Big Line-up Changes for Brown Game

[Trotsky]

Hopefully it turns into a one step back to gain two steps forward situation if he was willing to sacrifice tonight's game to send a message for the rest of the season.

Hope so.  We shall see.

[flyersgolf]

It should be much clearer now why the players that are in the majority of the games are there.  Big talent drop off.  You also have to appreciate the effort Knisley puts in every shift.

[BearLover]

Great move Schafer!  That really got the boys going.

[Scersk '97]

And we're somehow only five points out of 3rd with a game in hand.  One left to play vs. everyone but Colgate. If we somehow play our way into a bye, since it certainly wouldn't be "backing in" at this point, it would be quite an achievement.

Probably because of the early Colgate games, everything seems "late."  Let's hope the stretch run is just late this year too...

[Jordan 04]

Paging Facetimer...

[Trotsky]

It should be much clearer now why the players that are in the majority of the games are there.  Big talent drop off.  You also have to appreciate the effort Knisley puts in every shift.

Knisely, Mihalek, Hillbrich all busted their asses tonight.

This cannot be said for everybody, which is remarkable given the circumstances.

[css228]

How is a team that lost only four seniors and finished 2nd in the league by a sizeable margin last season currently sitting on the cusp of being in the bottom four?

[Johnny 5]

How is a team that lost only four seniors and finished 2nd in the league by a sizeable margin last season currently sitting on the cusp of being in the bottom four?

This team is in a death spiral that Sully Sullenberger couldn't save.
When the coach comments at the weekly luncheon that he can't get through to the team because they are always texting or tweeting on their cell phones??
Distracted? Maybe entitled is a better word.
I applaud him for the disciplinary attempt, but it may (?) be too late.
And, even against the likes of Brown they looked disoriented and out of synch. It was painful to watch. Andy, keep your ass in the damn net!!
Not to mention that the benchees, with the exception of Bardreau, seemed more interested in socializing than looking contrite.
Yep,....how far the mighty have fallen.
The Colorado College and Michigan games feel like something from another season entirely.
"Hey, Rob Pannell, how's that foot feelin'??"

::pain::

[marty]

How is a team that lost only four seniors and finished 2nd in the league by a sizeable margin last season currently sitting on the cusp of being in the bottom four?

This team is in a death spiral that Sully Sullenberger couldn't save.

Sully crash landed to save his charges. We can still hope. And it is hard to believe that the team that beat up on Union in the third period on the 19th has disappeared.

But this is starting to stink.

[ithacat]

How is a team that lost only four seniors and finished 2nd in the league by a sizeable margin last season currently sitting on the cusp of being in the bottom four?

This team is in a death spiral that Sully Sullenberger couldn't save.
When the coach comments at the weekly luncheon that he can't get through to the team because they are always texting or tweeting on their cell phones??
Distracted? Maybe entitled is a better word.
I applaud him for the disciplinary attempt, but it may (?) be too late.
And, even against the likes of Brown they looked disoriented and out of synch. It was painful to watch. Andy, keep your ass in the damn net!!
Not to mention that the benchees, with the exception of Bardreau, seemed more interested in socializing than looking contrite.
Yep,....how far the mighty have fallen.
The Colorado College and Michigan games feel like something from another season entirely.
"Hey, Rob Pannell, how's that foot feelin'??"

::pain::

Hard to fathom that this team has a losing record in conference and overall, and is winless against the Ivies thus far. The team is closer to last than fourth -- 1-3 against the teams at or below them (with 3 of those games having been at Lynah) and have been out-scored in those three losses by 3-10.

The top four ECAC teams have scored 40 or more goals; Cornell has scored 24 times, with only RPI more futile at 23. On the flip side, only Quinnipiac has given up fewer goals than Cornell...does defense win championships anymore?

With three recruits having left the fold for various reasons (including the two biggest and toughest, as well as the top defenseman) the future looks a little less rosy than it did at the beginning of the season.

[Towerroad]

...does defense win championships anymore?

I am reliably informed that it is necessary to place the puck in the opponents goal with greater frequency than your opponent places the puck in your goal if it is your intention to prevail in the contest.

In other words you have to play at both ends of the ice and the middle too.

[ursusminor]

Excuse me for interrupting.

I think that part of the problem that Cornell is facing is that other ECAC schools, especially the other Ivies not named Harvard, have been able to recruit better in recent years. I don't know why this has been the case, perhaps the economy and the rareness of really good pro careers has gotten more players to value quality educations. Perhaps the coaches are better than in the past. I am not sure. There are similar stories at Colgate and especially Union. (I wonder how Leaman and now Bennett are able to convince potential recruits that Union is really the 26th best academic institution in the country.) Even RPI is recruiting much better in recent years although the results on the ice don't show it. Quinnipiac is the hardest to explain. I know little about them academically -- I don't think that I have ever met a graduate.

Cornell is probably losing some players to other Ivies who are not interested in playing a basically defensive system. I do think that they will still finish in the upper half of the league, but a bye is not a given this season.

[margolism]

Didn't Yale kind of have a season like this last year?  If I recall, after two dominant years, last year was a downer for them, before stepping up again this season.

I think Cornell's performance this season can be attributed to one or more of the following reasons:

1. Leadership - Perhaps this year's captains are not instilling the same attitude and ethic that last years's captains had
2. Chemistry - Maybe the freshman on the team just aren't gelling the way they should, so the team lacks that certain something needed to win games
3. Luck - Perhaps Cornell just hasn't had the puck go its way more times this season than others, both literally (experienced more amazing saves), and figuratively (season-ending injury)
4. Sophomore Slumps - Not seeing many players take the next leap forward in performance between their freshman and sophomore seasons, sophomore to junior seasons, junionr to senior seasons
5. Better Competition - All of this within the context of a much stronger conference

Thoughts?

[Rosey]

Didn't Yale kind of have a season like this last year?  If I recall, after two dominant years, last year was a downer for them, before stepping up again this season.

I think Cornell's performance this season can be attributed to one or more of the following reasons:

1. Leadership - Perhaps this year's captains are not instilling the same attitude and ethic that last years's captains had
2. Chemistry - Maybe the freshman on the team just aren't gelling the way they should, so the team lacks that certain something needed to win games
3. Luck - Perhaps Cornell just hasn't had the puck go its way more times this season than others, both literally (experienced more amazing saves), and figuratively (season-ending injury)
4. Sophomore Slumps - Not seeing many players take the next leap forward in performance between their freshman and sophomore seasons, sophomore to junior seasons, junionr to senior seasons
5. Better Competition - All of this within the context of a much stronger conference

Thoughts?

I don't think you need to be Facetimer to even propose:

6. Coaching - The coaching staff isn't reaching the players or effectively instilling in them the spirit of Cornell hockey.

I'm not saying this is a problem, only that not including it in a list of potential problems is missing (or deliberately excluding) one of the more obvious inputs to a successful team.

[jtn27]

6. Coaching - The coaching staff isn't reaching the players or effectively instilling in them the spirit of Cornell hockey.

I'm not saying this is a problem, only that not including it in a list of potential problems is missing (or deliberately excluding) one of the more obvious inputs to a successful team.

In terms of coaching, I'm not ready to suggest that Schafer be fired, but maybe it's time to hire an offensive-minded assistant. According to the stats Ithacat posted above (as well as the eyes of anyone who has seen the team play), the problem is offense (or more accurately the lack thereof). Whatever offensive strategy Schafer is using isn't working, and maybe a fresh perspective would help.

Quinnipiac is the hardest to explain. I know little about them academically -- I don't think that I have ever met a graduate.

My brother goes to Quinnipiac. From what I've heard, Qunnipiac's academic reputation is quickly rising. They switched from being a college to a university about 20 years ago, are in the process of opening a med school, have numerous joint programs with Yale, and have been relatively successful at poaching non-tenured professors from the Ivies and other top schools. My guess is they're academically better than most of the non-Ivies in the ECAC. If your theory regarding recruits favoring academic schools is correct, than that would seem to benefit Quinnipiac.