[A bunch snipped]
On Tue, 20 Dec 1994, Joe Gherlone wrote:
 
>         for my $.02, i have two points:
>
> 1) the obvious -- is it that big a deal that the "calibre of players" is not as
> high??  what about their graduation rates, future (non-hockey) employment
> potential (especially this season :-) or the fact that the standards of fine
> schools such as those discussed here every day are not compromised to increase
> the "calibre of their hockey team."
>
> 2) the other hand -- i wonder if what the scouts are seeing is not an actual
> decline in calibre, but the effects of the Eastern European influx.  the time
> frame the article discusses seems to match with the recent flood of talent from
> the former warsaw pact states.  could they just be making comparisons between
> the collegiate (read "including academics") programs of the west, and the
> vestigial state-supported (read "hockey, hockey, hockey") programs of the
> east??
>
>                                         jag RPI '87
 
An interesting thread, indeed.
 
I agree with Ralph's assertion that it shouldn't matter what one's
"NHLability" is in regard to the exhibition of hockey skills out on the
various rinks of the collegiate world. Joe's remarks about the influx of
Eastern Europeans causing scouts to perhaps be more overly-discerning on
their analysis of collegiate players is a theory worth considering, if
one is looking (or, *needs* to look) at causes of the "decline".
 
For my $.02 worth, I'd like to mention that I've been watching collegiate
hockey faithfully since 1966 (ho, ho, ho! Older than ol' St. Nick, I
guess!), and in my estimation, the skill levels of players in the
collegiate ranks has skyrocketed since the mid-70's or so. Whether these
players enter school to eventually advance to the NHL, or they just love
hockey and play hard despite being only 145 pounds soaking wet, the
collegiate forum for hockey stands on its own merit. College players
do *not* need NHL imprimaturs to feel that they have accomplished
something positive and rewarding when they don their school colors, and
glide out onto the pond to compete.
 
OTOH, I have noticed that in the last six-eight seasons or so, college
players do not seem to be as enthusiastic about their play, game-in and
game-out. It seems that there are more games which "drag along", because
the players on one or both sides don't seem to be "into it" as much as
they should. Whether it be the role of saturation of the media in our
consumer-oriented society (or, does MTV make *everyone* jaded?),
"been-there, done-that" attitudes in general, or less-autocratic coaching
styles, these influences could all be "to blame". (Of course, as a
non-sociologist, my scientific-pronouncement soapbox is mighty low, so,
take this *all* with a grain of salt!)
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Robert J. Constantine                | >>  The Corner Man  <<
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