Cornell 3 RIT 5

[Roy 82]

I think we're in for a loooooooong season. Hope I'm wrong. :-/

Actually, I hope you're right, if you catch my drift.

[Trotsky]

It will be a season-long struggle to find their spot somewhere between 4th and 9th, with lots of ups and downs -- the season half the teams in the conference have each year.  We've been very fortunate to have been above the fray for so long and to have every reason to believe that we will be again someday.  For now, it's going to be a dogfight every shift, and that should be exciting rather than disheartening.  Essentially, we will watch a best-of-22 playoff series.

[scoop85]

While in past year's we tended to know what we've had from the get-go, I for one and looking forward to seeing how this particular team develops over the course of the season.  I think we'll have a chance to see the coaching staff work wonders with a very raw product.

[Jim Hyla]

I hope all you optimists are correct. For me, I'm disheartened rather than excited. I still firmly believe we need excellent defense to compete with the big boys. Maybe Yale will prove me wrong, but I think a high powered offense can win in the ECAC, but once you get to the NCAAs, everyone has a high powered offense, and they all have better offensive players than we will ever have. Do you think that if Yale faces UND and BC in the NCAAs again, that they have a good chance to beat them with no defense. I don't.

[Tom Lento]

I hope all you optimists are correct. For me, I'm disheartened rather than excited. I still firmly believe we need excellent defense to compete with the big boys. Maybe Yale will prove me wrong, but I think a high powered offense can win in the ECAC, but once you get to the NCAAs, everyone has a high powered offense, and they all have better offensive players than we will ever have. Do you think that if Yale faces UND and BC in the NCAAs again, that they have a good chance to beat them with no defense. I don't.

If it makes you feel any better, Jim, I seem to remember this exact conversation from 4 years ago.

Cornell got bounced from the NCAAs after scoring something like 3 goals in 9 periods of hockey. The sense of pride over hanging with Wisconsin into 3 OTs was eventually replaced by people wondering if Schafer's defense-first system can win in the NCAAs with the new direction of college hockey (never mind that a nearly identical but generally more talented Wisconsin team just won the whole thing).

The following year, Cornell lost some defensive talent and a large chunk of what little offensive firepower the team could claim. Schafer said something about changing recruiting strategies a little bit, but he never claimed to be shifting to an up-tempo style. A few bright young freshmen with good skating skills, some offensive ability and questionable defensive zone responsibility joined the team. For part of that season Cornell's team defense was not all that good and the forwards were carrying the puck more and trying to be creative through the neutral zone. Fans, of course, thought Schafer's comments + the appearance of guys like Tony Romano and the approach they brought to the game meant the end of the defense + puck possession approach of the past 12 years. It didn't happen - 2 years later Cornell was still playing the same defense-first system, and still running an offense predicated on puck possession in the cycle. Oh yeah, and they were back in the NCAA tournament.

I haven't seen this team play, so maybe there really is something different about the system, but my guess is anything resembling a new style of play is a combination of new players, a young team and fans seeing whatever they want to see when they watch hockey. My memory of the 06/07 and 07/08 squads is of two teams that were frequently caught out of position in the defensive zone and usually had a hard time moving the puck or establishing a cycle in the offensive end. They showed some signs, but for the most part they just weren't up to the high standards of the early part of the decade. This was partly due to a few key early departures, but a lot of it had to do with having young teams that were still figuring stuff out. It happens.


I predict the following, assuming Cornell doesn't suffer a big run of injuries or defections to the pros:

1) Cornell will have a rough season or two while the new players learn the defensive system. It should still be better than average in the ECAC, but don't expect any titles or NCAA appearances.

2) You'll see the same emphasis on defense and puck possession that you've seen for the last 15 years, although the next couple of seasons will be characterized by painful breakdowns and (hopefully) occasional flashes of brilliance. Within 2 years the teams will actually be able to execute the system effectively, and the results will turn in Cornell's favor.

3) If the optimism on this thread is justified, Cornell will have a bit more offensive creativity and better goal scorers up front. In the grand scheme of things this won't amount to much because they will not be as good as the guys who go to BC and Minnesota, and honestly will not be much better offensively than what we've seen over the last 10 years. I think that's ok, because the defense and forechecking will be superior and hopefully the puck movement will be there, but I'm sure people will bitch and moan when Cornell is "only" in the hunt for the ECAC title and in the NCAAs with a decent shot at the Frozen Four.

[cbuckser]

In addition to agreeing with Tom Lento, I want to write that I don't perceive a shift in Cornell's fundamental strategies.  As a result of defensive breakdowns (which tend to happen frequently with young teams), Cornell fell behind in both games last weekend.  Playing from behind forced Cornell to open things up and take chances.  Cornell never had a lead to protect last weekend.

I expect that the players will execute better in the near future, and we'll see plenty of the 2-1 games that we were anticipating when the season began.

[Trotsky]

Tom said it extremely well.  The only thing I would add is a truly exceptional goaltender can salve growing pains and amplify fat years.  Maybe we have one in Garman and/or Iles.  We'll see.