Just to jump on the Iona bandwagon a little bit more.

If you have not attended an Iona hockey game, you must do so.  I think that
anyone interested in college hockey who finds themselves in the New York City
area will truly enjoy heading up to New Rochelle for a game.

The New Roc City facility is a great place to watch a game.  Yes, it only
holds about a 1000 people... but they are usually able to fill all of those
seats and by doing that, they are able to create an excited atmosphere which
can permeate the barn.

I have been to 4 games at New Roc City and the contest never disappointed the
fans.  They even drew a full house for their playoff game (which shows their
fans were able to find out about the game even though it wasn't listed on the
schedule).

If you are in the greater New York area, definitely check it out.

-Jason


--- "Mastantuoni, Anthony" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>    I want to wiegh in with my 25 cents on the discussion that
> Info Only <[log in to unmask]> and Jeffrey T. Anbinder have been having.
>    It is a fact that Iona's coverage in the local newspaper ("Journal
> News")
> has been pathetic at best.  Like most small rinky-dink newspapers (my
> opinion for a variety of reasons), they concentrate their sports efforts on
> High School sports.  The
> lone exception being the Iona Basketball team.  That is why I was stunned
> when their reporter was sent to the MAAC Semifinals at Storrs, Connecticut.
> It is also why I got press credentials to cover the MAAC for the Internet
> site that hosts my New York Ranger columns.  I figured I might be the only
> link the Westchester area might have to the
> MAAC Playoffs.
>    The surprising thing is that Iona's attendance is made up mostly of the
> local community.  Like all of Iona's sports (hoops included), the Iona
> student body is generally apathetic when it comes to supporting its
> athletes.  It seems like the only time sports gets a major push is if and
> when we make the NCAA Basketball Tournament -- and in that case it is one
> and out.
>    We have had a few games where New Roc was packed.  We have had 1200-1300
> people a few times.  That is not too bad for a rink that seats anywhere
> from
> 750-1200.  In addition, there are a lot of people who don't get counted
> because they walk in after the first period or stand around and watch the
> action from outside via the windows that overlook the rink.
>    I urge both of you to stop by New Roc for a game next year.  Granted the
> rink can't compare to arenas in other conferences (or even like Army and
> UConn), but it is a vast improvement over the old plastic bubble at the Ice
> Hutch.
>    Info Only asked about Iona's schedule and I can say that nothing has
> been
> finalized as of yet.  I am pretty sure that Iona is heading out to Findlay
> for a pair of games, which should answer the questions over whether or not
> the MAAC would screw that situation up again.  If I remember correctly,
> Iona
> will be heading north to play Colgate and RPI (I am not 100% certain those
> were the exact schools).  In addition, there was some talk that the
> University of Alabama-Huntsville was considering visiting the Golden Apple.
>    I have to admit that I feel a bit embarrassed to be talking Iona hockey
> on Hockey-L.  I know that were are mere minnows in the world of college
> hockey and that the MAAC's reputation is being tarnished by some highly
> questionable decisions by the
> powers-that-be.  If anyone would like to talk MAAC or Iona hockey, please
> feel free to respond to me off the List.  I would be more than happy to
> talk
> one-on-one.
>
> Anthony R. Mastantuoni
> Iona College/Ryan Library
> <[log in to unmask]>


=====
.       _______   ______
       |__   __| |  __  |  Jason Patton        http://www.gojp.com/jp/
 ____     | |    | |__| |      Following College Hockey Since 1991
|____|    | |    |  ____|  Boston U. 1991-1995     Princeton 1995-1998
        __| |    | |       1995 NCAA Champions     1998 ECAC Champions
       |____|    |_|        MAAC Hockey League Game of the Week 1998-

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