This morning's T-U reports that junior Matt Garver, mainstay of RPI's top
scoring line for the past season, will transfer to RIT for his senior year.
Garver had 18 goals and 22 assists last season, skating for most of the year
on RPI's #1 line with Alain St. Hilaire and Eric Healy on the opposite wing.
With Healy graduating as well, the Engineers face a significant loss of
scoring, not to mention leadership.
 
Garver will transfer to Division III Rochester Institute of Technology, the
second such transfer of a player from a D1 to a D3 team in recent weeks.
Garver has renounced his scholarship at RPI and will take out a loan to
pay for his final year of academics at RIT.  According to RPI Athletic
Director Bob Ducatte, Garver was in good academic standing.
 
From the TU article "I'm sure everybody is going to want to find a specific
reason or what the big story is," said Garver by telephone.  "There is none."
 
"I'm not saying I was unhappy with hockey.  Sometimes you'll have a bad game
and be unhappy about it.  I'm talking more about the area--being around here.
I need to be a happy kid to be productive."
 
Garver grew up in the Rochester suburb of Pittsford.   The transfer will return
him closer to home and also reunite him with RIT head coach Eric Hoffberg.
Garver has known Hoffberg since he was 5, and learned the game in Hoffberg's
hockey camps.
 
"I just feel that my personality and the coach's are very similar," said
Garver.  "We see eye-to-eye and he has a lot of views I agree with.  I respect
him as a person and he respects me as a person."
 
Garver added that his relationship with RPI coach Dan Fridgen was "great".
 
The loss of Garver, one of the fastest skaters on the Engineer team, will be
severe.  RPI will now be faced with re-constructing its #1 scoring line,
probably to consist of Alain St. Hilaire centering freshman Matt Murley
and sophomore Brad Tapper.  The rest of their scoring depth is now
depleted, and coach Dan Fridgen will probably be forced to adopt a
conservative defensive style of play.  RPI's defense will be expected to
improve  upon its less-than-stellar performance of the past season if the
Engineers are to again gain a top five ECAC finish.
 
It now seems apparent that Adam Wodon will stoop to any means to prove
himself as the most reliable prognosticator of the ECAC.  ( :-) )
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Brian Morris                          RPI Engineers--Well, What?
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