Friday, October 30, 2015

Haters Gonna Hate

"We hate them, they hate us, that's all there really is to it."

I've mentioned this quote in the past - uttered by an RPI Engineer who will forever remain anonymous. It's pretty much a perfect one-sentence coverage of RPI-Union. As much as RPI hated Clarkson for generations, there was never as much mutual hatred as there has been in RPI-Union for years (Clarkson always saved that for St. Lawrence).

Records are irrelevant this weekend - if you need proof, just look at last year's ECAC home-and-home. The defending national champions against a team that just got swept at home against Bentley. So of course the team that got swept at home against Bentley swept all four points. Union's victory over RPI last year in the Mayor's Cup - an equally bizarre outcome, especially considering the condition of both teams heading into it - was the Dutchmen's first win over RPI in four tries.

And it means there's some payback owed. Whoever lost the last round always owes some payback. Period.

It's the opening weekend of ECAC play for the women, too, as they travel to take on a Cornell team that's not quite as mighty as they had been in recent years (they just got taken behind the woodshed by a current power team, Boston College, in Ithaca, 12-1 in two games), and a Colgate team that has been a major competitor for playoff positions in those same years.

Important? All ECAC games are important. But this weekend, both teams face games that, for one reason or another are just a little more important.

Stick tap to Tyler Hinman for this week's pumpup.

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Men's Hockey - Michigan (24 Oct)

RPI rounded out the first part of its non-conference schedule with a single game against Michigan, the second consecutive Power 5 opponent to grace the Houston Field House ice this season. The first time out, against Boston College, an upset was in the works. This past weekend, the Engineers again managed to play a respectable game against a top opponent, but flat starts to the first and second periods doomed RPI to their third consecutive loss and fourth in five games as they fell 5-2 in a game that was closer than the final scoreline indicated.

Michigan
Liljegren-Bubela-Wood
Ohrvall-Tironese-Bourbonnais
Melanson-Miller-Nanne
Fulton-Schroeder-Gillespie

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Reno
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

Mark Miller's return to the lineup led to the reunification of the "M-N-M" line alongside Drew Melanson and Lou Nanne. The trio was one of the Engineers' top combinations last season.

Against Boston College, RPI set the tone early with defense, and they appeared to be focusing on the same to start against Michigan, but the Wolverines came out for the first period with a little more jump in their stride, and as they pushed the pace early they put the Engineers into an early hole. Brendan Warren scored his first collegiate goal through a screen 2:40 into the game to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. That was ultimately the only major occurrence of the first period, as the opening 20 minutes quickly evolved into a relatively sloppy show of hockey.

A quick start bolstered Michigan again in the second period, as Tyler Motte scored a goal that seemed highlight-reel quality but surely was one that RPI netminder Jason Kasdorf would have wanted a second chance with. Motte took a backhanded swing at the puck while sliding on his stomach, and Kasdorf played too close to his left post as the puck squeaked by him to the right, just past an outstretched leg and into the net to give Michigan an improbable 2-0 lead.

But RPI didn't buckle at that point. Zach Schroeder would pick up his first goal of the year just four and a half minutes later, stuffing home a rebound off a shot by Travis Fulton (that itself was a rebound off a shot by Parker Reno) to halve the Michigan lead.

The Engineers arguably dominated the remainder of the second period, especially during a power play opportunity that came down the pike a minute and a half after the Schroeder goal. RPI kept the puck down in the Michigan end for well over the first minute of the man advantage, cycling well and taking a few shots, but an errant pass to the point couldn't be corralled by Meirs Moore, allowing Michigan off the hook.

A bad bounce put RPI back in the hole with about five minutes remaining in the period. Against the flow of play, Michigan pounced on an unexpectedly loose puck as both teams transitioned out of the RPI end. It was picked up by Joseph Cecconi, who moved it to Tony Calderone alone in the slot, and Calderone picked his spot perfectly to put it past Kasdorf and lift Michigan to a 3-1 lead. Despite RPI's dominance of the middle frame, they were now down a pair heading into the third.

Penalties early in the third period had doomed RPI both nights in Alaska the previous weekend, but the Engineers buttoned up well at home, keeping themselves in the game until a power play opportunity with about nine minutes left to play provided an opening to draw closer. While working the puck in the corner to the left of Michigan's Zach Nagelvoort, Jake Wood was able to take advantage of a stumble by Michigan defenseman Nolan de Jong. As de Jong fell to the ice, Wood saw his opening and cut straight to the net, poking it in to make the score 3-2.

From there, with about 7:30 or so to try and tie the score, RPI pushed for that third goal hard, but lax play eventually set in and helped Michigan secure the victory. After a faceoff win in the RPI zone, the Wolverines managed to hold the zone with relative ease as the Engineers seemed unwilling to challenge the puck while Michigan played a little keep-away to kill the clock. Eventually, Warren took an opportunistic shot from the point that got through everyone and dented the twine to give Michigan their third two-goal lead of the night, essentially ending hope with about three minutes left in the game.

Kasdorf was pulled from the net moments later, but a minute of extra attacker time couldn't pull the Engineers any closer. Motte scored his second of the night with the empty net to provide the final 5-2 scoreline - a score which a casual observer might look at and see an obviously rough loss for RPI, but a close scrutiny of the box score would indicate a relatively close contest. Kasdorf made 23 saves and Nagelvoort 19, and it was a one-goal contest up to the 17:00 mark of the third period.

Regardless of how the game played out, RPI now has its preparation for the beginning of the ECAC season complete, and must next rush headlong into the Union weekend whether they're ready for it or not. 

#11 Michigan at RPI
Non-conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/24/15 - 7:00pm

RESULT: Michigan 5, RPI 2

RECORD: 1-4-0

Upcoming games
30 Oct - at Union
31 Oct - Union (Black Saturday)
06 Nov - at #19 Clarkson
07 Nov - at #16 St. Lawrence
13 Nov - #13 Yale

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Michigan Plays Here Tonight

Check this out - before this weekend, Michigan hadn't played in an ECAC building in almost 30 years. That's a long time. So while we can partially thank Col. Knowlton's move to make road wins more important in the PairWise Rankings, we also have to give kudos to Seth Appert, whose deal with Red Berenson brought the Wolverines out to take on both of the Capital District teams this weekend in exchange for four home games for Michigan - the two against RPI last year, and two against Union next year.

It was a barn burner in an actual barn last night as Michigan and Union skated to a 5-5 draw in Schenectady, a game in which the Dutchmen blew a two-goal lead in the third period (sound familiar?). The Engineers cannot afford to get themselves into a track meet like that if they have a hope of even matching Union's draw against the Wolverines - the offense just isn't in a position to go blow for blow just yet.

The name of the game is defense. And if the defense that beat Boston College shows up tonight, or any night, anything can happen for this team. Anything at all - much of it great.

It's just one night this week. Tonight.

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Men's Hockey - Brice Alaska Goal Rush (16/17 Oct)

Right off a big upset of #1 Boston College, the Engineers were off to Alaska for a pair of games against the two teams from the Last Frontier. 0-3 all time against those schools on their home turf, RPI did quite a bit to put themselves into a position to succeed on both nights, but couldn't follow through, as uneven play and penalties in the third periods against both the Seawolves and the Nanooks doomed the Engineers to move to 0-5 against Alaskan teams in Alaska, falling 4-3 to UAA on Friday and 4-2 to UAF on Saturday.

Alaska-Anchorage
Liljegren-Bubela-Ohrvall
Melanson-Tironese-Nanne
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Gillespie
Wood-Fulton-Clary

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Reno
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

A fast-paced but even first period between the Engineers and Seawolves was mostly a feeling-out for both teams, the first whistle not coming until the period was nearly half over. Shots were only 10-9 in favor of UAA, but the Seawolves earned the game's first goal with about five and a half minutes left in the opening frame as UAA's Dylan Hubbs scored to put the nominal home side ahead 1-0.

The second period was much more to RPI's liking, a dominant period for the Engineers that saw them taking a lead into the final 20. Evan Tironese scored his first collegiate goal five minutes into the second to tie the game, striking on a great give-and-go with linemate Lou Nanne. Not long after Tironese's goal, UAA began getting into a bit of penalty trouble, taking a tripping call and a kneeing call for back-to-back man advantage opportunities for the Engineers. Late in the latter penalty, RPI got a glimpse of the future as Meirs Moore, competing in his first collegiate game on the blue line as the Engineers' power play quarterback of the future, notched his first college goal to put RPI ahead 2-1.

RPI came out slow for the third period and they paid for it almost immediately. Austin Azurdia took advantage of an opening to tie the game at two just 1:24 into the third period. Seconds later, A hooking penalty to Milos Bubela put RPI on the penalty kill, a place they'd been with some frequency starting just a minute after Moore's goal had put them ahead. The Bubela penalty was killed off, and Bubela himself would score during a penalty kill minutes later to give RPI the lead back at 3-2. But a march to the box that included Nanne and Tironese gave UAA an opening, and during a 4-on-3 on Fairbanks' Olympic-sized ice surface, Seawolves freshman Wyatt Ege struck to tie the score, then just three minutes later hit again with a laser of a shot that put UAA up for good at 4-3.

Kasdorf was pulled for the final 1:15, but RPI could not find the tying goal, and despite a solid early 40 minutes, the Engineers had to swallow a loss due to poorly timed penalties and an overall sub-par effort in the final period.

Alaska
Liljegren-Bubela-Wood
Nanne-Tironese-Ohrvall
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Gillespie
Melanson-Fulton-Clary

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Reno
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

Fresh off a solid performance against UAA, Jake Wood was graduated to the top line, while Drew Melanson, who has struggled to find his pace early this season, was moved to the grind line. With both Alaska schools winning on Friday night, the title was definitively out of reach, but RPI still had their sights set on what could have at least been a worthwhile victory.

The Engineers were the ones who pounced on Saturday night against the actual hosts. An early penalty against the Nanooks was cashed in on quickly by Riley Bourbonnais, who netted his team-leading third goal of the season just six seconds into the man advantage off a faceoff win by Tironese to put RPI up 1-0 3:25 into the game. Five and a half minutes later, Wood scored his first of the year on a shorthanded breakaway. With Zach Schroeder off for tripping, a UAF shot was blocked at the blue line and Wood pounced on it, giving him a long breakaway that he put home to put the Engineers up 2-0 nine minutes into the game.

From there, however, it was a slow bleed for RPI. The Nanooks had two power play chances late in the first period, including one that carried over into the second. The Engineers eventually went 6-for-6 on the penalty kill, but the penalties certainly helped swing momentum at inopportune times. The carried-over penalty helped UAF establish control early in the second period, and the home team cut the lead in half with a goal by Tayler Munson at 5:30 of the middle frame.

Another RPI penalty early in the third period set the table for the tying goal. While the Nanooks didn't score on the tripping penalty to Jared Wilson, they did put one past Jason Kasdorf 10 seconds after the penalty expired, so it's not too much of a stretch to say that the penalty at least put them in a good spot to create a scoring opportunity. Colton Sparrow's first goal of the season tied the game up, then UAF took the lead on a 4-on-4 tally four and a half minutes later as Peter Krieger scored his first of the year.

RPI looked fairly beaten at that point, even just down a goal. The Nanooks poured on the shots all night long, especially in the third period where Kasdorf made an incredible 21 saves to keep the Engineers alive. They were given a golden opportunity with 1:46 left as Zach Frye took a roughing call for UAF, but with Kasdorf out of the net on the ensuing draw in the Nanooks zone, UAF won the faceoff and proceeded to shoot the puck the length of the ice and directly into the net for the 4-2 win on Munson's second goal of the night.

Kasdorf finished with a career-high 47 saves on 49 shots, an effort that led to his being named goaltender of the tournament despite RPI's two losses.

The Engineers will be looking for a bit of home-cooking and perhaps a bit of whatever magic they had against Boston College as they come home to face another Power 5 conference ranked opponent in Michigan. It should be a raucous crowd at least for Saturday, as the game is expected to be sold out. It's not a must win by any stretch of the imagination, but they're going to have to show a little more heart up front against a top-level opponent.

RPI vs. Alaska-Anchorage
Non-conference Game - Carlson Center (Fairbanks, AK)
10/16/15 - 8:00pm

RESULT: Alaska-Anchorage 4, RPI 3


RECORD: 1-2-0

RPI at Alaska
Non-conference Game - Carlson Center (Fairbanks, AK)
10/17/15 - 11:00pm

RESULT: Alaska 4, RPI 2

RECORD: 1-3-0

Upcoming games
24 Oct - #11 Michigan
30 Oct - at #18 Union
31 Oct - #18 Union (Black Saturday)
06 Nov - at Clarkson
07 Nov - at #17 St. Lawrence

Monday, October 19, 2015

Women's Hockey - Robert Morris (16/17 Oct)

After a weekend sweep at RIT, things went downhill for the Engineers as they were swept at home by Robert Morris in the last non-conference games of the early season. Despite playing well on Friday, RPI was shutout 2-0 then fell 3-1 the following night.

Friday

Wash/Gruschow/Tomlinson
Horwood/Schwalbe/Rooney
Grigsby/Mankey/Thomas
Tremblay/Hylwa/Raspa

Hansen/Godin
Banks/Behounek
Kimmerle/Renn

Selander

39 shots on goal didn't help RPI solve netminder Jessica Dodds on Friday, and the Engineers dropped the first of two games to Robert Morris by a 2-0 margin. The Colonials capitalized on two good opportunities to score their goals on just 14 shots.

Both RMU goals came in the latter half of the second period. The first came when Mackenzie Johnson was able to steal a puck and break in alone on the net to beat Lovisa Selander for a 1-0 lead.

Ashley Vesci added a second goal for the Colonials with 15 seconds left in the second, capitalizing on a 2-on-1 opportunity to double the visitors' lead.

RPI poured on the pressure in the third period, putting 20 shots on Dodds, but couldn't get one past the RMU netminder and the Engineers were shutout for the first time this season.

Saturday

Horwood/Schwalbe/Rooney
Wash/Gruschow/Tomlinson
Grigsby/Mankey/Thomas
Tremblay/Hylwa/Raspa

Banks/Behounek
Hansen/Godin
Kimmerle/Renn

Till/Selander

After outplaying Robert Morris and more than doubling them up in shots on Friday night, RPI found the Colonials to be a tougher fight on Saturday afternoon - and RMU rode their stronger play to a second win and weekend sweep behind another strong effort from Jessica Dodds.

Sarah Till started in net for the Engineers, but ended up being pulled in the middle of the first period after RMU had already scored three goals.

The game's first goals came on the two teams' first shots of the game, with RPI jumping out to a 1-0 lead on a goal by Taylor Schwalbe just 35 seconds in before RMU tied it less than a minute later with a Mackenzie Johnston tally.

RPI got into penalty trouble later in the first period, taking a series of penalties that left RMU on an extended 5-on-3. The Colonials made the most of the opportunity, adding two quick goals at 11:33 and 12:44 to turn a 1-1 tie into a 3-1 lead.

From there, Dodds took over once again and stoned the Engineers for the remaining 40-plus minutes, making a total of 34 saves on 35 shots and an impressive 72 for 73 on the weekend.

With the early non-conference schedule behind them, the Engineers will have a weekend off then travel to Cornell and Colgate to start ECAC play. The Big Red played their first game this weekend, beating Western Ontario 3-2 in exhibition play. Colgate has rushed out to a 3-1 record after a 7-0 exhibition win - including a sweep (5-3, 6-0) of the same Robert Morris team that just swept the Engineers. The Raiders have scored 20 goals in their first four games and look like they will be more of a threat this season than in years past.

-----

RPI vs. Robert Morris
Non-Conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/16/15 - 7pm
RMU 2, RPI 0

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5182
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wrenrmu1.o16

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2015/10/16/WICE_1016154810.aspx?path=whock
RMU: http://rmucolonials.com/news/2015/10/16/WHOCKEY_1016153756.aspx?path=whockey
Complete Game Video: http://rpitv.org/productions/986

RECORD: 2-3 (0-0 ECAC)

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RPI vs. Robert Morris
Non-Conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/17/15 - 4pm
RMU 3, RPI 1

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5183
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wrenrmu1.o17

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2015/10/17/WICE_1017151501.aspx?path=whock
RMU: http://rmucolonials.com/news/2015/10/17/WHOCKEY_1017152314.aspx?path=whockey
Complete Game Video: http://rpitv.org/productions/988

RECORD: 2-4 (0-0 ECAC)

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Upcoming Schedule

Oct. 30 - at Cornell (3pm)
Oct. 31 - at Colgate (3pm)
Nov. 6 - St. Lawrence (7pm)
Nov. 7 - Clarkson (4pm)

Friday, October 16, 2015

North of 60

And here... we... go.

The season's fully open now, and it's time to get rolling. Tonight and tomorrow, the women face off with a Robert Morris team that was thrashed by Colgate twice two weeks ago. That would be the same Colgate that claimed the last playoff spot last season. Where are the Engineers now? Well, a couple of wins over the Colonials would go a long way to proving that they're going to be in the mix when February rolls around.

The men, meanwhile, embark on their longest possible road-trip as they take a trip to the Last Frontier to showdown with the two Alaska schools in the annual Brice Alaska Goal Rush in Fairbanks. Only about 9 1/2 hours of daylight this time of year in central Alaska, and RPI's going to want to offer even less to opposing snipers if they're going to earn their first bit of hardware since the '14 Mayor's Cup (and first tournament win since the final RPI Tournament in 2010 - which would be the first trophy from outside the Capital District since the '95 ECAC crown).

Last week's win over Boston College and the women's sweep of RIT was meaningless if RPI can't build upon that experience as we start to approach the first league games. It's time to open fire.

Men's Hockey - at UML & Boston College, 9 & 11 Oct

Apologies for the extreme lateness of the recap of last week's games - I've been traveling overseas and didn't return until Thursday morning. Jet lag to account for the rest of it, but here it is nonetheless - an opening weekend to the RPI season that typifies all of our expectations for the team this season. A punchless loss followed by a world-beating moment, and an underscoring that this team will live and die by its defense. The year kicked off with a barely-there game against UMass-Lowell in which the Engineers rarely looked competitive in a 3-0 loss, followed two days later in the home opener by a 2-1 victory over the #1 team in the nation that turned heads.

UMass-Lowell
Melanson-Liljegren-Ohrvall
Nanne-Bubela-Schroeder
Wood-Bourbonnais-Gillespie
Moore-Fulton-Clary

Bradley-Prapavessis
Bell-Reno
Wilson-Hampton

Kasdorf

One thing mentioned from the very outset of the season was that RPI needed to stay healthy this season in order to be competitive. With game one beginning, injuries were already a big part of the story. Senior Mark Miller is recovering from a wrist injury, and freshmen Evan Tironese and Alex Rodriguez are also in the infirmary, the latter suffering an injury in the exhibition game a week prior. With Jimmy DeVito also sidelined, offensive-minded defenseman Miers Moore made his RPI debut not on the blue line, but playing left-wing on the Engineers' fourth line.

For the fifth time in six seasons, the Engineers gave up their first goal of the season before scoring their first. 4:03 into the game, with a delayed hooking penalty coming to Jared Wilson, the River Hawks drew first blood with a goal by A.J. White to go ahead 1-0. UML would not score on the ensuing power play, but they did strike again on the power play before the opening 20 minutes were over. An unassisted goal by Evan Campbell with 32 seconds left made it 2-0 as Viktor Liljegren served an elbowing penalty.

Another power play goal early in the second period put the home team up 3-0 with Milos Bubela off for cross-checking. Adam Chapie's goal made the game look pretty much over with only 22:06 ticked off the clock.

From there, it was fairly academic for UML's Kevin Boyle to pitch a first-time out shutout. The Engineers came alive slightly in the third period, putting 13 shots on net, but none of them got through as Boyle made 27 saves to earn the victory. Jason Kasdorf picked up 35 saves on 38 shots - 28 in the first two periods - in defeat. Dominated at the faceoff circle and effectively bottled up, RPI simply never looked competitive against one of Hockey East's top teams.

Boston College
Liljegren-Bubela-Ohrvall
Melanson-Tironese-Nanne
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Gillespie
Moore-Fulton-Wood

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Reno
Bell-Hampton

Kasdorf

Tironese was added to the lineup two days later, replacing Lonnie Clary, and a minor line shakeup was in order as well to take on the Eagles, the #1 team in the most recent national polls. Tironese was added to a line that included Drew Melanson and Lou Nanne, the sophomore duo that regularly teamed with Miller on a dynamic line last season (when they were healthy). Additionally, the Engineers' top line was retooled, adding Milos Bubela to a combination that already included RPI's two Swedish forwards, Liljegren and Jesper Ohrvall, creating the first-ever all-European line in team history.

Defense was the name of the game for much of the first 40 minutes, as the Engineers bared down against the Eagles' high-flying offense. Jason Kasdorf was sharp throughout the game, picking up 29 saves in the first two periods on as many shots, but the shot-blocking in front of him was equally important to the defensive effort against BC. All night long, players gave up the body, especially Mike Prapavessis and Chris Bradley, to keep the visitors off the scoreboard.

Riley Bourbonnais opened the scoring in the final minute of the second period, notching his first goal of the season with 46 seconds left to put RPI ahead 1-0 on a bouncing puck that BC's Thatcher Demko usually can get himself in front of. Just before the second intermission, it was a huge boost to an Engineers team that was still very much an underdog despite the heroic defensive stand.

Bourbonnais struck again on the power play early in the third period. With Ryan Fitzgerald serving an elbowing penalty for the Eagles, Bourbonnais took a pass from Tironese a 3-on-2 break and whipped it past Demko to give RPI an improbable 2-0 edge with 17 minutes left in the game.

But one doesn't just put away the #1 team in the nation that easily. With solid puck control throughout the game, it seemed inevitable that BC would eventually find a way to put one past Kasdorf and they managed to halve the RPI lead five-and-a-half minutes later on the man advantage. Zach Sanford's second goal of the season made it 2-1 and turned the pucker factor up to 11 for the crowd at Houston Field House.

Far from being rattled, however, the Engineers stayed in their lanes when it came to their defensive stand. Indeed, despite trailing and their talent and possession edges, BC was ultimately able to get only 8 shots on Kasdorf in the final 20 minutes. While holding the 2-1 lead, RPI continued blocking shots and otherwise frustrating the Eagle offense. With Demko pulled in the final 1:20, BC managed to hold the attacking zone for nearly the entire end of the game, but still were unable to find a quality scoring opportunity to get the game tied, and the Engineers escaped with their first victory over a #1 ranked team in five seasons.

The weekend was a true microcosm - RPI must get healthy to be successful, and Tironese's debut was crucial for the Engineers. The freshman dominated in the faceoff circle and assisted on both of Bourbonnais' goals. They need defense in order to be successful, and the shot-blocking and top-end play by the combined defense powered the victory more than anything. The way the Engineers can become truly dangerous is to start scoring goals with more regularity - despite the high-caliber opponents they played in the opening weekend, averaging a goal per game isn't going to lead to a lot of wins.

They get the opportunity to try scoring goals against slightly lower-caliber opponents this weekend, as they face Alaska-Anchorage and the University of Alaska, WCHA teams who were a combined 1-3-0 to start the year, in the Brice Alaska Goal Rush. With American International as the fourth team, if the RPI team that played against Boston College shows up both nights in Fairbanks, the Engineers would be the likely favorites in the tournament.

RPI players swept the ECAC weekly awards this week on the strength of their win over BC. Riley Bourbonnais' two goals made him Player of the Week, Tironese's two assists and faceoff excellence won him Rookie of the Week, and Kasdorf's superior play in the pips earned him Goalie of the Week honors.

RPI at #14 UMass-Lowell
Non-conference Game - Tsongas Center (Lowell, MA)
10/9/15 - 7:15pm

RESULT: UMass-Lowell 3, RPI 0


RECORD: 0-1-0

#1 Boston College at RPI
Non-conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/11/15 - 2:00pm

RESULT: RPI 2, Boston College 1

RECORD: 1-1-0

Upcoming games
16 Oct - vs. Alaska-Anchorage (Fairbanks, AK)
17 Oct - at Alaska
24 Oct - #11 Michigan
30 Oct - at Union
31 Oct - Union (Black Saturday)

Monday, October 12, 2015

Women's Hockey - at RIT (9/10 Oct)

Non-conference play continued for the Engineers this weekend with a short jaunt over to Rochester to take on RIT. RPI fared well against the Tigers, picking up a 6-2 win Friday night followed by a 3-1 victory Saturday afternoon.

Friday

Wash/Gruschow/Tomlinson
Horwood/Schwalbe/Rooney
Grigsby/Mankey/Tremblay
Hylwa/Thomas/Renn

Hansen/Godin
Banks/Behounek
Kimmerle/Orzechowski

Selander

Mari Mankey scored two goals, nine Engineers recorded points, and freshman Lovisa Selander stopped 15 of 17 shots as RPI defeated RIT on Friday night.

Mankey's goals included the eventual game-winner which put RPI up 3-0 in the first period, as well as the last goal of the game late in the second which made it 6-2 on the power play.

Katie Rooney got things going for RPI just 1:05 in, picking up Laura Horwood's rebound and putting it past Brooke Stoddart for a 1-0 lead.

Aly Tremblay doubled the RPI lead with a goal off a 3-on-1 at 9:24, and Mankey's first goal followed about three minutes later.

RIT got on the board at 13:50 when Cassie Clayton scored on a one-timer, but Shayna Tomlinson gave RPI their three-goal cushion back with 11 seconds left in a busy first period.

The Tigers again drew within two with a Carly Payerl goal early in the third, but Laura Horwood made it 5-2 before Mankey scored her second of the night late in the middle frame to leave the score at 6-2, where it remained through the third period.

Saturday

Wash/Gruschow/Tomlinson
Horwood/Schwalbe/Rooney
Grigsby/Mankey/Tremblay
Raspa/Thomas/Renn

Hansen/Godin
Banks/Behounek
Kimmerle/Orzechowski

Till

After combining for eight goals on Friday, RPI and RIT scaled things back a little on Saturday, only racking up four goals as the Engineers beat the Tigers 3-1.

Alexa Gruschow scored twice for the Engineers, while Katie Rooney tacked on a goal and Sarah Till finished with 20 saves.

RIT jumped out to an early lead off a Carly Payerl power play goal at 7:15 of the first, but Rooney scored just 42 seconds later off an RIT turnover to tie it up.

Gruschow scored her first goal 3:44 into the second period, picking up a Jenn Godin rebound and tucking it behind goalie Jetta Rackleff. She gave the Engineers an insurance goal on the power play in the third period to make it 3-1 which held up as the final score despite nearly two minutes spent by RIT with the extra attacker.

The Engineers close out their early season non-conference play next weekend as they host Robert Morris, then will start off ECAC play on the road at Cornell and Colgate.

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RPI at RIT
Non-Conference Game - Gene Polisseni Center (Rochester, NY)
10/9/15 - 7pm
RPI 6, RIT 2

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5180
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wrenrit1.o09

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2015/10/9/WICE_1009153037.aspx?path=whock
RIT: http://www.ritathletics.com/news/2015/10/9/WHOCKEY_1009153910.aspx

RECORD: 1-2 (0-0 ECAC)

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RPI at RIT
Non-Conference Game - Gene Polisseni Center (Rochester, NY)
10/9/15 - 3pm
RPI 3, RIT 1

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5181
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wrenrit1.o10

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2015/10/10/WICE_1010150313.aspx?path=whock
RIT: http://www.ritathletics.com/news/2015/10/10/WHOCKEY_1010151810.aspx

RECORD: 2-2 (0-0 ECAC)

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Upcoming Schedule

Oct. 16 - Robert Morris (7pm)
Oct. 17 - Robert Morris (4pm)
Oct. 30 - at Cornell (3pm)
Oct. 31 - at Colgate (3pm)

Friday, October 9, 2015

Beast of the East

Another season, another difficult October, another slew of injuries to start the season.

Yup.

The men get their season underway tonight in Lowell as they take on the two-time Hockey East finalists from UML - and they'll be missing plenty of names. Miller. Wood. Rodriguez. Tironese. All out nursing injuries. Freshman defenseman Meirs Moore makes his RPI debut tonight... as a forward.

And it doesn't get any easier after they come home - just #1 Boston College on Sunday afternoon. Woof.

For the women, they also hit the road for the first time this season, taking on RIT in a pair of games in Rochester - can they build on a halfway decent showing against North Dakota last weekend? We'll find out.

In the meantime, here's something bouncy to get you going for a weekend full of hockey.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Know Thyself: RPI

So here we are, on the cusp of another season of RPI hockey. The litany of long waits as it pertains to the Engineers has been gone over pretty much ad nauseum at this point - suffice it to say that RPI fans have been waiting a long time for a lot of things. There's not a lot of faith in the Engineers from outside of Troy this season, but make no mistake about it - this year's RPI squad may have the widest range of "where might this team realistically finish" out of any team in the ECAC. They have the capacity to crack the top four. They have the ability to fall completely flat.

RPI
Nickname: Engineers
Location: Troy, NY
Founded: 1824
Conference: ECAC
National Championships: 2 (1954, 1985)
Last NCAA Appearance: 2011
Last Frozen Four: 1985
Coach: Seth Appert (10th season)
2014-15 Record: 12-26-3 (8-12-2 ECAC, 9th place)
All-Time Record: 1024-923-128 (999-850-122 in the modern era)
First Game: January 25, 1902 (Cohoes, NY)
First Win: February 26, 1904 (Albany, NY)
First Modern Era game: January 7, 1950 (Clinton, NY)
First Modern Era win: February 3, 1950 (Plattsburgh, NY)

Key players: D Chris Bradley, sr.; F Milos Bubela, sr.; F Mark Miller, sr.; F Zach Schroeder, sr.; F Riley Bourbonnais, jr.; F Jimmy DeVito, jr.; G Jason Kasdorf, jr.; F Jake Wood, jr.; D Bradley Bell, so.; F Viktor Liljegren, so.; F Drew Melanson, so.; F Lou Nanne, so.; D Mike Prapavessis, so.; D Jared Wilson, so.; D Meirs Moore, fr.; F Jesper Ohrvall, fr.; F Alex Rodriguez, fr.

Key losses: D Luke Curadi, F Jacob Laliberte, D Curtis Leonard, F Mark McGowan, F Matt Neal

(I know, I know, I'm missing this potential impact freshman or that upperclassman primed to break out... I only assembled it the way I assembled the KYE teams, just to be fair. I'm sure I've left out some of the same for other teams.)

Two years ago, the Engineers were picked to be one of the top teams in the ECAC, based largely on the presence of one Jason Kasdorf in net. Not even a month later, he was lost for the season, and the team struggled on defense despite an offense that was making things work led by Ryan Haggerty.

Fast forward two years. Kasdorf is now a senior (with junior eligibility), but the Engineers are picked to finish 10th in the ECAC by both the media and the coaches. That lost season, combined with last year's tough year, have soured the observers on RPI.

It seems extremely unfair to place so much weight on the shoulders of one person - but there's little doubt anymore that this team is likely to go only as far as Kasdorf can take them. But Kasdorf honestly isn't even the biggest concern that the outside observer has with the Engineers. It's the lack of scoring from last season - not so much depth, as much as just... width. The frequency with which the top players are able to light the lamp.

For RPI to have a successful season, they will need two things to happen.

First, Kasdorf needs to get through a season without injury problems. That's not exactly something that's under his control, but he's gained a reputation for being fragile - in fact, he has missed time to injuries in each of his seasons at RPI. This gets said ahead of his being able to put together numbers the way he did when he was a freshman, in part because he was so very good at the end of last season once he was finally healthy. Game 1 of the ECAC quarterfinals against St. Lawrence, despite being a loss, was one of the best performances ever put together by an RPI goaltender. If he stays healthy, we can expect more of the same.

Second, the Engineers need to get some production out of what looks to be a talented-enough freshman class to augment the scoring - but don't think that this lets the upperclassmen off the hook. Depth wasn't much of a problem last season, as RPI did manage to get at least five goals from nine different players last season (three of them now gone), but it would be better if they managed to get at least seven or eight from that many, and to get three or four into double digits (which none managed last season). Improving on a bottom-10 nationally power play is crucial here.

The options abound among the youngsters. Moore projects as a Nick Bailen-type two-way defenseman. Ohrvall was a stud in the NAHL, and Rodriguez by all accounts is a skilled puck mover. Evan Tironese was projected as the BCHL's top scorer before a shoulder injury shelved him early in the season.

Injuries and illnesses to Kasdorf, Nanne, Bradley, and Melanson, four crucial elements, really limited the team's effectiveness from game to game. If the Engineers are going to be competitors this year, simply staying healthy is going to get them a long way. If they can accomplish just that, there shouldn't be any reason why home ice for the playoffs (shut up, it really is an advantage) should be out of reach.

But if injuries mount once again and team cohesiveness against suffers because of it, 10th seems like a realistic floor for a program with just enough upside to be a real wildcard in the ECAC this season.

If you think this is just homeristic optimism - look what a healthy St. Lawrence team, picked to finish 11th in the ECAC last season, managed to do with a top-end goaltender and getting just enough scoring from a wide variety of places.

Monday, October 5, 2015

Women's Hockey - North Dakota (2/3 Oct)

RPI jumped out to an early lead against sixth-ranked North Dakota on Friday night but eventually fell short in a 4-3 decision. In Saturday's rematch, the Engineers didn't fare as well, falling 4-1 despite a 41-save effort from freshman goalie Lovisa Selander.

Friday

Horwood/Gruschow/Rooney
Wash/Schwalbe/Tremblay
Grigsby/Mankey/Tomlinson
Thomas/Hylwa/Raspa

Hansen/Godin
Behounek/Banks
Kimmerle/Renn

Selander

Alexa Gruschow and Laura Horwood put RPI up 2-0 in Friday night's regular season opener, but North Dakota eventually came out on top by a 4-3 margin. After UND took a 3-2 lead in the second, RPI tied it at three, but Becca Kohler came through with the game winner for the visitors with 1:59 left in regulation.

Gruschow's goal got the Engineers on the board at 6:19 of the first, with two seconds remaining on a power play chance. Lauren Wash dumped the puck on net and Gruschow was in front to tip it home.

Horwood doubled the lead at 12:02, picking up her own rebound off a wraparound chance to put a wrister past Shelby Amsley-Benzie to make it 2-0.

The two-goal margin was short-lived as Sam LaShomb got UND on the board 54 seconds later, taking a feed from Kayla Gardner behind the net and blasting it past Selander before she had time to react.

UND tied it at two 1:57 into the second period, with Halli Krzyzaniak threading a point shot through traffic and past a screened Selander to make it 2-2. North Dakota then took a 3-2 lead at 8:09 of the middle frame off another Krzyzaniak goal, this time coming off a rebound but again through traffic.

UND had a chance to extend the lead late in the second on a 2-on-0 which Selander managed to stone to hold the score at 3-2. Freshman Josefine Hansen pulled RPI even at 9:30 of the third period. Skating 4-on-4, Hansen fired a rocket from the top of the circles which found the back of the net to make it a 3-3 game.

The Engineers couldn't hold the score there, and Kohler picked up a rebound off a Sam LaShomb shot and put it past a sprawling Selander who couldn't cross the crease quickly enough to get in front of it.

RPI couldn't find another tying goal and the 4-3 score held up to give UND the victory in game one of the weekend series. The Engineers were outshot 38-14 on the night

Saturday

Horwood/Gruschow/Rooney
Wash/Schwalbe/Tremblay
Grigsby/Mankey/Tomlinson
Thomas/Hylwa/Raspa

Hansen/Godin
Behounek/Banks
Kimmerle/Renn

Selander

After keeping things close with North Dakota Friday night, RPI had a harder time keeping up on Saturday and fell by a 4-1 margin. Despite a few periods of sustained pressure in the UND zone, the Engineers couldn't find the back of the net to make the most of the opportunities. Selander gave the Engineers a chance in the game with 41 saves.

UND scored first in the second game of the weekend, with Layla Marvin sending a shot on net that Selander got the blocker on, but the puck bounced up and over into the net at 14:06 of the first.

The visitors extended the lead to 2-0 at 6:28 of the second, when Meghan Dufault put home a rebound off a shot by Anna Kilponen.

Taylor Schwalbe cut that lead in half for the Engineers when she scored her first collegiate goal at 15:28 of the middle frame, an even-strength tally after a long stretch of power play time for RPI that included over 1:30 of 5-on-3 time.

LaShomb gave UND back their 2-goal lead at 7:34 of the third period, scoring late in a power play after the Engineers were stuck in their zone for about a minute and a half.

RPI tried to claw back late in the third with the extra attacker, but Kohler picked up an empty netter to give UND a 4-1 lead with 14 seconds left in regulation which held up as the final score.

RPI will hit the road next week for a pair of games at RIT before coming home to host Robert Morris in the last of their early non-conference action. RIT opened their regular season with a weekend split against Minnesota State after a 9-0 rout of the Ottawa Senators.

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RPI vs. North Dakota
Non-Conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/2/15 - 7pm
UND 4, RPI 3

BOX SCORES:

RECAPS:

RECORD: 0-1 (0-0 ECAC)

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RPI vs. North Dakota
Non-Conference Game - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
10/3/15 - 3pm
UND 4, RPI 1

BOX SCORES:

RECAPS:

RECORD: 0-2 (0-0 ECAC)

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Upcoming Schedule

Oct. 9 - at RIT (7pm)
Oct. 10 - at RIT (3pm)
Oct. 16 - Robert Morris (7pm)
Oct. 17 - Robert Morris (4pm)

Friday, October 2, 2015

October Dreams

Ahh, yes. It's the first weekend in October. Early Christmas for puckheads - the college season gets underway, and the NHL is just around the corner. Drink it in. We're ready for five months of fun or heartache. Or both. Probably both.

The women open their season this weekend with very little pressure against one of the best teams in the nation as they welcome the University of North Dakota to the friendly confines of the Houston Field House. Meanwhile, the men have their exhibition game against St. Thomas, a Canadian school from New Brunswick. Get thee to the Field House, ladies and gentlemen. Hockey season is upon us.

Reasonably certain I've used this for an early season pump-up in the past, but it works on so many levels that... whatever. Let's run with it.

HOCKEY!

Thursday, October 1, 2015

It Just Keeps Happening

Someone please remove the "kick me" sign from this program's back. Because things just keep happening in the offseasons or very early in the regular season that really lend itself to saying "you know, things could have been different."

Last season in the OJHL, Brady Wiffen lit the league on fire. He managed 66 goals and 48 assists in 68 games for the Trenton Golden Hawks. Now, there's a minor qualifier on that - he did it at the age of 20 in a league that's got a fair number of 17 and 18 year olds in it, but it still takes some talent to be able to put the puck in the net with that much frequency.

Can he do the same in the NCAA? Wiffen doesn't project as a guy who's going to be scoring in the neighborhood of a goal per game in college hockey, but he's clearly a prospect with a great deal of upside to him. But we're going to have to wait until 2016 - October 2016 - to find out.

Yesterday, word came down that the NCAA has ruled Wiffen a "partial qualifier," which means that while he's a high school graduate, he didn't meet all of the NCAA's academic requirements to compete in Division I athletics. He can practice with the team, but can't participate in games.

Now, we have to disagree with the assessments of the Albany Times Union and the Schenectady Daily Gazette, both of which declared Wiffen the Engineers' "top recruit." We've been bit more excited to see what Evan Tironese and Jesper Ohrvall will be able to do this year based on their accomplishments in junior hockey. But there's no doubt we were also looking forward to seeing if Wiffen's upside would be a solid contribution, too. He could well have been a scoring stud for the Engineers this year, and teams that had a hard time scoring the previous season need all the help they can scrounge. So it's still a bit of a blow to have to absorb, and so close to the season's start.

Since WaP has been a thing, pretty much every time period from March through October has ended up being rife with heartaches. In fact, there's been at least one in each of the last six years. Observe:

2010-11: ECAC Rookie of the Year F Jerry D'Amigo signs with Toronto in August, two months before the season begins. F Brandon Pirri follows suit with Chicago about a month later, which was quickly followed by the defection of highly touted recruit D Nick Quinn to the OHL.

2011-12: G Allen York signs with Columbus with a year of eligibility left shortly after leading the Engineers to the 2011 NCAA tournament.

2012-13: NHL draft pick D Patrick Koudys leaves the program, eventually transferring to Penn State.

2013-14: ECAC Rookie of the Year G Jason Kasdorf, who led the Engineers to a 2nd place ECAC finish as a freshman, is injured in a non-contact drill after the second game of the regular season, ending his year.

2014-15: Junior F Ryan Haggerty signs with the Rangers with a year of eligibility remaining after leading the nation in goal scoring. Sophomore F Mike Zalewski signs with Vancouver a week later. Very early on in the season, the team becomes ravaged with injuries, never really getting close to 100% health.

2015-16: NHL draft pick G Alec Dillon reneges on his commitment and bolts for the WHL in late May. In September, just two weeks before the season begins, freshman F Brady Wiffen is named a partial qualifier by the NCAA and sidelined for the year.

Some of these were expected, like York and Haggerty's departures. Some ultimately didn't turn out to be a huge deal, like with Quinn and Koudys. But many of them were definitely moments that left the RPI faithful with discouraged frowns.

So please, in the name of everything holy, stop kicking us, hockey gods.