11/9 Union

[marty]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

[css228]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

How the hell is this team ranked?

[KeithK]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

How the hell is this team ranked?

Do we really need to explain to you how polls work?

[css228]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

How the hell is this team ranked?

Do we really need to explain to you how polls work?

No but you need to explain to me how there aren't at least 20 teams that the voters consider better than us. We're kinda not very good at hockey.

[Jim Hyla]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

How the hell is this team ranked?

Do we really need to explain to you how polls work?

No but you need to explain to me how there aren't at least 20 teams that the voters consider better than us. We're kinda not very good at hockey.

Well, one explanation is that Ken Schott, the Schnectady Gazette, Union hockey reporter, voted us 19 and didn't give a vote to Union. Overall there are 6 ECAC teams ranked, best conference in NCAA. So maybe they think we're the sixth best team in the ECAC. Hard to argue too much with that.

[Cornell95]

well in the past we only had the reputation of the program as an end of season contender to prop us up in the polls

but now that we have 3-4 real rabid Chicken Little's flooding the message boards with calls for the coach to be sacked, the team identity to be inverted, and predictions of the end of the world (we might as well just quit now, maybe make some space for Title IX compliance)... well now we practically look like a mid pack WCHA team!  You can only understand how confused the pollsters must be!

keep up the bellyaching and armchair PP quarterbacking, we will be in the top 10 despite a .500 record before you know it!

[TimV]

...we have 3-4 real rabid Chicken Little's flooding the message boards with calls for the coach to be sacked, the team identity to be inverted, and predictions of the end of the world ...

keep up the bellyaching and armchair PP quarterbacking,

::cheer::::cheer::::cheer::

Wow. Spectacular hyperbole.  I get it.

But it is a discussion board after all.  Do you have any refuting observations?  Pour some sugar on me. I really need it.

I was at both games this weekend,::uhoh:: Were you?

[jtwcornell91]

Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

Has anyone who started following Cornell hockey in the 20th century ever said that about a North Country trip before? ::wow::

[Jim Hyla]

Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

Has anyone who started following Cornell hockey in the 20th century ever said that about a North Country trip before? ::wow::

Has anyone else ever felt that it was true?

[Jim Hyla]

...we have 3-4 real rabid Chicken Little's flooding the message boards with calls for the coach to be sacked, the team identity to be inverted, and predictions of the end of the world ...

keep up the bellyaching and armchair PP quarterbacking,

::cheer::::cheer::::cheer::

Wow. Spectacular hyperbole.  I get it.

But it is a discussion board after all.  Do you have any refuting observations?  Pour some sugar on me. I really need it.

I was at both games this weekend,::uhoh:: Were you?

I was at both games.  Although we could have easily loss to RPI, I thought we looked pretty good for much of the game.  I think our breakouts, particularly ability to pass while breaking out, is much better than in years past. It's certainly not yet perfect, and if we didn't have Ryan we'd be a lot more trouble. However I feel a lot more secure then I did even last year.   Union, Yale, and now Q, have a particularly aggressive forechecking which gives us problems. But I think you have to say that our style of play has really progressed dramatically compared to even 5 years ago.  Because of that I am a lot more optimistic than many of the posters.

Our season is still young, and many of the teams that we are having trouble with, have played a lot more games than we have.  Our Ivy League restrictions mean we have to wait a few weeks before we can really assess the team.  Having said that, I certainly don't think that this coming weekend is an easy schedule.

[KeithK]

How many times are we going to fall for the effort being the problem?  At this point it has to be something else.

Not sure what you are referring to.  Talent?  There are 7 NHL draft picks on the roster.  Coaching ability?  Schafer is the most successful active ECAC coach.  Inflexibility?  That seems to be the gist of a lot of the comments for the last few seasons.  Maybe it is a genuine problem.

This was an awful weekend, though going into it I would have taken a point given that it might be the 1-2 teams in the conference.  Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

With Clarkson at 11, and SLU at 17 (USCHO), these aren't gimme games. Especially on the road, with no band.::panic::

Nice to see we're still five spots above Union.::rolleyes::

How the hell is this team ranked?

Do we really need to explain to you how polls work?

No but you need to explain to me how there aren't at least 20 teams that the voters consider better than us. We're kinda not very good at hockey.

Most of the voters have not been watching and analuzing Cornell's play as closely as we have. Here's what pollsters see.  A team that was ranked to start the season (not surprising due to program reputation and quality of roster) has lost one game at home to last year's national runner up (a 9-1-1 team) and one game on the road against another good team. This hardly screams bottom feeder. Now maybe the details of the games (shot totals, special teams, etc.) point to big problems but the voter isn't really seeing that detail when he's ranking all of college hockey. That's why poll rankings almost always have a history. If you start high you need to play poorly for a while before it's reflected strongly in the rankings.

Also keep in mind that there are only 59 teams in D1. #19 in the poll is a long ways down. It's basivally saying we're a little better than middle of the pack. That hardly seems like a stretch.

[scoop85]

...we have 3-4 real rabid Chicken Little's flooding the message boards with calls for the coach to be sacked, the team identity to be inverted, and predictions of the end of the world ...

keep up the bellyaching and armchair PP quarterbacking,

::cheer::::cheer::::cheer::

Wow. Spectacular hyperbole.  I get it.

But it is a discussion board after all.  Do you have any refuting observations?  Pour some sugar on me. I really need it.

I was at both games this weekend,::uhoh:: Were you?

I was at both games.  Although we could have easily loss to RPI, I thought we looked pretty good for much of the game.  I think our breakouts, particularly ability to pass while breaking out, is much better than in years past. It's certainly not yet perfect, and if we didn't have Ryan we'd be a lot more trouble. However I feel a lot more secure then I did even last year.   Union, Yale, and now Q, have a particularly aggressive forechecking which gives us problems. But I think you have to say that our style of play has really progressed dramatically compared to even 5 years ago.  Because of that I am a lot more optimistic than many of the posters.

Our season is still young, and many of the teams that we are having trouble with, have played a lot more games than we have.  Our Ivy League restrictions mean we have to wait a few weeks before we can really assess the team.  Having said that, I certainly don't think that this coming weekend is an easy schedule.

I too am optimistic, but would like to see the Freshmen get on the score sheet.  We certainly need more depth of scoring, and guys like Buckles will need to produce to keep some pressure off the top two lines.

[Trotsky]

Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

Has anyone who started following Cornell hockey in the 20th century ever said that about a North Country trip before? ::wow::

Has anyone else ever felt that it was true?

It hasn't been a house of horrors for a while.  Indeed we have only been swept there once (2008) in the last 11 trips, and the current seniors have lost there just once (3-1-2).

Figure the following are the emotional offsets to the expected points on a given weekend:

+4 Ecstasy
+3 Exuberance
+2 Merriment
+1 Contentment
0 Ambivalence
-1 Melancholy
-2 Gloom
-3 Anguish
-4 Torment

So, for this weekend:

4 Merriment
3 Contentment
2 Ambivalence
1 Melancholy
0 Gloom

And looking ahead (expectations subject to change):

Opponents, Expectation (Actual), Reaction
Prn/Qpc, 3 (2), Melancholy
at RPI/Uni, 1 (1), Ambivalence
at Clk/SLU, 2
Brn/Yal, 3
at Hvd/Drt, 2
SLU/Clk, 3
at Yal/Brn, 2
Col/at Col, 3
Uni/RPI, 2
at Qpc/Prn, 2
Drt/Hvd, 3

[marty]

...we have 3-4 real rabid Chicken Little's flooding the message boards with calls for the coach to be sacked, the team identity to be inverted, and predictions of the end of the world ...

keep up the bellyaching and armchair PP quarterbacking,

::cheer::::cheer::::cheer::

Wow. Spectacular hyperbole.  I get it.

But it is a discussion board after all.  Do you have any refuting observations?  Pour some sugar on me. I really need it.

I was at both games this weekend,::uhoh:: Were you?

I was at both games.  Although we could have easily loss to RPI, I thought we looked pretty good for much of the game.  I think our breakouts, particularly ability to pass while breaking out, is much better than in years past. It's certainly not yet perfect, and if we didn't have Ryan we'd be a lot more trouble. However I feel a lot more secure then I did even last year.   Union, Yale, and now Q, have a particularly aggressive forechecking which gives us problems. But I think you have to say that our style of play has really progressed dramatically compared to even 5 years ago.  Because of that I am a lot more optimistic than many of the posters.

Our season is still young, and many of the teams that we are having trouble with, have played a lot more games than we have.  Our Ivy League restrictions mean we have to wait a few weeks before we can really assess the team.  Having said that, I certainly don't think that this coming weekend is an easy schedule.

One positive that I saw on Friday and in the first period on Saturday was Cornell's ability to control the puck and limit the chances of the opposition.  They couldn't finish on Friday and that was maddening.  On Saturday what I saw was Union taking it to us the way we had to them as the game wore on.

The offense needs to get going or this will be a rough season to watch.  What I am hoping for is that the team wakes up soon and doesn't slumber until two weeks before the ECAC playoffs begin.

[Jim Hyla]

Despite Clarkson (edit: and, it turns out, SLU too) playing well to start the year, next weekend there is no such excuse.  Those are teams we ought to beat, even on the road.

Has anyone who started following Cornell hockey in the 20th century ever said that about a North Country trip before? ::wow::

Has anyone else ever felt that it was true?

It hasn't been a house of horrors for a while.  Indeed we have only been swept there once (2008) in the last 11 trips, and the current seniors have lost there just once (3-1-2).

Figure the following are the emotional offsets to the expected points on a given weekend:

+4 Ecstasy
+3 Exuberance
+2 Merriment
+1 Contentment
0 Ambivalence
-1 Melancholy
-2 Gloom
-3 Anguish
-4 Torment

So, for this weekend:

4 Merriment
3 Contentment
2 Ambivalence
1 Melancholy
0 Gloom

And looking ahead (expectations subject to change):

Opponents, Expectation (Actual), Reaction
Prn/Qpc, 3 (2), Melancholy
at RPI/Uni, 1 (1), Ambivalence
at Clk/SLU, 2
Brn/Yal, 3
at Hvd/Drt, 2
SLU/Clk, 3
at Yal/Brn, 2
Col/at Col, 3
Uni/RPI, 2
at Qpc/Prn, 2
Drt/Hvd, 3

So here is what some people think of the NC trip.