When fans go to a college hockey game, they should expect to have a good time rooting their team onto victory.
They shouldn't have to worry about avoiding frostbite.
I don't know if it's because I'm getting older, but I have found many of the ECAC Hockey rinks I have been to this season colder than normal. I expect it to be cold inside Princeton's Hobey Baker Rink because the building is old (and not historic like many college hockey announcers like to say the place is just because Baker's name is attached to it).
But sitting through Saturday's 2-2 tie between Union at Brown at Meehan Auditorium was downright cruel.
I have sat through some cold rinks in my time, including some of my son's youth hockey games. But Saturday, I felt like I was sitting in a refrigerator.
I arrived at Meehan around 4:30 to start my prep work for the game. The place was freezing. I thought it would get better, but it never did. Brown sports information director Jeanne Carhart apologized for how cold it was.
I shouldn't have to wear my toque when I cover hockey games, but I did just to keep my head warm. If I wasn't doing a live blog during the game, I would have worn my gloves to keep my hands warm. Union SID Kevin Zalaznik had his gloves on the entire game. Mike Scandura, who was covering the game for another newspaper, told me it was colder the night before, when Brown played RPI. Yikes!
You know where the warmest place was in the building? The men's room because the heat was working there. I will assume the women's room had heat, too, but I didn't go in there to check.
As I was writing my game story, it proceeded to get colder. I could see my breath. That is why I had to get out of there without writing my blog and editing video. It took me an hour in the car to get warm again.
I have to wonder if Brown and some of the other colleges, like Quinnipiac and Yale, whose rinks were also lacking heat, have ordered budget cuts when it comes to keeping buildings warm. I understand you have to have some coolness in the rink, but when it borders on the possibility of developing frostbite, then that is a major concern.
The schools should remember that the fans' comfort is a priority. If they have to sit for two hours watching hockey in a frigid building, then they won't come back.
Union stays in poll
Thanks to a lot of the top-20 teams splitting games over the weekend, the Dutchmen are still in the USCHO.com NCAA hockey poll.
Despite going 0-1-1 over the weekend, the Dutchmen dropped two spots to No. 20. They received 100 points.
The Dutchmen received 11 points in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Top-15 Poll
Union held steady at No. 15 in the Inside College Hockey Power Rankings. To view the list, click here.
Here are the polls:
USCHO.com NCAA poll
Team (First Place) Record Pts Last Week
1 Miami (43) 18-4-6 993 1
2 Denver (6) 16-6-4 950 3
3 Wisconsin (1) 15-7-4 895 2
4 St. Cloud State 17-8-3 817 5
5 Cornell 12-5-3 718 8
6 Minnesota-Duluth 17-10-1 690 9
7 Bemidji State 18-6-2 635 7
8 Yale 12-6-3 603 6
9 North Dakota 13-10-5 581 4
10 Colorado College 15-10-3 548 11
11 Ferris State 17-8-3 516 10
12 Michigan State 17-9-4 483 12
13 New Hampshire 13-8-4 443 13
14 Boston College 13-8-2 432 14
15 Massachusetts 16-10-0 347 15
16 Maine 12-9-3 212 19
17 Vermont 12-9-3 167 17
18 Mass.-Lowell 14-10-2 149 16
19 Michigan 15-12-1 137 20
20 Union 13-7-6 100 18
Others receiving votes: St. Lawrence 46, Lake Superior 24, Sacred Heart 6, Notre Dame 4, RIT 2, Alaska 1, Minnesota 1.
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll
(First-place votes in parenthesis)
Rank School Last Poll's Ranking 2009-10 Record Weeks in Top-15
1 Miami University, 506 (30) 1 18-4-6 17
2 University of Denver, 480 (4) 3 16-6-4 17
3 University of Wisconsin, 436 2 15-7-4 10
4 St. Cloud State University, 381 5 17-8-3 6
5 Cornell University, 358 8 12-5-3 17
6 University of Minnesota Duluth, 289 9 17-10-111
7 Bemidji State University, 278 6 18-6-2 14
8 Yale University, 251 7 12-6-3 17
9 University of North Dakota, 241 4 13-10-5 17
10 Colorado College, 172 11 15-10-3 14
11 Ferris State University, 169 10 17-8-3 8
12 Michigan State University, 166 13 17-9-4 12
13 University of New Hampshire, 138 12 13-8-4 2
14 Boston College, 112 15 13-8-2 14
15 University of Massachusetts, 57 14 16-10-0 10
Others receiving votes: University of Maine, 16; Union, 11; University of Massachusetts Lowell, 10; University of Michigan, 3; University of Vermont, 2; RIT, 1; Sacred Heart University, 1; St. Lawrence University, 1; University of Nebraska Omaha, 1.
Daily Gazette ECAC Hockey Team of the Week — Cornell
The Big Red took over first place in the league after a sweep of the North Country teams. They edged St. Lawrence, 2-1, on Friday on Patrick Kennedy's game-winner with 1:37 left in regulation. On Saturday, a four-goal second period lifted Cornell to a 5-3 win over Clarkson. Blake Gallagher had a goal and three assists, and Locke Jillson had two goals and an assist.
Tisi the man
St. Lawrence goalie Kain Tisi has emerged as the team's No. 1 netminder.
Tisi was outstanding in the loss to Cornell, making 32 saves. He stopped 31 shots in Saturday's 3-2 overtime victory over Colgate.
Tisi, who played in 20 games in his first three seasons, had a 1.99 goals-against average in 17 games this year, displacing last year's starter, Alex Petizian. Tisi has the best GAA in league play at 1.49.
Woes continue
A couple of ECACH teams continue to struggle.
— Quinnipiac dropped a 4-3 decision to Dartmouth on Friday, extending its winless skid to nine games (0-8-1). Since opening the season 12-1, the Bobcats have gone 1-10-2.
— Clarkson got swept by Colgate and Cornell. The Golden Knights have lost six straight, and 0-6-1 in their last seven.
Outdoor game
Outdoor hockey will be played at Wisconsin's Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday.
At 3 p.m., the Wisconsin women's team faces Bemidji State. The Badger men play Michigan at 6 p.m.
If you have any comments, post them below, or e-mail them to me at schott@dailygazette.com.
