Cornell @ RPI postgame

[jy3]

2-0 loss, 2nd annual whiteout for RIP, using noisemakers during play....
what did everyone think?

 1 16:41 RPI Eizenman (unassisted)
1 18:18 RPI Croxton (Colling, McWilliams)

[Chris 02]

I'd say Lange gets my vote for the TBRW award that goes to the most respected opponent this season. I'm not sure of the name of it, because TBRW isn't accessible at the moment. Of course, that could all change in the playoffs.

[Dpperk29]

it's deffinatly dekanich for me... wow that kid was awesome... but I haven't seen lange...

[Scersk '97]

If you told me that we'd be missing 3 of our top 5 defensemen at the beginning of the weekend, I'd say that 2 points would be a good result.  Well...

Let's all stop worrying about the first-round bye.  As has been established in other threads, we have a bye.

What I have to wonder is did Schafer just say, "Well, we need to get healthy.  We have a bye.  I'm resting my injured--whatever happens, happens."  Would you rather have the meaningless regular-season championship or a healthy team for the quarters?  I know my answer.

Here's hoping that O'Byrne, Polkulok, and Krantz are 100% on the 10th and 11th.

[DeltaOne81]

Of course, I'd also rather play 6/7/8 in the 2nd round than a #5 Harvard or SLU. No matter how poorly we've done against 6/7/8 at the moment. That can all be irrelvant by getting at least a single point on the weekend though :-P

[jaybert]

So what would need to happen so that Harvard gets a #5 seed and we end up with #4?  

I was out of town for the harvard game a few weeks ago.....so is it selfish for me to wish that we're #4 and they're #5?  

[Scersk '97]

[quote DeltaOne81]Of course, I'd also rather play 6/7/8 in the 2nd round than a #5 Harvard or SLU. No matter how poorly we've done against 6/7/8 at the moment.[/quote]

That actually articulates why I feel the distribution of the top seeds doesn't matter that much this year.  Yeah, it'd probably be good to avoid Harvard, but, the way things are going right now, any of those 5-8 teams could step up and make for a tough quarterfinal opponent.  If we're actually 100%, though, I think we take 2 of 3 at home vs. any of those teams.

It'd be great to be #1, of course.  In the unlikely case, I think, that one of the 9-12 teams beats a 5-8 team, it'd be a great advantage, but that's just it--I don't think it's going to happen.  It's a tripartite 5-3-4 league this year with defined gaps.  Upsets look unlikely.

But, yeah, let's hope for at least one point tomorrow...

[ebilmes]

Regardless of the fact that our team wasn't at full strength, just a frustrating game for Cornell. We were dominated during the first 10 minutes of the game (but didn't allow a goal), then had maybe 4-5 minutes of solid play, and then just tanked at the end of the period. Didn't really see either goal that well, but it just looked like two defensive lapses. The second period we played significantly better, but still didn't really put a lot of pressure on RPI. Third period, the defense really settled in, and we had the puck consistently in the RPI zone, but nothing worked. Plenty of chances towards the end, but no success.

It seemed like no one wanted to shoot the puck. Countless times, Bitz or Abbott or even Moulson would choose to pass to someone on the wings instead of shooting or penetrating closer to the net. Especially on the PP, it just seemed like no one wanted to step up and score. The few centering passes we did attempt sped past the crease...

The atmosphere at the game was completely bush-league. From the foghorns to the Thundersticks (isn't there some rule against those?) to the cheerleaders roaming the aisles, everything was an embarassment to RPI hockey. Kudos to those who blocked the flag-runners after the second RPI goal. It is obvious that if RPI had been losing, the fans would have been out of the game entirely. As it was, hundreds came in late and they showed a complete lack of attention to the game when they cheered uproariously after the puck when in the net for the third time, though it was clearly waved off.

I felt throughout the night that all the team needed was one goal to provide a spark and turn the game around. That never came. I sincerely hope someone decides to step up and lead this team tomorrow night.

[las224]

I'm tired, but some quick reactions:

HOW did they get away with those stupid Thunderstix???  I was seated in the small Cornell contingent of a student section, and ended up moving and sneaking into that all-Cornell section behind the goal b/c I was getting a headache from those stupid things.  Aren't noisemakers forbidden?  How did they get around that?  RIDICULOUS.

The game seemed very slow, particularly the first period.  I don't mean how fast it went by, but in terms of how fast the guys were skating.  Just didn't seem to be much spark there, on either team.  As the game progressed, it got a bit better, but still nothing like most games this season.

It was a disappointing game, but overall it just seemed weak, and I couldn't pick out anything specific that Cornell did wrong.  I suppose just not scoring 3 goals

[TimV]

RE noisemakers-  the clai m was that they were not distributing noisemakers because they were only giving out ONE - even though the next guy in line gave you another.  It was pretty annoying but otherwise harmless, I thought.  Our band played great and a buddy I took to the game from Univ of Michigan thought they made RPI's band sound lame.

RE our missing defensemen-  we frequently couldn't keep the puck in the offensive zone, making us reset and work to get our offense going again.  We clearly missed Pokulok's big shot from the point on the power play.

But the big problem really is - WE DON'T HAVE ANY SHOOTERS.  We put a ton of crappy shots on goal that are easy saves and only a few that make the goaltender sweat.  We frequently miss open shots outrightly that hit the back wall or shoot too high.  Our crease guys play too close to the net and therefore are easier for the goaltender to stop since they can't lift the puck over him.  They should be posted up higher between the hashes which would also open up some shooting lanes. We dominated posession for two periods, and although Lang played very well, he didnt play THAT well to close down a good offense.

RPI cranked up the "Overrated" cheer, and after seeing a lot of streamed/televised games I suspected it is true.  After seeing them live I know it's true.

I'm probably just pissed because I look forward to this weekend every year and I hate sitting listening to lower-half-of-the-league-balloon-slapping-tobacco-smelling-cocoa-swilling-geriatric-Troy-Townies getting off at my team's expense.

Worse, this same RPI team is likely to revert to form tomorrow night against Colgate. And the same goaltender will give up six goals.  Watch.:-(

[Rosey]

That was rough.

Just got back from Albany.  The only really obvious things wrong were the defensive lapses on the two goals: McKee couldn't be blamed for either of them.

Unfortunately, the real letdown is that our guys simply seemed unable to score.  In any game, there is always the possibility of giving up one or two goals, no matter how well the goaltender and D are playing; given that, if you can't score any goals, you're simply not going to win, and will probably wind up losing.

Two observations resulting from this:

(1) Coach needs to do something about the terribly repetitive and completely ineffective power play: we honestly looked a lot better 5x5 late in the game than we did at any moment of any of the power plays.  Teams have learned: shut down Moulson and Bitz, and Cornell can't score.

(2) We need to shoot the puck more.  Looked at one way, we should stop looking for the perfect pass and try to get down low for some ugly goals; looked at another way, maybe we should try to GET SOMEONE ON THE FAR POST!  I can't count how many times one of our forwards was looking for a cross-ice pass and no one was home.

Okay, enough ranting.  See you tomorrow night at Union.

Kyle

[Rob NH]

FYI: Not sure about the ECAC, but in Hockey East we can only do the thundersticks if we have the other team's permission.

[Give My Regards]

[quote Jason L]So what would need to happen so that Harvard gets a #5 seed and we end up with #4?  

I was out of town for the harvard game a few weeks ago.....so is it selfish for me to wish that we're #4 and they're #5?  [/quote]

Can't happen.  St. Lawrence would have to knock both Cornell (currently #3) and Harvard (#4) down a spot.  They're two points behind Cornell, and the Big Red have the tiebreaker edge.  Harvard also has the tiebreaker over the Saints.

[billhoward]

What a dominating offense Cornell showed Friday night at RPI. Seriously. We were all over them. It felt as if we outshot them 2-1  and that's what the box score showed. (34 saves Mathias Lange, 15 saves + 2 GA David McKee.) A couple times I looked over to see if McKee was still in goal, or if I'd missed a delayed penalty and we had a 6x5.

While there were defensive lapses, about a half dozen that led to three goals (one disallowed) and a penalty we had to take on a man short breakaway with 3 minutes left that kind of ended the game early, UNH-2003 style ... the offense looked so good and in control. We moved the puck around well even strength and on power play. Late in the second or early in the third (I forget ... but there weren't a lot of penalties), we controlled the puck on PP without stoppage for 90 seconds before it left the RPI end.

While it's true Cornell's PP seems repetitive, even if the other guy knows what's coming, he may not be able to defend against it ... and even strength as well as PP we really do have a number of different and textbook-caliber offensive plays. So the only thing wrong is that we can't bleeping score. We looked good in the many ways we were unable to score.

RPI generously left enogh tickets unsold that you could sit in the end Cornell attacked each period. Heartbreakers I saw (feel free to add others):

- Cam? Chris? I think Chris Abbott has a man short breakaway and missed just wide right in the third. He had an RPI defender right behind but from my vantage point it didn't affect the shot he got off.  
- Kindret I believe it was had the puck come to his stick with a good angle on goal (what some people would call a wide open net), and it took a hop on bad ice just as it reached his stick and stood on edge so he couldn't get a shot off
- Moulson in the third had a clean shot and broke his stick
- Etcetera. We ran into another hot goalie.

It's tradition to blame McKee for X of Cornell's goals against that he would have stopped last year. The first goal, which from the far end appeared to be a solo takeaway or pickup (defensive lapse), Oren Eizenman just skated left to right across the goal mouth and outwaited McKee. Seemed as if that one he could have had a chance on.

About the atmosphere:
- The thundersticks weren't that thunderous. RPI fans don't know how to blow them up with enough air pressure to make real noise. Or else the vinyl they use is noise-absorbing. Maybe mylar would add +3db-10db of sound.
- It wasn't that loud overall, either.
- The fans weren't bush so much as it seemed more of a family atmosphere. RPI has the walkway around the arena at rink level (separating the boards/glass from the first row of seats), whereas at Cornell it's at the top of the rink ... so it's possible to have cheerleaders and mascots running around and exhorting the fans. It felt like a really big high school game ... or something out of the 1950s.
- The brownish / blackish mascot thing -- a hockey puck? a burned marshmallow? an ottoman on legs? -- was pretty unsightly.
- RPI got into the "overrated" cheer but deservedly so on this night. At least Cornell shot back, "You're not rated." Their "Harvard rejects" cheer as to be expected, because what can we cheer back, "You're too scared to apply"? I think whem RPI does an R-P-I cheer, we should take it up too, point their way and cheer R-P-I, then point our way and cheer G-P-A. There's always next year.
- The Cornell pep band was about as far away as possible and still in the rink. Fifty years ago it was probably the section marked "Colored."
- Houston Arena always reminds me of what it is ... a multipurpose facility built so RPI can have graduation indoors in case it rains. Imagine a half-size Barton Hall with ice. At what would be Cornell's West End were this Lynah, there's a monster stage. If would be the perfect facility if some alum from Goodyear ever bequeathed them a blimp. [edit adding] (Actually, it was the other way around. RPI got a used derigible hangar from Quonset, RI, circa 1949, and made it into a hockey rink/field house.)


Mostly it was disappointing, even knowing half the defense was on sick leave. Should have been at worst a 2-2 tie.

[Jim Hyla]

OK, I guess I'm the only one who is not so pessimistic. I mean we are down 3 D's, 2 of which are probaby just being kept out so they can be healthy for the playoffs, Pegs and Bitz play some defense taking away from their offensive time (although I'd like to see the minutes Bitz played), we have no great point shot on the PP, and end up relying upon Davenport and Seminoff for quality minutes (yes I know Seminoff always plays, but really, do you want to have to depend upon him at crunch time?). So with all that we just outshoot them 2-1, completely dominate them for more than half the game, and lose because the D just wasn't there. After-all we did score a goal that should have counted. In fact it was one of our classic keep working at the net goals. What might have happenned if that goal did count? The problem with letting a  blah team get the lead is that the longer they have it the more they believe they can win and the better they play. One goal makes a big difference in the psych.

Coach did say we were not going to be able to do all that we wanted today, I would have been ecstatic had we won, but am not despondent that we lost. Coach is obviously playing for the playoffs, so we should too.