The weekend of March 5 concluded what many consider to be the most disappointing RPI hockey season in recent memory. Entering the season, fans looked forward to a solid core of returning players, as well as a wealth of incoming freshman talent. Many, including myself, were convinced that this year we would finish in the top four and would be going to the ECAC tournament final four for the first time since it was moved to Albany in 2003. Now, on the other end of the season, all that we are left with is a 14-22-2 record, our second 11th place ECAC finish in three years, a dismal attendance record, and a first round exit from the ECAC tournament at the hands of Brown University.
Typically, with a finish like this, people write to the The Polytechnic dissecting exactly what went wrong with the season: bad coaching, inexperienced goalies, new assistant coaches, lack of senior leadership, the list goes on. Every bad season ends this way, and yet over the past few seasons nothing has been done to change it other than waiting it out and hoping for a better result next season.
My purpose in writing this letter is not to rehash what happened this season. This season is over. Instead I would like to ask the administration and athletic department to adopt a new, more proactive attitude towards our Division I hockey program.
I started following college hockey when I was a freshman at RPI. Since then I have visited every ECAC arena, several of the Hockey East arenas, and been to many of the major tournaments (ECACs, NCAAs, the Beanpot, etc.). What I have discovered after talking with people across the college hockey world is that RPI has as storied a program as any of the major college hockey powers. We have won national titles. In the ECAC, only two teams, Cornell and Harvard, can make the same claim. The 1985 Engineers played to a 35-2-1 record, one of the most dominant seasons in the history of college hockey.
For many RPI alums, RPI hockey is a source of intense pride. Most older alums that I have talked to immediately bring up the subject of how great the hockey team was when they were at school. The problem is that this storied hockey tradition is being lost. Now RPI is viewed as a hot-and-cold team in a mid-major conference (coined the EZAC by many outside of the conference). RPI is no longer considered a legitimate threat and at worst is considered a joke. This is a travesty.
This is where the administration can make a difference. The current administration showed great support of the program when fighting for our right to offer grant-in-aid scholarships, and in the efforts to move the women’s hockey program up to Division I. This, however, is not enough. The administration needs to take an active role in ensuring that RPI hockey remains competitive at the highest level. This includes taking a careful look at the direction in which the program is going. An isolated bad season is perfectly acceptable, but when there is a steady decline in the standings over several seasons, action must be taken. The administration must be willing to make the tough choices regarding personnel and be willing to put in added money if it is needed to bring about change.
RPI’s primary focus is, and should always be academics, but I urge the administration not to discount the impact of the hockey program. RPI students, in recent years, have been ranked among the unhappiest and most apathetic students in the country. During Freakout! this year, the RPI bookstore featured a video of the 1985 NCAA Championship run. The students depicted in that video did not look unhappy or apathetic to me. This is the magic of a successful college sports team. If the administration does everything in its power to restore RPI to its former hockey glory, a similar atmosphere could be created, one where hockey line is a major event again, hockey publicity generates increased alumni giving, and students wait with anticipation to pack the Field House every Friday and Saturday night.
Tim Vanderpoel
ALUM ’03
