, this was not one or two bad bounces in that end. It seemed like every puck off the boards down there was an adventure.

I'm interested in others' opinions.
Andy W.

I believe we don't have a choice. I remember looking at the Albany River Rats seating chart and I'm pretty sure they take the same side as the home team has taken thus far in the ECAC tournament.

The entire rink has horrible bounces between the ice surface and seams in the boards and from Thursday practice, Schafer was well aware how bad the bounces would be. The good news is that we're used to Lynah bounces and blaming bounces on "character"

I was speaking to Gleed's father this AM. He said the guys are amazed at how bad the ice is. He also said the area in front of the penalty box that they spent forever working on last night was down to the concrete.

Hard to imagine switching ends will make a difference.

[Q]Jeff Hopkins '82 Wrote:
Hard to imagine switching ends will make a difference.[/q]

Did you stay for the Harvard-Colgate game last night? I'm guessing you didn't, because if you had, you would have seen the crazy bounces I was referring to. Most of the weird bounces were off the boards or the glass. I've gotta think that part of that is due to the Zamboni doors. There was one play where a Harvard player tried to send the puck around the boards, and the puck came off, several feet off the ice, and came very close to hitting Hyphen in the back and going into the net.

There may have been bad bounces at the other end of the rink too, but they were nothing like the bad bounces in our end.
Andy