Our Ballot - Men's Preseason ECAC

We've got a vote in the ECAC media poll. Every year we release our ballot so people can know what our mindset is on things. This year was far more belabored than most - lots of times, there's a pretty clear-cut #1, a pretty clear-cut #2, and then a murky middle. True for 2014-15, but the murky middle has rarely been this murky.

1. Colgate - When it comes to laying out who the top team in the league is, the driving force has got to be deciding which team has the fewest question marks coming into the season. That has to be the Raiders. They've got an outstanding young netminder in Charlie Finn, a talented core of juniors on offense, excellent leadership, and a veteran coaching staff. This is a team primed for great things this season not just in the ECAC, but as a dark horse contender to make the rest of the college hockey world continue to pay attention to the league.

2. Quinnipiac - We're starting to get to the point where Rand Pecknold and company are just reloading every year instead of rebuilding, and once again, the Bobcats continue to find ways to finish their season on a higher level than most thought possible at the beginning of years. The young talent that came in last year following the Q's trip to the Frozen Four supplemented the returning veterans nicely, and they've got another good group of youngsters joining the fray. Michael Gartieg is legit, so as long as the blueliners do an acceptable job in front of him, this is a team that still has very few flaws and could only get better in the coming years.

3. Union - The first team to sweep the ECAC regular season, ECAC tournament, and national championship since RPI in 1985, the Dutchmen still have plenty in the tank. While some would demand that Union has top be at the top until proven otherwise because of their accolades last season, we'd prefer to look at what they've got instead of what they had. That said, Union's still full of outstanding talent and will be pretty good on both sides of the puck still, so they aren't sliding very far.

4. Cornell - In some ways, this is just a "you can't ever pick Cornell too low" selection, but there's a good reason for that meme in the first place. The Big Red do need to get more out of their offense than they've produced in the last couple of seasons, but no matter who the personnel are in Ithaca, you can rest assured that the defense, 14 times out of 15, is going to get the job done - and they do have the talent on their roster to get that much needed offensive bump.

5. RPI - Is this optimistic? It might be. It could also be pessimistic from our perspective. Getting Jason Kasdorf back in the net is likely to be huge for the Engineers, and his presence during the 2012-13 season had a "rising tide raises all ships" effect on other parts of RPI's game. The Engineers should have a very solid defense, and if that rising tide comes back this year to help out the questionable but capable offense. That said, this is also a team capable of sliding quickly to the very bottom if they don't establish a good rhythm.

6. Dartmouth - The Big Green should be at least better than their miserable finish in last year's ECAC table, especially given the glimpse of excellence they displayed from February on to becoming the only road team to win a league playoff series. They lose practically nobody from a team that began hitting its stride late, but the real question is whether Dartmouth was showing massive improvement or simply was getting on a roll at the right time. The answer's probably somewhere in the middle, which helps lead them to the middle of the league on this ballot.

7. Yale - This feels far too low, and yet I can't find a better place to put the Bulldogs. Bearing in mind that the separation between three or four spots in the final standings is often razor-thin, I'm putting Yale 7th in part because their season last year was almost as frustratingly difficult as the Engineers' campaign. Many of their very best players are now on the underclass side of things after graduating some of the most important elements of their national championship run, and it's hard to put a lot of stock in those guys carrying the team to bigger and better things without a known rock between the pipes.

8. Clarkson - The Knights are another team that has the potential to do a lot of damage, and they're very comparable in a lot of ways to the Engineers - a good, solid defensive core, but a definite need to find scoring somewhere. They're here in part because I'm not as big on Clarkson's goaltending duo as I am with RPI's, and the Engineers have more potential answers to the offensive question than the Golden Knights have. But much like RPI, this is a team that has the ability to finish a lot higher in the standings if they can get themselves into a groove and stay there, especially if they can spread the scoring out among a number of players.

9. Harvard - Hard to place a team that has this much talent this far down the chart, but the startling lack of consistency across the board with the Crimson for the last couple of seasons makes it difficult to trust Harvard. Based on the recent track record alone, this could well be a team that should be even lower than this, and this ranking is more of a belief in the individual abilities of players like Jimmy Vesey, Alexander Kerfoot, and Kyle Criscuolo, but until they get themselves situated like a team out on the ice, their climb up the rankings from their recent dismal showings isn't going far.

10. Brown - Taking a "show me first" attitude with Brown. It's hard to find a single scoring line in the league that compares with Lorito-Naclerio-Lappin, but outside of that trio, the Bears haven't proven that they have the chops to run with the rest of the league. I maintain that this team is just one or two players away from being among the very best in the entire ECAC, and those players may well be coming in the near future, but for now Brown still looks too one-dimensional to play a major role in the way things will shake out this season.

11. St. Lawrence - This seems to have all the makings of a "start over" season for the Saints. A lot of good young players but growing pains definitely appear to be in the offing. It's very difficult for any team to lose the core of its scoring prowess, but the Saints had pretty much everything that was good about last year's team leave, and everything that was bad about last year's team return. They've got a new goaltender and there's almost no way their offense can be as strong as it was with the Carey brothers.

12. Princeton - Buh. There's really not much of anything to like here. The sole source of optimism seems to be the addition of Ron Fogarty behind the bench, but much as with Brown, the one bright light, by itself, isn't enough to warrant anything higher than the bottom third of the league, and in the Tigers' case, the absolute cellar. Some teams do a lot of things well, and some teams even have one or two bright spots. There really isn't that with Princeton - what little they had going for them last season (basically, Andrew Calof) is gone, and it's not a sure thing that what they have is ready for prime time.

We were asked to select an all-ECAC team as well, and these were my picks:

G - Jason Kasdorf, RPI: Go ahead. Call it a homer pick. Rant and rave about how last year's top goaltender is back. I don't care. Jason Kasdorf, in his freshman year, played better and lifted his team more than any returning netminder in the league from last season. He doesn't lose that status because he got hurt last season - he only loses it if someone rises to a level above him.

D - Gavin Bayreuther, SLU: If I could take any one player from around the league and put him on the Engineers, it would be Bayreuther. His season last year was quite an eye-opener, coming practically from out of nowhere, playing well enough right out of the gate to almost earn a spot on the US World Junior team. Now, in only his sophomore season, he's already a player opposing teams have to account for and plan around on both sides of the ice.

D - Spiro Goulakos, COL: There are few players in the league who can match the defensive ability on the ice that Goulakos has with the leadership he also brings to the table. As the captain for a second season on this year's best team in the league (on paper, anyway), he's an important asset for the Raiders defensively, giving the team's very talented offense the ability to perform with the knowledge that he's back there on patrol. That he does all this after beating lymphoma is even more impressive.

F - Matthew Peca, QU: The league's top returning scorer has to be a part of this list practically by default, but in Peca's case he's been one of the driving elements of the Bobcats offense since he arrived in Hamden, and is one of the last remaining stars from Quinnipiac's Frozen Four team two seasons ago. With the departure of the Carey brothers, he's officially the league's most dangerous attacker.

F - Daniel Ciampini, UC: Here's a guy who has frequently gotten lost in the mix in terms of accolades at Union these last couple of years, but he's always been more than just a cog in the machine. Playing a vital role in the Dutchmen's offensive prowess basically since he arrived in Schenectady, he's now the man offensively and he's a big reason why Union will still be one of the league's best teams.

F - Matt Lorito, BRN: Possibly the best overall forward in the league, and he gets overlooked by a lot of people because the team around him is relatively weak, making his numbers less gaudy than they could be because the opposition can get away with devoting a significant chunk of its defensive strategy to keeping him out of the net.

Even though there wasn't a second team, here's a second team, because these are all guys who warrant first-team looks as well (and some of them were on the actual first-team).

G - Colin Stevens, UC
D - Joakim Ryan, COR
D - Gus Young, YU
F - Sam Anas, QU
F - Eric Neiley, DC
F - Tylor Spink, COL

Our Ballot

This is the fourth consecutive year that Without a Peer has had a vote in the annual ECAC preseason media poll... and by tradition, I usually share my ballot with the WaP readers in the interest of full openness about our little section of the poll.

I've always tried to be very, very serious with my ballot, because frequently as a fan, you always tend to look at your team in the most positive light possible. The worst place is always trying to figure out where to put your own team, because you A) don't want to be overly hard on them, and B) you don't want to look like you're being a homer. B is more scary than A when you're trying to cast off the partisan nature of running a fan blog and be dead-set honest with your assessment on how the league appears ready to turn out before the season begins.

That's why this year's poll may have been the most difficult one to fill out, as you're about to see. Our yearly "Know Your Enemy" series (which concludes tomorrow) helps me put this together, since it takes a microscope to each team in the league to find out what made them work last year, what will be missing, what returns, and what the prospects are, and that was key again this season in being able to rank the teams from 1-12. We don't mean to insult anyone, obviously, this is just the way we see things. Along the way, you find teams that you can't believe you're ranking so low, but someone has to be there, and when you can't find a way to put them ahead of other teams... there you have it.

So without further ado, the ECAC as I see it with the 2013-14 season about ready to get underway...

1. RPI - I tried to not put the bullseye on the Engineers' back. I spent the better part of a month trying to convince myself that someone else needed to be here, especially with two strong teams coming out of the national championship game, but at the end of the day, there's one truth about RPI that I cannot avoid. Simply, there is no other team in the league that returns established scoring ability (and much of its scoring from last year), established defensive capabilities, and has a solid, known quantity in net. Every other team is missing at least one of those. RPI's offense and defense may not individually be the best in the ECAC but as combined, they provide the best balance. Toss in a clear top goaltender heading into the season and we've got the team to beat.

2. Quinnipiac - The knock on the Bobcats from a number of quarters is that they graduated a heck of a lot of seniors last year. True. But they bring back basically all of the offense from last year and even augment it with solid recruits. Their issue is with defense, though they have a number of potential answers all around. This will be a younger team than last year's squad that romped in the ECAC, but there are enough known quantities with this team that they will continue to be dangerous, if vulnerable early in the season until the blueliners begin to gel as a unit. This is where the Q's non-Ivy status helps, as their first month of non-conference competition will help that happen.

3. Yale - The national champions are basically Quinnipiac with a more established d-corps but no immediately obvious answers in net. Practically since Keith Allain took charge in New Haven, the question has been between the pipes, and as we come into this season there isn't a real solid answer. If any of the goaltenders can get hot, however, the Bulldogs are as dangerous as anyone in the nation, as well evidenced by last year's championship run. The core of last year's scoring is back for more this season, which is going to cause headaches for even the best defensive teams in the ECAC. However, if this team gets into track meets repeatedly, that will not be beneficial for their long-term success.

4. Dartmouth - Another case where offense rules. I don't think the Big Green have as big of a problem in net as some have suggested, in fact, they have two very decent options there that really should not be causing much in the way of problems. Dartmouth gets ranked below Quinnipiac and Yale, however, on the explosiveness of their offense. It's a strong unit, it just isn't quite on the level of the Connecticut schools. They make up for that with more balance to that attack. Sometimes, having many skaters scoring a few goals is just as good as having a few skaters with many goals. That's going to be a very underrated element of Dartmouth's game that will probably see them coming away with two points more often than not.

5. Cornell - This is fairly low for the Big Red, but it represents a nexus of the team's late-year resurgence last season, their struggle to score goals, and their usual positioning as one of the league's top teams. Cornell isn't staying down for long, and while they have some questions to answer offensively, chances are pretty good they'll at least find enough answers to finish in the top half of the league for the 14th time in 15 seasons. The defense that has keyed the program's long-term success returned late last year, this ranking is indicative of a need to determine exactly where the offense is going to be coming from. They have many options, which is cause for optimism in Ithaca.

6. Union - Plenty of ability here to fill the gaps on offense, but those gaps accompany a Quinnipiac-level of concern on defense, with a likely competent but mostly untested goaltender and a defensive unit keyed by two of the best d-men in the conference but lacking in experience outside of them. This is not a mediocre team by any stretch of the imagination, however, and that more than anything speaks to the increasing depth in the ECAC that they are here in sixth. Rick Bennett's third season with the reins will be more difficult than the last two, but don't count him out - he's already proven that he can squeeze more from his teams than what appears to exist on paper.

7. St. Lawrence - It's very, very difficult to put a team with a pre-season Hobey Baker candidate this far down the list, but if anything, it's another testament to how good the league may be overall this season. As you'll see below, we've got two Saints in our selections for Preseason All-ECAC, and yet, here they are. That probably means that SLU will have the capacity to surprise, but they need to be able to spread the offense out a little bit more than they have in recent seasons, and they need a better than average performance from their goaltending in order to be competitive on the level that they were for a good chunk of last season - especially last February.

8. Harvard - Word came down in August that the players who left the team last season due to the cheating scandal would be returning this year, which represents a huge shot in the arm for a team that really needed it. The Crimson have a lot of young talent that were the heart of the team last year, but unfortunately that talent had very little in the way of support. The returning players should provide that support, and while this remains a very young, very raw program, it's one that has a bright future. That future should begin this year with a rise out of the doldrums of the league, and while there's likely still a learning curve ahead for Harvard, their special teams should prove considerably more difficult to deal with as compared to last year's train wreck, and that alone will have the Crimson competitive in games that were laughers last season.

9. Brown - This is an increasingly talented Bears team, but the ability to find solid goaltending has, over the years, been the major bugaboo in Providence and it's something that is going to be hurtful for this program again unless they can get it figured out as early as they did last year. It's a team with a couple of very good impact players who should be among the best in the league, and a team with a fairly decent defensive capability overall. The problem foreseen here is the lack of a known quantity in net combined with a lower level of talent among the supporting cast members as opposed to, say, Union or SLU. Still, no one should overlook this team, which does have the capacity to be a solid home-ice team this season if one of the teams above slips up.

10. Colgate - Still a very, very young team that has some growing pains to suffer through before what should be a couple of outstanding campaigns in the near future. In fact, the Raiders have the young offensive punch to potentially do what RPI did last year on the backs of sophomores and freshmen - they simply need the defense and goaltending to come along as well, which isn't a sure bet. It's a feel-good team with a captain who is winning his fight with Hodgkins lymphoma, but that leadership is going to have to be bold enough to translate into hard fought victories in games where the team came up short last year. This squad ran out of gas late last season, the defense is going to need to be strong for games where the goals aren't coming, which will crop up from time to time on young teams.

11. Clarkson - Offensively this team doesn't lose much but they still have a lot to do in that area in order to be a regular threat, as evidenced by the epically bad goal drought that the team ended last season with. Defensively, it's kind of a mess as well, although the Golden Knights do return a more experienced defensive group. However, as with the offense, experience means nothing if it doesn't bring with it improvement, and that's really needed all around in Potsdam, especially between the pipes. Clarkson at their best recently has been just enough to get by, but at their worst, it has been terrible in recent seasons. Without growth in all facets of the game, and the team's depth, this will be another tough season for the Knights.

12. Princeton - There really doesn't seem like there's lots and lots to love with the Tigers right now. Outside of one stud forward (who will steal this team some games on his own), there are question marks abounding with Princeton, more really than with any other team in the league, because the offense, defense, and goaltending is all only slightly above suspect this year. None of them are truly bad, and in that sense, the Tigers are kind of the inverse of RPI in that Princeton's offense and defense are not by themselves the worst in the league, but as combined they really don't rise to the level that would see any kind of guaranteed success. The good news is that they're not a clear-cut last place program, which means there's some room for them to finish out of the cellar.

The preseason poll also includes the all-ECAC selections, and these are the ones I came up with:

G - Jason Kasdorf, RPI: The last couple of years, we've been hesitant on exactly who the top returning goalie in the league is. That's not the case this year - Kasdorf's outstanding rookie season was far better than the campaigns of any returning goaltender last year. The only other netminder with a case, based on his full collegiate experience, is Cornell's Andy Iles. But Kasdorf was the only returning goalie who regularly carried his team to victories last season and had far better numbers in goals allowed and save percentage than any current netminder.

D - Shayne Gostisbehere, Union: While many thought the hard-nosed blueliner who became a revelation in his freshman year in Schenectady was ready to bail out after just two years, Gostisbehere returns for his junior season as the clear cut top defenseman in the ECAC right now. His rough and tumble presence up against some of the top forwards in the league gives the Dutchmen a serious edge, forcing the opposition to be solid offensively across many scoring lines - that alone can be enough to keep a team in games against tough competition.

D - Justin Baker, St. Lawrence: Probably the most difficult decision on this year's ballot was this spot, which was between Baker and Union's Mat Bodie. While Bodie gives the Dutchmen outstanding leadership from the point, Baker's two-way ability was an important link to success for the Saints last year, giving the team a connection for their wildly successful top line. Baker's importance on defense is just as important, and he returns this season as a key element in a SLU team that will be on the razor's edge between a great year and a tough one.

F - Greg Carey, St. Lawrence: Hard not to take the top returning goal scorer in the nation as one of the top three forwards in the league. Some would say that Carey's mind-blowing offensive numbers last season were a function of the graduated Kyle Flanagan's outstanding play. That would be foolish in the extreme - Carey has a prove track record of success across his three years in Canton even when Flanagan is not playing, which was more often than the Saints would have liked over the years. His ability commands absolute attention whenever he's on the ice, let alone carrying the puck.

F - Andrew Calof, Princeton: Easily one of the top talents in the east, Calof is going to be Princeton's best player this season and it's not even going to be close. On another team, with a stronger supporting cast, he'd already be in the discussion nationally for the Hobey Baker Award - ironic, perhaps, since Princeton was Hobey Baker's home - but that doesn't diminish the fact that he's the only individual forward in the league who's in the same area code as Carey in terms of being dangerous to contend with whenever he's on the ice. He's going to keep Princeton from being pushovers, that's for sure.

F - Kenny Agostino, Yale: Another tough call here between Agostino and Brown's Matt Lorito, especially with the strong collection of offense at Yale potentially helping Agostino excel more than he would if he were in Lorito's position. However, it's hard to argue with a guy who's already reached 100 points for his career after just three seasons being in this position. The Bulldogs are national champions in part because Agostino was able to define himself as being one of the best forwards on a team full of good ones, and his return helps keep Yale among the best teams in the nation, to say nothing of the ECAC.

Women's Hockey - 2012-13 Season Preview

Once again, we've hit that time of year when many hockey fans switch from "There's so much offseason left!" to "Wait, the season's here already?" With the women's hockey team set to take the ice Friday night against UConn, let's do a quick rundown of this year's incoming class and the upcoming schedule. We'll summarize the league schedule in the coming weeks.

The Engineers add three forwards, three defensemen, and a goalie to the roster for 2012-13, replacing a talented senior class which included Sierra Vadner, Amanda Castignetti, Laura Guillemette, Alicia Miksic, Alisa Harrison, and Jill Vandegrift. The freshmen (and one transfer student) will be counted on to contribute early and often in order to help the upperclassmen build from last year's disappointing 9-21-4 record and make it back to the playoffs after last year's miss.

On the blue line, Delaney Middlebrook (who transferred in from the now-defunct Niagara University team) will join the team as a sophomore. A 2-year captain at her high school in Minnesota, Middlebrook was a high scoring defenseman who may help to add some points from the blue line. She will be joined by freshmen Brandi Banks and Jenn Godin, both of whom were named MVP of their respective teams prior to their arrival at RPI.

Up front, Alexa Gruschow and Lauren Wash join Mari Mankey (sister of junior forward Missy Mankey) in the freshman class. Gruschow played for the Washington Pride in the JWHL in addition to her high school's boys hockey team. She racked up 108 points in 62 games in 2011-12, with even more penalty minutes (110). Wash was a two-time captain and assistant captain for the New Jersey Rockets of the MAWHA, and led the league in game winning goals. Mankey was also a two-time captain and a top student at Hopkins HS in Minnetonka, MN.

After a trial-by-fire season in goal which saw freshmen Brianna Piper and Kelly O'Brien split time in net, the now-sophomore tandem will be joined by newcomer Sara Till from Rice Memorial HS in Burlington, who captained her team three years in ice hockey as well as a year in field hockey and was named team MVP of both teams as well as lacrosse. After last year's split time, and with Till thrown into the mix, it's anyone's guess as to how the goaltending duties will be divided as the season gets underway.

With no exhibition on the schedule this year, the Engineers will jump right into action this coming weekend with a home series against UConn before hitting the road to take on BU (who fell to Cornell in triple overtime of the NCAA Quarterfinals last season) and Northeastern. The last meeting between the Engineers and Huskies was a 5-1 thrashing by the home team in Boston.

The Engineers will host Union in a non-conference affair before opening up the ECAC schedule in the final week of October at SLU and Clarkson. A road trip to Burlington for a Halloween special against UVM will be followed up by a home series against Princeton and Quinnipiac, before a pair at home against Robert Morris and another on the road at Syracuse will round out the non-conference schedule.

From there, the bulk of the ECAC schedule remains, with a home pair against Providence on 1/11 and 1/12 providing the only other break in the conference action for the remainder of the season.

We'll take a look at the preseason polls in the coming weeks along with a preview of the ECAC schedule and recaps of the season's first games. Keep an eye out on Twitter at @without_a_peer for live tweets of home games once again this season, with score updates (and scattered live tweets) from road games as the season gets underway.

Women's Hockey - ECAC Preview

With the ECAC schedule set to kick off for 10 teams this weekend (Cornell and Colgate having already played a game - a 6-2 Cornell win), let's take a quick look around the league and see what we can expect from the Engineers' opposition. Unlike last year's 3-part preview, this one will be condensed into a single installment with a few points on each team, primarily due to the fact that I simply didn't have time to write more. My apologies!

Without further ado - the 2011-2012 ECAC, in order of appearance vs. RPI:

*****

Quinnipiac

• Last Season's Record: 22-12-3, 12-9-1 ECAC (5th)
• Key Players: Kelly Babstock (F, So), Victoria Vigilanti (G, Jr), Bethany Dymarczyk (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 2-0 RPI (11/6 in Troy), 5-1 QU (2/11 in Hamden)
• 2011-2012 games: 10/28 in Troy, 2/18 in Hamden
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 3rd
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/quinnipiac/20112309_QuinnipiacNotesDurham

Quinnipiac came remarkably close to upsetting Cornell in the ECAC Semifinals last season, but would end up falling 4-3 and ending a season which saw the Bobcats miss home ice by just two points.

Fortunately for the team from Hamden, they have essentially returned their entire team from last season. With the only two graduates last season being the team's 10th leading scorer and a defenseman who played four games, Quinnipiac can essentially continue right where they left off, with some added input from five new players including goalie Chelsea Laden (runner-up for Minnesota defensive player of the year) and junior transfer Breann Frykas who came to Quinnipiac from Wisconsin.

With nothing but additions to an already solid team, it's no wonder the coaches have Quinnipiac pegged to finish third in the ECAC. If the Bobcats don't manage to secure home ice, it would have to be considered a disappointment. QU is off to a slow start, playing games against solid teams from Mercyhurst, Northeastern, and BC among others, and will likely look forward to digging into the meat of the ECAC schedule.

*****

Princeton

• Last Season's Record: 16-14-1, 13-8-1 ECAC (4th)
• Key Players: Rachel Weber (G, Jr), Olivia Mucha (F, So), Charissa Stadynk (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 2-1 Princeton (11/5 in Troy), 4-2 Princeton (2/12 in Princeton)
• 2011-2012 games: 10/29 in Troy, 2/17 in Princeton
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 7th

Last season we commented on Princeton's habit of going on runs during the season just to fall flat in the playoffs. Last year was no exception, as the Tigers won 13 of 15 to end the season before getting swept at home by Quinnipiac. They outperformed the coaches' 6th place prediction to finish 4th and take home ice, and quickly squander it in two games.

This year, the coaches again look for Princeton to finish outside of home ice contention, and it would appear from the competition in league that it would be a fairly likely result. Princeton does return their starting goalie Rachel Weber, along with top scorer Olivia Mucha who lit it up in her freshman campaign last season.

Laura Martindale will be missed by the Tigers, as the defenseman played all 31 games last season and was an anchor on defense. A freshman goalie, forward, and two defenseman will supplement the returning skaters, with the goalie, Ashley Holt, going 46-5-4 in her junior hockey career.

Princeton opened up with a win at home against Northeastern before dropping a 3-1 decision to Niagara last weekend, and will open up their ECAC play this weekend at Union and RPI.

*****

St. Lawrence

• Last Season's Record: 16-18-2, 11-11-0 ECAC (7th)
• Key Players: Kelly Sabatine (F, Jr), Vanessa Emond (D, Sr), Alley Bero (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 3-2 RPI (10/29 in Canton), 2-1 SLU (2/19 in Troy)
• 2011-2012 games: 11/4 in Troy, 12/3 in Canton
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 6th
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/st._lawrence/20112009_StLawrenceSeasonPreview

After a pair of down seasons that saw them finish in 7th twice, the Saints will look to rebound in a year where they return their eight top scorers and several key defensive players. Sophopmore Caitlyn Lahonen will be the Saints' only returning goaltender; she split the job with senior Maxie Weisz last season, posting a .905 save percentage and 2.44 GAA. Lahonen is joined by freshman Carmen MacDonald, who helped Team Canada U-18 to the 2010 World Championship, leaving the Saints in a fairly good situation in net.

SLU opened the 2011-2012 season with a loss to an always-tought McGill, before going five games without a loss (against Clarkson, UConn, Providence, Niagara, and UNH), dropping their most recent game at BU 3-2 despite racking up a significant shot advantage. Both of the Saints games against Cornell come in the final month of the season, although the two teams also play a non-conference game on January 2. Ending the season against the Big Red could be bad news depending on how badly the Saints end up needing points at the end of the season. Look for them to lock up a playoff spot before the final weekend to take the uncertainty out of the equation.

*****

Clarkson

• Last Season's Record: 14-17-6, 10-8-4 ECAC (6th)
• Key Players: Jamie Lee Rattray (F, So), Erica Howe (G, So), Danielle Boudreau (D, Sr), Juana Baribeau (F, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 2-1 Clarkson (10/30 in Potsdam), 2-1 Clarkson (2/18 in Troy)
• 2011-2012 games: 11/5 in Troy, 12/2 in Potsdam
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 5th
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/clarkson/20111909_ClarksonSeasonPreview

Clarkson graduates goalie Lauren Dahm but returns Erica Howe who closed out the season for the Golden Knights, going 10-7-5 in 22 games. All-time leading scorer Melissa Waldie also graduated, and with her goes record-setting point production. Clarkson returns quite a bit of talent, however, including last season's top scorer Jamie Lee Rattray - named Clarkson's Rookie of the Year and an ECAC All-Rookie selection.

So far this year, the Golden Knights are off to a good start, going 4-1-3 in non-conference play, including wins over Providence, Syracuse, UNH, and a tie against BU. Their lone loss so far has come against North Country rival St. Lawrence. Clarkson will look to take some momentum into the ECAC schedule and try to secure home ice with an improvement on least season's 6th place finish.

*****

Brown

• Last Season's Record: 2-23-4, 1-17-4 ECAC (11th)
• Key Players: Alena Polenska (F, Jr), Laurie Jolin (F, Jr), Paige Pyett (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 1-0 Brown (11/13 in Providence), 4-2 RPI (2/4 in Troy)
• 2011-2012 games: 11/11 in Providence, 1/21 in Troy
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 11th
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/brown/20111810_Brown_Preview

With the departure of longtime head coach Digit Murphy and the arrival of Amy Bourbeau (previously an assistant at Princeton) to take the reigns, it appears Brown was ready to make the changes necessary to return to prominence after sinking to the basement of the ECAC over the past several seasons.

Don't expect the turnaround to happen overnight, though. After finishing 3rd in 2005-2006, Brown has wound up 9th, 10th, 10th, 11th, and 11th in the five seasons since. The Bears statistics are about what you would expect based on the record; their goalies combined for a .897/3.89 last season, they had just two scorers above 10 points (both with 17), and finished 11th and 12th in team offense and defense. It will take some time to turn such stats around.

Brown's only game of the year so far has been a 10-0 plastering of Sacred Heart (the D1 team that plays a mostly D3 schedule yet still loses many of those games). It will be an accomplishment for the Bears to finish better than 11th, but hopefully with a new coaching staff in place they can lay the groundwork for a climb back up the ECAC ladder.

*****

Yale

• Last Season's Record: 9-17-3, 8-12-12 ECAC (T-8th)
• Key Players: Aleca Hughes (F, Sr), Alyssa Zupon (F, Jr), Heather Grant (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 4-1 RPI (11/12 in New Haven), 2-2 Tie (2/5 in Troy)
• 2011-2012 games: 11/12 in New Haven, 1/20 in Troy
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 10th
• Yale Season Preview: http://www.yalebulldogs.com/sports/w-hockey/2011-12/releases/20111020o8n4xw

Yale opens the season looking very similar to last season's team, graduating high scoring Bray Ketchum, defenseman Samantha MacLean, and Lili Rudis who only saw action in two games. The biggest loss for the Bulldogs, however, is goalie Jackee Snikeris, whose .941/1.98 will be missed as Yale looks to find a new go-to netminder.

Whether that job will go to Yale's returning senior and junior goalies who saw limited action last season, or freshman Jaimie Leonoff (who participated in Team Canada's development camp along with playing for Team Quebec U18) remains to be seen. Up front, leading scorer Jackie Raines is in just her sophomore season, as is second leading returning scorer Jenna Ciotti.

Early outings do not bode well for the Bulldogs, who fell 5-1 to Niagara and 7-0 to Northeastern in their first two games last season. Things don't get easier with their first league game on the road at Cornell. Second-year head coach Joakim Flygh will need to get his team rolling in a hurry or it could be a long season en route to an early exit for Yale this year.

*****

Colgate

• Last Season's Record: 11-19-3, 8-12-2 ECAC (T-8th)
• Key Players: Brittany Phillips (F, Jr), Amanda Kirwan (D, Sr), Jenny Klynstra (F, Jr), Kimberly Sass (G, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 5-4 RPI (1/15 in Troy), 2-0 Colgate (1/28 in Hamilton)
• 2011-2012 games: 1/6 in Troy, 2/4 in Hamilton
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 9th
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/colgate/20112309_ColgatePreps201112Season

Colgate has spent most of its years in the ECAC as a middle-of-the-pack team, and things look poised to continue that way for the Raiders this season. Colgate will need to improve from the goal crease (where Kimberly Sass posted a .899/2.88 last season) out to make the playoffs this year after missing them on a tiebreaker last season.

Up front, the Raiders return their top two scorers in Brittany Phillips and Jenna Klystra, and bring in just one freshman defenseman, but five rookie forwards may make for a bit of an adjustment period. Given the team's ranking of 10th in both scoring offense and defense last season, too much adjustment time could spell big trouble for this team.

With the cluster of teams that ends up inevitably deadlocked in the 5-10 range in league, Colgate will probably be right in the mix for a playoff spot once again, but could just as easily find themselves on the outside looking in due to a tiebreaker or a game or two gone wrong during the course of the season.

*****

Cornell

• Last Season's Record: 31-3-1, 20-1-1 ECAC (1st)
• Key Players: Amanda Mazzotta (G, Sr), Lauren Slebodnick (G, So), Lauriane Rougeau (D, Jr), Rebecca Johnston (F, Sr), Chelsea Karpenko (F, Sr), Catherine White (F, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 6-1 Cornell (1/14 in Troy), 6-0 Cornell (1/29 in Ithaca), 3-2 Cornell (2/25 in Ithaca), 6-1 Cornell (2/26 in Ithaca)
• 2011-2012 games: 1/7 in Troy, 2/3 in Ithaca
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 1st
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/cornell/20111510_CornellSeasonPreview

Calling Cornell the favorite to win the ECAC this season would be quite a monumental understatement. Coming off their second consecutive trip to the Frozen Four, the Big Red graduated just three players (including a goalie who played just three games) and return their top five scorers (all over 40 points) and entire defensive corps from last season.

With six seniors on the roster (including arguably some of the best players to ever play for the Big Red), this would appear to be a year that Cornell seriously challenges for the first national title to go to anyone other than UMD, Wisconsin, or Minnesota. They have two goaltenders who split time last season, putting up .945/.942 and 1.11/1.15. They have serious scoring talent and everything they need on defense. In their only outing so far this season, they dismantled Colgate 6-2 with a 64-12 shot advantage (Frosh Jillian Saulnier scored FOUR goals).

Cornell will be the team to beat in the ECAC and one of the best in the country, and that's really all there is to say.

*****

Dartmouth

• Last Season's Record: 22-12-0, 15-7-0 ECAC (3rd)
• Key Players: Camille Dumais (F, Jr), Kelly Foley (F, Sr), Sasha Nanji (D, Jr), Lindsay Holdcroft (G, So)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 5-2 RPI (1/7 in Troy), 3-0 Dartmouth (1/22 in Hanover)
• 2011-2012 games: 1/13 in Hanover, 2/11 in Troy
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 4th
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/dartmouth/20112010_Dartmouth_Season_Preview

After a third place league finish last year which led into back-to-back losses to Cornell in the ECAC Championship and NCAA Quarterfinals (can you say "bad draw"?), Dartmouth looks to build on their success and push for home ice once again in 2011-2012. The Big Green return most of their top scorers along with five defensemen, so should not suffer significantly from an overwhelming freshman influx; continued steady play from the returning players coupled with some early results from the freshman will, however, be needed to overcome the graduation of 100-point scorer Amanda Trunzo.

The Big Green start the season picked to finish 4th in league and with a preseason 10th place national ranking have already garnered some attention on the national stage. A win over McGill and a narrow 4-3 loss to #5 Boston College have highlighted the meager two games in Dartmouth's schedule so far; games against Clarkson, SLU, UNH, and Cornell should prove to be trial by fire for the Big Green as they jump into the remainder of their schedule.

*****

Harvard

• Last Season's Record: 17-11-4, 14-5-3 ECAC (2nd)
• Key Players: Jillian Dempsey (F, So), Laura Bellamy (G, Jr), Josephine Pucci (D, Jr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 2-1 RPI (1/8 in Troy), 2-1 Harvard (1/21 in Boston)
• 2011-2012 games: 1/14 in Boston, 2/10 in Troy
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 2nd
• ECAC Hockey Preview: http://www.ecachockey.com/women/members/harvard/20112610_HarvardNotesClarksonStLawrence

Harvard does not play its first official game of the season until opening up with a pair of ECAC matchups against Clarkson and SLU, although the Crimson did skate to a 3-1 victory over McGill last weekend in an exhibition. The coaches weren't worried about it when picking the Crimson to take second place in the league, though.

Harvard loses several top players to graduation, including Kate Buesser, Liza Ryabkina, Leanna Coskren, and Katharine Chute. Top scorer Jillian Dempsey returns, along with top-scoring defenseman Josephine Pucci, fresh off a gold medal winning trip to Switzerland with Team USA.

Harvard hasn't finished a season without home ice in the playoffs since 1998. When you build a team with such continuous success and consistency, you build a team that recovers quickly from graduation losses and moves forward with little hesitation. Expect Harvard's two forward, two defense, and single goalie freshmen to gel with the team quickly and help propel Harvard in another fight for the top end of the league's standings.

*****

Union

• Last Season's Record: 2-29-3, 1-19-2 ECAC (12th)
• Key Players: Kate Gallagher (G, Sr), Lauren Hoffman (F, Jr), Lauren Cromartie (D, Sr)
• Last Season vs. RPI: 4-1 RPI (12/3 in Schenectady), 3-3 Tie (12/4 in Troy)
• 2011-2012 games: 1/27 in Schenectady, 1/28 in Troy
• 2011-2012 Preseason Coaches' Poll: 12th

Long occupying the bottom of the ECAC ladder, it may not be likely that Union makes much of a jump forward this year, but that's not to say the team isn't making strides in the right direction. Under the leadership of head coach Claudia Asano Barcomb and assistants Julie Chu and Ali Boe, the Dutchwomen are slowly but surely building a team that can challenge for a playoff spot.

The Dutchwomen return much of last season's team, but also some significant additions in this year's incoming class. Goaltender Shanae Lundberg, a former USA U-18 player, continues Union's trend of recruiting solid goaltending that can hold them in games, while Syracuse transfer Talia Menard will look to emulate some of her twin sister's success in leading the Orange in scoring last season.

Like Brown, Union has a long road ahead to climb out of the basement, but the dedication of the coaching staff to building Union into a contender is undeniable. Only time will tell how it will pay off.

Women's Hockey - 2011-12 Season Preview

With the new season ready to kick off with an exhibition in just five days, it's high time to take a look at what the 2011-2012 season has in store for the Engineers. We will again take a look at the ECAC and the coaches' preseason picks in more detail before the league schedule kicks off, but before that, let's review the newcomers to RPI this season, along with an overview of the season schedule.

With the graduation of Sonja van der Bliek last season, one of the big question marks for the season is in goal. Junior Shannon Ramelot returns for another season and will likely get the nod early in the season. Ramelot is joined by two incoming freshmen in Kelly O'Brien and Brianna Piper. O'Brien put together a 1.89GAA and .936% playing for the Madison (WI) Capitols, while Piper, who played for the familiar-to-RPI Toronto Aeros, tallied a 1.80GAA and .912% en route to a PWHL championship. Piper will likely challenge for playing time early and keep some healthy competition going between the pipes. The Engineers also appear to have added a walk-on goalie in Alicia Miksic, listed as a graduate student in architecture at RPI.

At forward, the Engineers welcome four new players to fill the space left by graduates Sydney O'Keefe and Kendra Dunlop, and Audrey Stapleton who departed the team after her sophomore season. Eleeza Cox played for Ridley College, a private high school in Ontario, along with a season for the Aeros. She racked up significant points for Ridley, where she was a four-year starter and was the team's youngest ever assistant captain.

Taylor Mahoney joins the Engineers from the Chicago Mission, where she helped the team to three state championships and a USA Hockey national runner-up finish in 2009. She was in the top 20 for league scoring for three years straight. Ali Svoboda also comes to Troy from the Chicago Mission, having also spent four seasons playing for Team Illinois. She was an assistant captain in her senior year.

Marianna Walsh arrives from the Massachusetts prep school scene, where she achieved notoriety at Phillips Academy both for goal scoring as well as racking up penalty minutes, leading the team in both categories three years straight. In her senior campaign she set the school's single season scoring record and was named Female Athlete of the Year.

On the blue line, the Engineers bring in just one recruit as there were no losses to graduation last season. Kathryn Schilter is another Toronto Aero-turned-Engineer, who previously helped her high school team in Aurora, Ontario to two undefeated championship seasons in a row.

With only the three graduates noted above, the Engineers add significant depth to the roster this season, a point which should prove important as the season wears on. Many games last season saw the Engineers rolling three lines or two defensive pairs due to injury and a short bench. While it may prove tough to depend so heavily on freshmen, there comes a point where just having fresh legs on the bench makes a big difference.

After the exhibition on 9/23 against the same Toronto Aeros team which has almost become a training ground for future Engineers, RPI spends four weeks on non-conference opposition, with the first three weekends on the road at UConn, Vermont, and Niagara, before returning home for a series against Robert Morris. While none of these teams made significant tracks in the 2010-11 season, all four had some high points and should serve as a good tune-up for the Engineers before digging into the league schedule.

The ECAC schedule gets underway the weekend of 10/28 when RPI hosts Quinnipiac and Princeton, before welcoming St. Lawrence and Clarkson the following weekend. A pair at Yale and Brown marks the end of the early ECAC schedule as the Engineers face a few more non-conference opponents before again taking on Clarkson and SLU before winter break.

One of the definite highlights of the 2011-12 schedule comes on the weekend of 11/25 when the Engineers welcome national champion Wisconsin to Houston Field House. The Badgers come to troy on a return trip for one made to Madison last year, where the Engineers were defeated 7-0 and 6-0 in their first games of the season. RPI will hope for better results on home ice but no matter how you cut it, it will be a challenging weekend.

The Engineers go on to welcome Syracuse for a weekend series in what has become an annual affair since the Orange moved to Division I. Syracuse took away a win and a tie last season at the Tennity Ice Pavilion, so again RPI will hope for better luck within the friendly confines of Houston Field House.

After winter break, the meat of the ECAC schedule remains, starting with games against Colgate and Cornell the weekend of 1/6. RPI then hits the road to visit Dartmouth and Harvard before returning home for a pair against Yale and Brown. The home-and-home with Union comes on 1/27 in Schenectady and 1/28 in Troy.

RPI is back on the road against Cornell and Colgate, returns home to face Harvard and Dartmouth, then closes out the regular season at Princeton and Quinnipiac the weekend of 2/17.

The struggles of last season still fresh in everyone's mind, this season may well be another difficult one for the Engineers. Aside from Wisconsin who will almost certainly be a powerhouse once again, the non-conference schedule appears to be a balanced and competitive one. We'll take a look at the ECAC in the coming weeks in order to better evaluate the Engineers' league prospects for the coming season.

Women's Hockey - 2011 Playoff Preview

While the men gear up for the final weekend of the regular season, the women’s teams of the ECAC are set for the quarterfinals of the ECAC playoffs. With Colgate, Yale, Brown, and Union finishing in the bottom four and missing the playoffs, the seeds were established for this weekend’s matchups:

No. 8 RPI at No. 1 Cornell

No. 7 St. Lawrence at No. 2 Harvard

No. 6 Clarkson at No. 3 Dartmouth

No. 5 Quinnipiac at No. 4 Princeton

Let’s take a look at the other three series before we get to RPI’s challenging trip to Ithaca.

No. 5 Quinnipiac at No. 4 Princeton

Head-to-head: Tied 1-1 (5-2 QU in Hamden, 3-0 Princeton in Princeton)

Quinnipiac’s Record: 12-9-1 (20-11-3 overall) (5-3-2 last 10)

Princeton’s Record: 13-8-1 (16-12-1 overall) (8-2 last 10)

Princeton has been an interesting case this season. In their first 14 games, they went 3-10-1, before finding their game in early December and finishing the season on a 13-2 tear. Their two losses in the final 15 came to Clarkson (3-2) and Dartmouth (7-0!). Quinnipiac has been much more hot-and-cold, managing to win five and four in a row only one time each this season – and each came with the benefit of a gimme game against Sacred Heart.

Perhaps most perplexing is Quinnipiac’s final regular season weekend. Entering the weekend in fourth place, the Bobcats proceeded to lose to 10th place Yale, tie 11th place Brown, and promptly surrender home ice to Princeton who handily defeated both teams.

While Princeton has had playoff woes, losing in the quarterfinals for four straight years, the combination of a Tiger squad that’s found its stride, a streaky Bobcat group, and home ice should tilt this series in Princeton’s favor, although we wouldn’t be surprised if the Bobcats take it to three games with Victoria Vigilanti in net. Vigilanti has posted an impressive 1.68 GAA with a .933 save percentage and 8 shutouts. Princeton’s Rachel Weber nearly matches Vigilanti’s numbers with a 1.79 and .930, however.

No. 6 Clarkson at No. 3 Dartmouth

Head-to-head: Tied 1-1 (3-2 OT Clarkson in Hanover, 3-1 Dartmouth in Potsdam)

Clarkson’s Record: 13-15-6 (10-8-4 ECAC) (5-2-3 last 10)

Dartmouth’s Record: 19-9-0 (15-7-0 ECAC) (9-1 last 10)

Dartmouth has the benefit of entering the playoffs having won 10 of 11 since being swept in the North Country in the middle of January. The Big Green’s lone loss in that span came in a shutout by Quinnipiac where the Bobcats scored one goal shortly after a 5-on-3, one goal on a 5-on-3, and an empty netter en route to a 4-0 final tally. Clarkson, like Quinnipiac, has been inconsistent during the season. The Golden Knights have had an off season just a year after taking Cornell to overtime in the ECAC championship game.

Ending the season in the Top 10 of the USCHO poll, Dartmouth carries all the momentum into the playoffs and has enjoyed large crowds at home. While the series isn’t lopsided by any means, it’s Dartmouth’s to lose.

No. 7 St. Lawrence at No. 2 Harvard

Head-to-head: Harvard 2-0 (2-1 in Boston, 3-2 in Canton)

SLU’s Record: 16-16-2 (11-11-0 ECAC) (5-5 last 10)

Harvard’s Record: 15-10-4 (14-5-3 ECAC) (5-3-2 last 10)

St. Lawrence has been a thoroughly average team this season. A .500 record overall, a .500 record in league, .500 in their last 10, and a +4 goal differential across 34 games. Now two seasons removed from a string of NCAA tournament appearances, the Saints are stuck in a bit of a rut, and that’s not a great position to be in when facing a Harvard squad that had your number in two games during the regular season. While the games may have been decided by a single goal each, Harvard outworked and significantly outshot SLU in each, and that type of game is draining on a team in a best-of-three series.

While Harvard has hit some road bumps late in the year, going 3-3-2 in their final 8 games, they should be favored to win this series without too much trouble. If the Saints want to stand a chance of moving on, their most likely hope is behind solid play from goaltender Maxie Weisz, who has been more impressive than Harvard’s Laura Bellamy over the course of the regular season. It was Weisz who posted 31 saves against RPI in the final game of the season, holding the Saints in a game where they were outworked.

No. 8 RPI at No. 1 Cornell

Head-to-head: Cornell 2-0 (6-1 in Troy, 6-0 in Ithaca)

RPI’s Record: 10-16-7 (8-12-2 ECAC) (1-8-1 last 10)

Cornell’s Record: 26-2-1 (20-1-1 ECAC) (8-1-1 last 10)

We’re not going to sugar coat this one. Cornell has run roughshod over the ECAC this season, much like the Harvard squad of three years ago which went undefeated in ECAC play. In their two head-to-head games, the Engineers were outshot by the Big Red 77-25 and outscored 12-1. Cornell is a relative lock for the Frozen Four, and RPI has done little this season to show they pose any threat to the #2 ranked team in the nation.

Limping its way into the playoffs, RPI has dealt with a short bench in many of its games, dressing just three lines and two defensive pairings at times. With a roster full of some of the top players in the country, Cornell has outworked one team after the next and wore them down for win after win. RPI doesn’t have the depth to roll a full lineup against the Big Red, and that’s going to hurt over the course of a weekend.

Last year, RPI battled back from a 5-1 hole in the ECAC semifinal to draw within one against a Cornell squad that went on to win the ECAC title. That near-comeback was sparked by Whitney Naslund and Laura Gersten, both of whom graduated. And perhaps more importantly, it came in a single elimination game. Drawn out over a best-of-three, the hopes of such a disparate matchup resulting in an upset becomes that much smaller.

However – as former RPI captain Laura Gersten said on the air for WRPI last weekend – “There’s nothing better than an upset.”

Friday’s game (7pm) will not be carried by WRPI as it conflicts with the men’s game against Princeton. However Saturday (4pm) and Sunday (4pm if necessary) will be carried live from Ithaca by WRPI. Live video will be available for purchase from Cornell, along with live stats and live tweets from Without a Peer at http://www.twitter.com/without_a_peer.

Women's Hockey - Around the ECAC (Putting Together the Pieces)

Over the past week we’ve looked at the Engineers’ schedule, broken down the teams they’ll face, and opined on some of the strengths and weaknesses of the ECAC opposition. Let’s take a moment to wrap it up with a look at the preseason Coaches’ Poll and our own predictions for the ECAC this season. Below is a chart showing the league’s final standings from the past five seasons, along with the preseason poll results.



Taking a look at the poll and based on our review of the league’s members, there’s not much to disagree with in the coaches’ predictions. As is pretty typical of preseason polls, the coaches followed last season’s results fairly closely. Cornell and Clarkson are clear favorites to take the top two spots, with Harvard and Quinnipiac close behind. Either of the Crimson or the Bobcats could move up if they get a strong performance from their goaltenders.

St. Lawrence, Princeton, RPI, and Dartmouth are good picks to round out the playoff spots, but in what order is anybody’s guess. After the trouble Dartmouth had last season, it’s possible they could miss the playoffs for the second year in a row, something most would have considered unfathomable just a couple seasons ago. The coaches’ prediction of Princeton finishing in 6th could actually be a little on the low side as long as the Tigers’ upperclassmen come back stronger than last season. Experience will work in their favor in 2010-11. RPI, picked 7th, we feel to be pretty accurate. With a lot of talent to replace and a heavy dependence on some upperclassmen who did not have spectacular seasons last year, the Engineers could find themselves out of the playoffs just as easily as they could be in the top half of the league. A lot will depend on the performance of Sonja van der Bliek in net.

Rounding out the bottom of the conference are Colgate, Yale, Brown, and Union, four fairly safe picks to miss the playoffs again in 2010-11. While Brown and Union can pretty much be considered locks to finish 11th and 12th, Colgate and Yale could play spoiler to one of the teams picked to finish 5th-8th. Of Colgate and Yale, the Bulldogs look more likely to be the surprise team to climb out of the bottom third, with returning talent and goaltending that look a little stronger than the Raiders bring to the table.

Looking back a couple seasons in the final standings, it’s fairly obvious that last season’s results represented a big shakeup compared to the typical results of seasons past. This season’s results could give a better indication of whether that shakeup was a fluke, or if years of fairly uniform results could be out the window in favor of a new arrangement where Cornell, Clarkson, and Quinnipiac find themselves in the spotlight while Dartmouth and St. Lawrence struggle in the bottom half of the standings.

The ECAC schedule kicks off October 29th and 30th. In the meantime, we’ll be keeping an eye on these teams during nonconference play in order to get a better feel for what to expect once we get into league play. To catch a glimpse of the Engineers as they take to the ice for the first time this season, make your way to the Field House this Saturday at 4pm following the RPI-WPI football game for the team’s exhibition against the University of Montreal.

Finally, it’s hockey season!