Larry Gilbert <[log in to unmask]> writes:
>        LSSU has had a bad experience with Frank Cole. During the '90-91
>best of 3 playoffs Frank played large role. Perhaps the penalties the Lakers
>got were deserved but the calls did not go both ways. It was almost like
>Clarkson preferential treatment.
 
OK, I have to be honest here after all of the Cole-bashing that has
taken place.  I'm not picking on Larry, just to make that clear.
 
I didn't see the 1991 series, but here we have a case where a number
of LSSU fans have complained that Cole did them in again.  I did see
this game (LSSU-Vermont), and it was not true.  I have also seen
perhaps fifty other games that Cole and Taylor have done, and I don't
recall ever feeling that they did a bad job or favored one team as you
suggest that they did.  Nor do I recall ever hearing anything other
than praise from people who have also seen them referee many games.
They are well respected throughout HE and the East.
 
Thus I hope you can see why I, at least, find it difficult to believe
that what some people have said about the 1991 series is true.
 
It's easier for me to believe that LSSU people cannot give an
objective assessment of Cole's ability to referee a game because the
examples they give only involve games that LSSU lost or played in.
 
>        I think the Eastern teams play a different style of hockey than do
>the western teams. I believe even Jack Parker and Shawn Walsh has said this.
>The Western teams, for the most part, play a more physical style than the
>eastern teams. The Eastern officials seeing Eastern teams more, call an
>"Eastern" style game. I would think the reverse is also true.
 
This is an argument that I think made more sense several years ago
(and I recall hearing Parker and Walsh say these things many years
ago).  The Western teams were always perceived as big and physical,
while the Eastern teams were seen as small and less physical.
 
I doubt that people from the West who have seen a number of Eastern
teams over the last few years would say that this is still true.
Teams like BU, BC, Clarkson, Providence, Lowell, Merrimack, etc. (not
an all-inclusive list) do play a very physical game and most of them
have some good size.  And they have had success when going up against
the Western teams.
 
So Cole is used to doing games with teams that play a physical style.
Heck, I have seen him do many games this season involving two of the
more physical teams in all of DivI, not just HE: Providence and
Merrimack.  And I never saw any indication that he favored one team
over the other, even when they were playing teams that were not as
physical.
 
Perhaps the strangest thing about the criticism of Cole from LSSU
folks is this question of the physical style.  If you ask people who
actually are familiar with him, you will find that the basic opinion
of him is that he is a referee who "lets the teams play".  Thus, if
there really is a big difference in style between the two teams, the
physical team should benefit because they will get away with more -
sometimes more than under a different referee.  I have found this to
be true when comparing Cole to other HE referees.  Merrimack, for
example, seems to do best under Cole because he lets them take
liberties in the physical aspect of play.  Other referees call their
games tighter and this hurts them.
 
Now, maybe the real issue could be a difference in the physical play
between, say, LSSU and Merrimack.  But again, I have to be honest and
say that I didn't think LSSU was even as physical a team as Merrimack
was.  I'd be interested to hear whether other HE followers who saw
LSSU this weekend agree.  LSSU also seemed to commit more bad
penalties than I was accustomed to seeing them do in the past.
 
And, only eight minors were called on LSSU, six on Vermont, with
Vermont having an edge of two more power plays - going 1-5 as opposed
to LSSU's 0-3.  Not significant at all.  I bet that is surprising to
people who have read here the last few days that the officiating had
supposedly worked against the Lakers.
 
>Perhaps Mr.
>Cole should do some western games in the regular season. Bill Crawford did
>state that the Lakers were more afraid of having an Eastern ref than having
>to play the two games.
 
Interesting.  It almost sounds as if they set themselves up to blame
the officiating if they lost.  I hope this is not true, because it was
not a factor, and I never thought of LSSU before as a team that did this.
Tim Thomas and Martin St Louis had a lot more to do with Vermont
winning than Frank Cole did.
 
BTW, I *am* confused about the selection of the Cole crew to do games
involving ECAC teams.  They seem to do more HE games and are seen in
these parts as HE officials, but they also do a number of ECAC games
throughout the year.  Should they be doing NCAA games involving ECAC
teams?  I tend to think not since they actually do work in both
Eastern leagues.  IMO, they did a good job regardless, but this seems
like an iffy situation that cannot help but raise questions, and I
would prefer that it not come up at all so we do not have to go
through this.
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                 [log in to unmask]           [log in to unmask]
Cabletron Systems, Inc.                                    *HMM* 11/13/93
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