--- You wrote:
Interesting story, except that Harkness's came to Cornell in 1963, and
Dryden was class of '69, which means he came to Cornell in 1965.
 
--- end of quoted material ---
   OK... OK... As I said in my message, it was just a story I heard (while at
RPI) about how RPI just missed getting Dryden. Obviously, the source of this
story was misinformed and I do not even remember who I heard it from - I have
nobody to blame but myself. See what happens when hockey season winds down?
Almost anything can pass for hockey news! Sorry for the error.
 
   On another front, some of you may know that Ben Smith, Dartmouth's head
coach, is being considered for the head position at Northeastern (the only
team Dartmouth beat last year!). How does this strike you?
   It seems to many folks at Dartmouth that he doesn't really care about the
program here (I am paraphrasing some more colorful language). He spent last
year rebuilding spirit and making the team feel really good about itself
despite the dismal record. Everyone involved in the program was looking
forward to next year. In addition, recruiting seems to have gone quite well.
   If Ben decides to leave now, can Dartmouth even find a coach by next Fall?
If he decides to stay, how can he maintain the respect of the team who he was
so ready to abandon? One of the team members has told me that he doesn't see
how the team could respect him - even if he decides to stay. This same person
asked how the team at Northeastern could trust him - he might coach there
until a better career opportunity came along and then leave Northeastern.
   It also should be pointed out that these stories are out of a number of
newspapers and have not been confirmed by Ben himself. On the other hand, he
has been given many opportunities to deny the story and has chosen not to do
so.
   Any comments?
                                  - Bob Gross