1) ECAC Commissioner
 
Luiz Valente writes in response to the ECAC naming Joe Bertagna
hockey commissioner:
 
>
> What a disappointment! When I first read the heading "New ECAC Hockey
> Commissioner," I thought that the ECAC might actually be getting a new
> hockey director, together with needed new ideas. But it's just a change
> of title. As they say, "plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose."
>
Tony Garcia responds:
 
>What disappointment?  This isn't "just a change of title."  It's
>the CREATION of the much-needed office of ECAC Hockey Commssioner, which
>will give Bertagna much more freedom to promote and improve the league.
 
I suppose I share Luiz' cynicism, to a point. Joe spreads himself pretty
thin as it is, so a new title and responsibilities only gets the ECAC as
far as he is willing to take it. I understand his desire to be a writer,
broadcaster, goalie coach and publicist - heck, wouldn't we all? - but
what he really needs is a staff and a budget to produce more meaningful
information for the press and the time to implement his ideas. Just compare
an ECAC weekly press release with the Hockey East and you'll see what I
mean. Now, if Joe's new responsibilities come with a paycheck that allows
him to put down some other chores and concentrate on promoting the ECAC,
I'm sure this will be more than a mere change of title. A good barometer
will be the amount of coverage the Boston Globe and Herald give to the
ECAC as compared to Hockey East; in the past, the HE allotment has often
reflected the papers' ability to get thorough, timely information from
a central source. I for one wish Joe well - he's a great guy who cares
very much for college hockey and the ECAC.
 
2) Cornell
 
Nate Huang writes:
 
>The season is not over, but it's pretty apparent that Cornell still
>sucks ... Coach Brian McCutcheon MUST BE HELD RESPONSIBLE for this collapse.
>He has let this tradition disintegrate to the embarassment that it currently
>is.  Enough already, GET OUT NOW!
 
Greg malden resonds:
 
>I've seen 14 games, and this team is a little better than those of the past
>two years ... Some of the problems with the Cornell hockey
>team stem from that tradition: when you talk to many of the Lynah
>Faithful over 40 years old, you feel like anything less than an NCAA
>Final Four appearance is uninteresting.I have this suggestion: fly all the
>banners from the Lynah rafters when the prospects come to visit.  But take them
>down when the season starts; they don't need all that hanging over their heads.
 
Brian McCutcheon is certainly culpable for Cornell's slide into the
league's bottom third. He is the last of the ECAC's old-style coaches;
stern, no-nonsense, conservative, distrustful of the press, etc. His
ability to communicate with and relate to his players is a definite
problem - those same faults did in Jim Higgins at Princeton and Brian
Mason at Dartmouth. To his credit, McCutcheon is still a good tactical
coach and a decent recruiter. I suspect the players will not cry when,
and if, he is gone after this year. Cornell would be wise to note the
trend towards a more enthusiastic, open-minded coach. Bob Gaudet, Don
Cahoon, Joe Marsh and Mark Morris are four examples. I note that the
closest thing to an old-school coach remaining is Tim Taylor, and you can bet
your banana that his temperament (albeit pleasant compared to McCutcheon) would
wear thin on the Yalies were Dan Poliziani not around as associate
head coach.
 
As for Cornell being in a dire situation; far from it. If McCutcheon
is out after this year it will not be a major task for his replacement
to get the Big Red back into the league's elite. The team is still
competitive, there are some pretty decent young players in the program,
and Lynah is still Lynah. Look where Herb Hammond left Brown and Mason
left Dartmouth before you think Cornell sucks. Will Cornell ever be a
national power again? The Academic Index will make it tough, as will
the erosion of its recruiting base by up-and-comers like Brown and
Princeton. I still contend that Cornell has inherent advantages over all
Ivy schools save Harvard. It also has a prestige value in hockey
circles that outweighs every non-Ivy in the ECAC except Clarkson. So
there is no reason why the Big Red can't climb into national contention,
at least semi-regularly.
 
Now let's hear what Arthur Mintz and Adam Wodon have to say about the Big
Red.
 
Geoff Howell
The Trenton Times
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