Ralph Baer writes:
>Pro -- Hockey East wants RPI
>I will accept that this is true.  I have seen no evidence to the
>contrary.
 
HE people have been quoted positively on this matter.  But don't try
quoting them on anything now, you'll probably get "no comment". :-)
 
>Pro -- Television
>Clearly this is also true as relatively few ECAC games are shown on any
>TV station.  Leonard, however, incorrectly states that last year's ECAC
>tournament was only available in Lake Placid -- I know that I saw parts
>of it on a UHF channel that broadcasts from Virginia.
 
NESN in New England had it, on tape delay.  NESN will have the ECAC
semis & final again this year, on delay after the HE games next
weekend.  I believe ECAC semi game times on NESN are 11 pm & 2 am Fri
night into Sat morning - not sure yet on the ECAC final, but I would
guess 11 pm Sat night 3/19.
 
>Pro -- No academic index
>...However, these more rigid standards have meant that a much
>larger percentage of Hockey players have remained academically eligible
>than was the case when I was an undergraduate in the mid-60's.
 
This may be true across the board, however, rather than just at RPI.
A comparison of before and after the index might give a better
indicator.  But I don't think RPI will need to be concerned about the
academic standards dipping.  They've already shown they can do the job
with the index; if it is eliminated it may help them a bit in terms of
not needing to be as strict when admitting players, but I believe they
can maintain their academic standing and still be one of the better
teams in the league.  Buddy seems to have a good handle on this, so I
would not be concerned.
 
>I have
>seen hockey players who struggled through the required
>freshman/sophmore Calculus and Linear Algebra sequence (at least it was
>required for management majors in the 60's and 70's)...
 
It was in the mid-80s too, I believe.  But from my perspective,
although they may have struggled, they gave it a shot (most of
them)...I knew quite a few engineering/science majors who struggled
with their humanities electives but also didn't care or bother to try
because they thought they were useless courses.
 
>Pro -- RPI will be able to recruit more from the Boston area
>I suppose so, but it won't be much easier.  I suppose that there are
>hockey players who want to leave home to play hockey but want to play
>some of their games in the Boston area.
 
However, Buddy does have the inside track to many of the Boston area
kids because of his associations there.  Playing more games there will
only increase RPI's visibility and make them more attractive to
Boston/New England players, especially those who want a technical
education.  In that regard, there is no equivalent of RPI in HE.
 
>Con -- Travel costs would rise
>True.  I wonder though by how much.  It certainly can't be nearly as
>expensive as WCHA teams' schedules.
 
I don't see this being a significant factor.  The big difference is an
approximately 7 hour bus ride to Maine.  The average trip for RPI to
play HE games will not actually be much longer than the average trip
to play ECAC games.  About the same number of overnight stays will be
required, too.
 
>Con -- Facilities
>I hadn't realized this, but Leonard indicates that that the average HE
>facility is worse than that in the ECAC.
 
It is?  How did he arrive at that?
 
>I really don't want to start
>a flame war, but he points out that although teams like BC, Maine, and
>NE have modern arenas, others as Merrimack and Lowell play in
>buildings that "are dumps, unworthy of housing Division I teams".
 
Basically, IMO, Leonard is wrong.  Not starting a flame war, just
giving facts.  Got to dispel misinformation when it appears. :-)
 
Teams with new facilities (built within last 10 years) by the time RPI
would enter (95-96): BC, Maine, UNH, UMass, possibly Lowell.  And Lowell's
current rink has been rehab'd nicely and is better than some ECAC rinks,
IMO.  It certainly is not a dump.  I count Maine because of the recent
massive renovation.  Counting Lowell, that would give HE 50% new rinks -
I believe the ECAC has 1 of 12 currently (2 counting Gutterson rehab).
 
Northeastern's rink is the oldest in the world, but modern in the
sense that it is maintained well and has undergone renovations in the
last 15 years to make it better today than it was in the 70s.
 
BU and Providence both have rinks that are what, about 20-25 years
old...and both are in excellent shape and continue to be fine
buildings.  BU is supposedly talking about building a new rink, but
that is probably more to try to keep up with BC :-) and also because
they can and will draw twice as many fans as now in a building that
seats twice as many fans as Walter Brown Arena.  They actually don't
need a new building.
 
That leaves Merrimack as the only "dump".  I'm not going to argue
that...in fact, most folks who follow Merrimack agree.  It's not for
lack of trying, though.  Were it up to us, we'd have at least a copy
of Schneider Arena or Thompson Arena.  But at least you don't have to
walk down wooden stairs with your skates on if you're a visiting team. :-)
(as you do/did at RPI's Field House)
 
If BU is going to build a new rink, I wish they could send us at
Merrimack their old one. :-)
 
>Personally, I don't think that this should be a major point.
 
No, it sounds to me like Leonard is reaching here.
 
>Final analysis -- Go
 
Let's hope he's right...I would like to see it.
---                                                                 ---
Mike Machnik                                          [log in to unmask]
Cabletron Systems, Inc.                                  *HMM* 11/13/93
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