Excuse the delurking, but I thought this may add some topicality to a
recent thread.  Ralph Baer mentioned:
 
***
 
To unite some quite disjoint threads, I seem to remember in the finals
or semifinals in 1985, RPI's mascot, the now-departed and much-missed
Swarm, skated around with a MSU banner in order to get the MSU fans to
root for RPI.  While I don't think that the RPI band played the MSU
fight song, there was this attempt (which I think was successful) in
getting the home crowd on RPI's side eleven years ago.
 
One more thing, back in those days, one semifinal was on Thursday and
one on Friday with the finals on Saturday (perhaps it was Friday,
Saturday, and Sunday).  Thus one of the teams in the finals (in 1985
RPI) played on two consecutive days.  Since there was no overall
#1 seed, just a #1 for the east and #1 for the west, there was no
reason at all that one team should have the benefit of the off-day.
 
***
 
While I did not go out to the Joe that year (somerthing about being an
impoverished college junior at the time), I had some friend who did and
I managed to live vicariously through them.  Both semifinal games that
year (BC/Providence and RPI/Minn Duluth) went to triple overtime!  Ther
BC/Providence game was Thursday Night while the RPI/Minn-Duluth game
was Friday Night.  While the Engineers prevailed in the finals, they
definately appeared to have the more rubbery legs during the last period.
RPI had a 2-0 lead going in to the final stanza (Servinis and Hernberg),
but Tim Army got the lone Providence goal to make it 2-1.  We were all
starting to sweat a bit back in Troy (huddled around an old black&white
TV!).  RPI pretty much dominated the first two period, but the play
appeared to be about even in the 3rd, with maybe a slight edge to
Providence.  Over all RPI outshot Providence by about 45-25 or so, but
you could tell the troops were tired.  Chris Terreir was unconscious
that night (probably much in the same way he was against Mich St. during
the quarterfinals, so we heard), and deservedly won the MVP trophy.
(Was it the only time a non-chpamion ever won?).  Daren Puppa had his
usual solid game for the Engineers, and weathered the storm at the end.
 
Reagrding The Swarm's (RPI's only true mascot!) antics, it was definately
done to curry favor with the MSU fans.  They were, after all, the No. 1
rated team from the west that year and loomed large in our expectations.
Minn-Duluth was definately no slouch.  If I can recall, RPI, MSU, and
Minn-Duluth were rated 1,2,3 until the NCAA's.
 
But anyway,
 
Happy viewing (be it from a couch, a sports bar or the rink (you lucky
buggers!))
 
Rich Boehme
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RPI '86
 
Dare I say, "go Cats go"
 
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