RCNJ

John Cloninger pointed out an article from yesterday's Trentonian that reports that Alain St. Hilaire has retired from professional hockey and has found a job working at Sage Financial Group in Bala Cynwyd, PA, west of Philadelphia.

In a previous report on RCNJ, we indicated that St. Hilaire was expected to retire after being traded to the Roanoke Express of Virginia. When he failed to report to his new team, they suspended him for 45 days so that they would preserve their contractual rights. Now, the 45 day period has expired, and none of the teams who are interested in his services have been able to interest him in returning.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sandeep Nandy pointed out that The New Jersey Devils have hired Kevin Constantine '82 as their head coach, replacing Larry Robinson who was fired. Devils General Manager Lou Lamoriello is reported to have declined to discuss Constantine's contact terms, but he is not an interim coach.

Kevin Constantine has also worked in the National Hockey League as head coach of the San Jose Sharks and Pittsburgh Penguins. Prior to the announcement of his hiring by the Devils, reports indicate that Constantine was the General Manager of the Pittsburgh Forge, a Tier II Junior hockey program in Pittsburgh.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 11:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Rensselaer Club of New Jersey, in conjuction with the Rensselaer Alumni Relations Office and Clarkson University, is hosting the tenth annual Satellite Hockey Telecast on Saturday, February 9, at 7:00pm. The event will be held at Sportz Bar and Grill, 130 Route 10 West, East Hanover. Sportz Bar and Grill is adjacent to the Ramada Inn.

Read on for RSVP instructions and directions to the event site.

RSVP Instructions

Late RSVPs and any questions should be directed to: Howard Deutsch '69, howdeutsch@aol.com.

Directions

From the North, South, or West

Take Interstate 287 to Exit 39 (Route 10 East). Follow Route 10 for 2-3 miles. Make a U-Turn onto Route 10 West at the traffic light in front of the Sony Theater complex (a "jug handle"). Follow Route 10 West a short distance to the Ramada Inn on the right hand side of the road.

From the East

Take Interstate 280 to Exit 4A, Eisenhower Parkway. Follow Eisenhower Parkway south for approximately 4 miles, to Livingston Circle, the junction of Route 10 and Eisenhower Parkway. Take Route 10 West for 2 to 3 miles. The Ramada Inn is on the right, shortly after "East Hanover Plaza" and Costco.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Engineers recovered from a heartbreaking loss at Union on Wednesday night to win and tie in their two-game homestand against Bowling Green.

On Wednesday, RPI squandered three two-goal leads only to lose 5-4. The game winning goal involved a controversial call where goaltender Nathan Marsters made the save, only to be beaten by a quirky rebound off a Union player.

While Wednesday's loss was devastating, many fans were looking toward the weekend of non-conference games for a rebound. Friday night's game was our first win since the Holiday Tournament and came in convincing fashion. Head coach Dan Fridgen started third-string goaltender James Palmer in what was apparently an effort to give the senior a start before he graduates in May. Matt Murley, Marc Cavosie, and Andy McPherson got the goals in a 3-0 shutout of the Falcons.

Saturday's game was much tougher, resulting in a 2-2 tie. Throughout the game, RPI had the upper hand, but a Bowling Green goal late in the 3rd tied things up.

The Engineers spend the next two weekends playing Vermont and Dartmouth. Both teams have been playing well lately, which will present a challenge. Hopefully the Engineers can get six points from the two weekends and work toward making the playoffs. Due to Vermont's win against Clarkson on Saturday, the Engineers (2-6-2 ECAC) are currently in last place in the ECAC.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 3:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Freshman Vic Pereira scored two of the Engineers' three goals on their North Country road trip, losing 4-1 to Clarkson, and then losing 5-2 to St. Lawrence.

Friday's game against Clarkson was a physical match. In the middle of the first period, while already down a man, co-captain Steve Munn took a boarding call that resulted in the Knights' first goal. Pereira was able to even the score, only to have Clarkson reply with three unanswered goals.

Saturday saw the Engineers hold close, but never close enough. Entering the third period down 3-1, Pereira's second goal of the weekend restored hope to the Engineer fans. A penalty-ridden third period had many emotional ups and downs ultimately resulting in SLU's fifth goal, an empty-netter.

Read on for other details...

Other odd circumstances offer sidebars to the weekend. Jayson Moy reported during Friday's WRPI broadcast that senior Francois Senez has left the team due to undisclosed reasons. A post on the USCHO message boards reports that Dan Fridgen neglected to shake the hand of Clarkson head coach Mark Morris during their post game meeting.

I attended both games this weekend and took a number of photographs. Hopefully we will be able to post these soon.

The Engineers attempt to regroup Wednesday night against Union at Achilles Rink in Schenectady, NY.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 5:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dave Aiello wrote, "Mike Torre '91 sent me an email summarizing a meeting that the New York City Chapter of the RAA held on Tuesday, January 8. The New York City Chapter has done a lot to increase new volunteer involvement in their chapter event planning process, and they have always welcomed involvement of RCNJ members as organizers or participants in their events. So, I think it's important that the minutes of their meeting receive the broadest attention possible."

Click the Read more... link to read Mike Torre's message.

Mike Torre '91 wrote:

Hi Everyone,

This is a quick summary of the results of this past Tuesdays chapter meeting. The list of attendees is at the bottom, Thanks again for the Record Turnout!

• There are 2 upcoming REN events.
  
  
  
  • In NY there is one Feb 7th at NYAC
    
    
    
    
    • Bob Forman/John Chase could you send me the info on this so I can relay to this group?
      
    
    
  • In NJ there is one planned some time in March
    
    
    
    • 
      Howard Deutsch when your event in final, send me the info, so I can include in NY Newsletter
      
    
    
  
  
• Various attendees have volunteered to investigate different proposed events for the Spring or later
  
  
  
  • Rebecca Atkin - RPI Day at Brooklyn Museum or the Met (April or May 02)
    
  • Elyse Johnson - Ski Trip (Winter 03) and Wine Tasting (Spring, Summer or Fall 02)
    
  • Sharon Berger - Bowling Night (Spring, Summer or Fall 02)
    
  • Carlos Anton - Pub night, NoIdea, McFadens (April or May 02)
    
  • Andy Woo - Baseball Game w/ incoming freshmen (coordinate with admissions to see if there is interest in reviving this annual event) (June 02)
    
  • Ray Weisner - Tiffany tour similar to the one a few years back(Spring, Summer or Fall 02)
    
  
  
• Mark Ameres will continue to work with RAA staff on improving the NYC Chapter Website and he has volunteered to become the chapter Volunteer Coordinator
  
• Jackie Baker - We need 2 thing from your group, first when should the next newsletter be going out? We were thinking some time in March. Next, could someone do a search to see if any RPI alums working at either the Brooklyn Museum of Art or the Metropolitan Museum of Art and relay this to Rebecca and Me. Thanks
  
• Finally for your records Jackie, the attendees are as follows,
  

  
  Henry Scheuer '69, Ray Weisner '75, Mike Torre '91, Elyse Johnson '98, Andy Woo '00, Sharon Berger '99, Rebecca Atkin '97, Hector Enriquez '00, Carlos Anton-Khury '99, Tom Payne '86 and Mark Ameres '87
  

  
  

Posted by Dave Aiello at 9:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Speaking to the press after a 2-2 tie with Brown on Friday night, Rensselaer Men's Hockey Coach Dan Fridgen said, "We've got to get smarter." Not a good sign. Early in the second period, RPI lead 2-1 on goals by Matt McNeely and Matt Murley. Rensselaer gave up the tieing goal with less than five minutes left in regulation time. Both sides failed to score in the overtime period.

The weak performance continued on Saturday at Houston Field House. The Engineers staked themselves to a 2-0 lead on goals by Matt Murley and Marc Cavosie late in the first period. About two minutes into the second period Harvard scored, beginning an onslaught of five unanswered goals.

Harvard now has a 7-2-2 record in ECAC play. RPI is 2-3-2 in the ECAC. Brown is 3-5-2 in the ECAC. This weekend's results definitely represent a setback for RPI. Last weekend, they performed much better in their first Rensselaer Holiday Tournament victory since 1998. If Rensselaer wants to contend for postseason play, it needs to find a way to win games against teams like Brown.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 10:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In today's Times Union, Matt Graves reports that RPI's victory in the Rensselaer Holiday Tournament was based on a balanced scoring and solid goaltending from Kevin Kurk, who has not historically seen as much time in goal as Nathan Marsters. Rensselaer's three leading scorers, who contributed 60 percent of the team's goals prior to the tournament, were held scoreless during the tournament.

This is an interesting article from a statistical analysis standpoint, and it has some good comments from RPI Coach Dan Fridgen.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 8:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Rensselaer Club of New Jersey announces the events associated with the Mens' Varsity Ice Hockey Game between Rensselaer and Princeton University on Friday, February 15, 2002. The RCNJ will make a limited number of game tickets available to its members and their friends for the face value of $9.00 each. There will also be an optional pre-game dinner at the Yankee Doodle Tap Room in The Nassau Inn in Princeton.

Read on for a description for event details and directions to the sites....

Game Information and Ticket Availability

We offer the tickets to our alumni and friends at face value, $9 each. If you're interested, please contact Phil Lurie by phone at 201-970-0254 to ensure that tickets are still available. Mail your payment to:

Phil Lurie '74
Rensselaer Club of New Jersey
P.O. Box 461
Paramus, NJ 07653-0461

Please make checks payable to Rensselaer Club of New Jersey.

Pre-Game Dinner Information

The RCNJ will not reserve tables in the Tap Room for you. In order to guarantee seats for your party, reservations are recommended.

Directions to the Nassau Inn

Parking is available at one of the garages in Palmer Square that adjoin the Nassau Inn. The Nassau Inn is a five minute walk from Baker Rink if you want to park your car and leave it in one place. (Please confirm that the parking facility that you use will be open until at least 10:30 pm if you leave your car in Downtown Princeton before the game.)

Directions to Baker Rink

Mass Transit

Once at Princeton Junction, change to the shuttle for the Princeton Station. Passengers connecting from Amtrak will probably be required to pay an additional fare. Ticket vending machines are available.

The Princeton Station is within walking distance of The Nassau Inn and Baker Rink. Consult a street map of Princeton (PDF format) for directions. (Train station is labeled as "Dinky Station").

Posted by Dave Aiello at 4:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Over this past weekend, the Mens' Hockey Team beat Quinnipiac and UMass-Amherst, winning both games in overtime, to take its first Rensselaer-HSBC Holiday Tournament title since 1998. In the Friday night game, RPI won the 12th longest game in NCAA history, defeating Quinnipiac 5-4 in two overtimes. Chris Migliore scored a goal for Rensselaer at 10:20 of the second overtime to provide the margin of victory. C.J. Hanafin, Andrew McPherson, Jim Vickers, and Carson Butterwick also scored for the Engineers. Kevin Kurk entered the game midway through the second period, and kept Quinnipiac off the scoreboard for over 55 minutes to earn the win in goal.

In the Championship game of the tournament, Kevin Kurk made 32 saves to lead RPI to victory over UMass-Amherst 3-2. Kurk was named tournament Most Valuable Player. Ryan Shields had two goals for RPI, including the game winner. Blake Pickett also scored for Rensselaer.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 8:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)