>>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

[Downstate_RIT_Fan]

It doesn't just look like 8 out of 10. It actually is 8 out of 10 ... and for that matter, 9 out of 11 after they complete the home-and-home with Niagara.

Just giving myself some “wiggle room” if I mis-read something 👍

This morning I checked up on a few alums. Brady Norrish is the leading scorer amongst defensemen for the ECHL Idaho Steelhead with 8 points in 11 games with 3 goals and 5 assists, with 2 of those goals coming on the power play. I hope he has a great season. Early season certainly looks promising.

[Downstate_RIT_Fan]

Maybe load the team on a bus and drive-around Henrietta before the games?

Drive that bus to a local budget hotel in the neighborhood the night before the games and make the team stay at the hotel, no cable tv and no electronics, they can do homework if they’d like, and a lights out curfew.
They will be plenty upset in the morning, and wanting to get at it. Maybe too many distractions at the comforts of home? 😄

[TigerFan86-87]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

... and no electronics, they can do homework if they’d like...

They can't do their homework with no electronics.

They will be plenty upset in the morning, and wanting to get at it. Maybe too many distractions at the comforts of home? 😄

I don't think it's as much the excess of comforts for RIT players at home as it might be the excess comfort the visiting teams feel when they come into GPC. Contrast that with the discomfort they used to feel playing at Ritter. It's got to make a difference. The building is much nicer, more modern and better facilities. Not to mention the environment being much less hostile feeling with the stands being so sparsely populated in many areas for most games.

[Downstate_RIT_Fan]

They can't do their homework with no electronics.


I don't think it's as much the excess of comforts for RIT players at home as it might be the excess comfort the visiting teams feel when they come into GPC. Contrast that with the discomfort they used to feel playing at Ritter. It's got to make a difference. The building is much nicer, more modern and better facilities. Not to mention the environment being much less hostile feeling with the stands being so sparsely populated in many areas for most games.

A couple years ago I was talking to an Army Mom who made the trip to RIT to watch her son and the Army team play the Tigers at the GPC. She said it was a beautiful and very nice arena. Nice atmosphere I suppose. Comfy maybe? I wondered if she shared that same opinion of the Ritter? Probably not. One thing I did notice is a tweet from RIT mentioning that students are free this Friday night and there is a long sleeve orange T-shirt giveaway. Hopefully they fill the place with screaming orange clad fans like a mini brick city. That could only help our Tigers.

[komey1]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

I don't know, man... the home games certainly are nice, and personally I love the GPC as a hockey venue, but statistically it has not been very good to "us", and there is little-to-no evidence of any ‘home ice advantage’ over recent years. Home and Away records since 2014 (both overall and conference), from collegehockeystats:

            Overall Home  Conf Home  Overall Away  Conf Away
2017-2018:     6-13-1       5-9-0       9-7-1        8-5-1
2016-2017:     6-13-1       5-9-0       8-9-0        8-6-0
2015-2016:     5- 8-3       5-7-2      11-6-3        9-2-3
2014-2015:    10- 6-3       7-4-3       7-7-2        7-5-2

Only one winning season on-record... this must change. Maybe load the team on a bus and drive-around Henrietta before the games?

Not disagreeing with recent history - just saying that it's an opportunity that they need to take advantage of.

[Hockeyplayer82]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

Not disagreeing with recent history - just saying that it's an opportunity that they need to take advantage of.

If the Blackhawks can let Quenville go after 3 stanley cups, then anyone can be let go. Penalty issues, recruiting and winning at home are coaching. Figure it out or a winning season is impossible.

[jflory81]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

Give it some time. Nobody else had to play their first four games on the road against RMU and MU. We'll have to wait a while to see how strong these teams end up being on the season, but most years that would be considered a pretty brutal beginning to a season, schedule-wise.

Did you miss Army playing their first four conference games on the road against RMU and MU? And going 3-0-1 against them with a 15-7 GF-GA?

[Hockeyplayer82]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

Did you miss Army playing their first four conference games on the road against RMU and MU? And going 3-0-1 against them with a 15-7 GF-GA?

That is a good point. No excuses about road games, all teams have to play them. If road games early in the season are to difficult for RIT then the coach should schedule differently. By the way AIC is no joke home or away and they typically steal one while on the road against RIT. This weekend is a very early deciding factor where this season will go. If AIC sweeps, that would be a challenge for RIT to rebound. Split is not good enough at this point because of where RIT is in the standings. So, a sweep for RIT is the only option.

[Downstate_RIT_Fan]

That is a good point. No excuses about road games, all teams have to play them. If road games early in the season are to difficult for RIT then the coach should schedule differently. By the way AIC is no joke home or away and they typically steal one while on the road against RIT. This weekend is a very early deciding factor where this season will go. If AIC sweeps, that would be a challenge for RIT to rebound. Split is not good enough at this point because of where RIT is in the standings. So, a sweep for RIT is the only option.

Well near capacity crowds could not hurt, let’s hope for big crowds this weekend.

[komey1]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

If the Blackhawks can let Quenville go after 3 stanley cups, then anyone can be let go. Penalty issues, recruiting and winning at home are coaching. Figure it out or a winning season is impossible.

I don't recall seeing a single thing positive from you about RIT. Are you a dad of a player that is not getting ice time?

Let's be real, it's going to be extremely difficult to get a better coach than Wayne Wilson go to come and coach DI hockey for a team that cannot offer athletic scholarships in a league like Atlantic Hockey. He took a team 5 years removed form a DIII team to a Frozen Four. He has taken RIT to 3 NCAA tournaments in DI with a record of 3-3 in those games. The only candidates that you would likely get are assistant head coaches looking to move to head coaching, DIII head coaches looking to move up, or a coach that is trying to rebuild his reputation. None of these to me are a better option.

Does that mean I think everything is perfect? No. The home ice record gets under my skin a lot - I remember seasons where RIT might lose only 1 home game. The penalties are frustrating - but some of that is incompetence of Atlantic Hockey referees. A bunch of teams won't schedule non conference games with Atlantic Hockey opponents if the AHC refs are used. Early season is getting used to the new points of emphasis - and also some places are notorious for the refs being more generous to the home crowd. Recruiting is hard - especially if you can't offer athletic scholarships. But let's also not forget that other teams in the league have made significant upgrades to their programs.

[komey1]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

That is a good point. No excuses about road games, all teams have to play them. If road games early in the season are to difficult for RIT then the coach should schedule differently. By the way AIC is no joke home or away and they typically steal one while on the road against RIT. This weekend is a very early deciding factor where this season will go. If AIC sweeps, that would be a challenge for RIT to rebound. Split is not good enough at this point because of where RIT is in the standings. So, a sweep for RIT is the only option.

I don't think RIT has a choice to when they play the road games on their schedule. They can only work out the non-conference games.

AIC is improved from years past, and I agree cannot be taken lightly. One needs to only look at last year when the team managed a split against the Yellowjackets - losing the 2nd game in OT. But we are also 4 games into the conference season. As Aaron Rodgers says: RELAX. There is a lot of hockey to be played. A split is not a disaster. Losing both would make things difficult to move up in the standings, but it is also still early.

[Tom Naeger]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

Oh a Fire Wayne Thread has already come up!!!!

Wayne made a comment in the post game Saturday about last two years every Friday game has been flat. Obviously, the coaches are frustrated and have seem to try just about everything the last two years. In that time this teams biggest enemy has been themselves. Coaches make fancy speeches all the time and we love to eat it up in Movies but to me it the most overrated aspect of coaching. If you look at great coaches of all sports, just about everyone of the great motivators who coached a sports team has an asterisk next to them, because as soon as their team stop winning they quickly became annoying and got fired.

Major Dick Winters of the 101st Airborne Division said it best.

"How do you prepare yourself, mentally? Each man must do that himself. Each man must prepare himself mentally to make that jump.”

If these players have gotten to this level and need to be explain what a rare and special time this is for them then it is a lost cause. A coach prepares his teams and makes sure they adhere to a game plan. Sure they give a little speech to lift spirits, but that speech doesn't win a game. It the players on the ice who win or loses the game. Heck, I've seen plenty of bad coaches win games because their players won the game. If you are going to judge a coach judge him/her on the decisions that they make, not if they can give you a memorable quote. Trust me, I heard plenty of good speeches, you forget them when the game starts.

RIT Coaches aren't perfect. Heck I honestly felt they made some questionable decisions about goaltending last year and the whole thing fall apart. If you want your pound a flesh fine, but it doesn't win championships. Look no further than the Pegulas, they have been quick to fire when things go ever so poorly. The number of GMs and Coaches they are paying at the same time is down right crazy and has resulted in them fracking the little respect that was left for the Buffalo sports... Yes I know the Sabres beat the Senators 9-2 I'll wet myself okay...

Given the results, I'll give Wayne and company time to deal with the players...

[Downstate_RIT_Fan]

I always like to go back to Union as they were able to turn that program into a powerhouse without scholarships. I think the Ivies are different as they are always going to draw talent. So what does Union have that enabled them to put together a decent team year in and year out over the last 10 years or so? Is it the competition of being in the ECAC? Is it the recruiting? Is it the success of previous seasons? Is it Coach Bennet? A combination? I think more than anything else it is the coach. Players want to play in Coach Bennett’s system. He’s an emotional guy too. Just ask the RPI faithful about the after game brawl a few years ago in which Bennet was in the middle of. He called his players marshmallows after a bad loss earlier this year. Called them out. They lost the next night too but have since rebounded. I watched Frank Serratore last week use his emotion on his players and the refs to sweep Army. I know it’s not every coaches thing but I think players react to raw emotion, if you’re going to run through a wall for your coach you’re probably more apt to do it for the coach that seems to be in the trenches with you and most definitely has your attention. Again not for everyone but it seems to work for Union and Air Force.

[Russell Jaslow]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

Oh a Fire Wayne Thread has already come up!!!!

Wayne made a comment in the post game Saturday about last two years every Friday game has been flat. Obviously, the coaches are frustrated and have seem to try just about everything the last two years. In that time this teams biggest enemy has been themselves. Coaches make fancy speeches all the time and we love to eat it up in Movies but to me it the most overrated aspect of coaching. If you look at great coaches of all sports, just about everyone of the great motivators who coached a sports team has an asterisk next to them, because as soon as their team stop winning they quickly became annoying and got fired.

Major Dick Winters of the 101st Airborne Division said it best.



If these players have gotten to this level and need to be explain what a rare and special time this is for them then it is a lost cause. A coach prepares his teams and makes sure they adhere to a game plan. Sure they give a little speech to lift spirits, but that speech doesn't win a game. It the players on the ice who win or loses the game. Heck, I've seen plenty of bad coaches win games because their players won the game. If you are going to judge a coach judge him/her on the decisions that they make, not if they can give you a memorable quote. Trust me, I heard plenty of good speeches, you forget them when the game starts.

"If you lose this game, you'll take it to your f------ graves. {starts to walk out of the locker room, stops, turns around} To your f------ graves!"

Greatest motivational speech in the history of sports. And it worked!

[komey1]

Re: >>> RIT Tigers 2018/2019 - Time For The Tigers to Roar <<<

I always like to go back to Union as they were able to turn that program into a powerhouse without scholarships. I think the Ivies are different as they are always going to draw talent. So what does Union have that enabled them to put together a decent team year in and year out over the last 10 years or so? Is it the competition of being in the ECAC? Is it the recruiting? Is it the success of previous seasons? Is it Coach Bennet? A combination? I think more than anything else it is the coach. Players want to play in Coach Bennett’s system. He’s an emotional guy too. Just ask the RPI faithful about the after game brawl a few years ago in which Bennet was in the middle of. He called his players marshmallows after a bad loss earlier this year. Called them out. They lost the next night too but have since rebounded. I watched Frank Serratore last week use his emotion on his players and the refs to sweep Army. I know it’s not every coaches thing but I think players react to raw emotion, if you’re going to run through a wall for your coach you’re probably more apt to do it for the coach that seems to be in the trenches with you and most definitely has your attention. Again not for everyone but it seems to work for Union and Air Force.

Is Union really a powerhouse though? They had a great stretch that culminated in a championship, but that was 4 years ago. Since then, they have 1 ECAC regular season title and 1 NCAA tournament appearance. Also, let's not undervalue playing in the ECAC and the opportunities that creates. Sure they can get more 20 win seasons, but I would hardly call them a powerhouse.

As for Air Force - take a look when their last regular season championship was - I'll bet it shocks you. They have typically been a great conference tournament team. I do think Serratore is a good coach who gets a lot out of this players. But he has also been blessed in getting very good goaltenders over the years.