Because of exhibition and non-league games, it is too early to effectively break down most aspects of team play. Thus, our column today focuses on four different subjects many fans may have overlooked this weekend.

Delay Hurts Ivy Programs

Although Friday night’s game was the first of the season for Cornell, it was Niagara’s fifth. Teams like Denver and Miami-Ohio have now played eight games to Cornell’s one. Even in Cornell’s own conference, ECAC Hockey, the six non-Ivy teams have all played at least five games.

Ivy League rules stipulate that men’s hockey teams cannot begin practices until Oct. 16, and this rule puts the stronger Ivy programs at a clear disadvantage. Cornell’s coaches and players will not admit to this, but Yale’s All-American senior forward, Mark Acrobello, recently told the Yale Daily News that opposing teams “know their players better, they know each other, and they’re used to playing with each other for a couple more weeks than we are.”

With an earlier start, Ivy programs like Cornell, Yale, and Princeton (all ranked in the top-10 in the national polls) could have additional time to practice before facing their first real opponents. It cannot be proven, of course, but Cornell might have been able to avoid early-season hiccups like the 4-1 opening-night loss to RIT two years ago. Furthermore, we suspect that an additional week or two of practices might have enabled Cornell to defeat Niagara in regulation on Friday. Some of the sluggishness, particularly in the defensive end, can be chalked up to the fact that Cornell simply has not had time to lock into any sort of rhythm.

A Comedy of Errors

It was not only the players who could have used some extra time to practice. Lynah Rink’s new replay system malfunctioned when it was needed on Friday. On Niagara’s first goal, Cornell netminder Ben Scrivens caught a shot in his glove, but was knocked down and allowed the puck to fly into the goal. Scrivens may have been clipped by a Niagara player, which would have invalidated the goal. Without a working replay system, however, the goal was allowed to stand.

Later in the game, with Niagara on the power play, Cornell skated five players for about 10 or 15 seconds. The radio announcers were frantic, and some people in the rink surely saw what happened, but neither the Niagara bench nor the four-man officiating crew noticed. The extra Cornell player was beckoned back to the bench, and Cornell avoided a penalty for having too many men on the ice, which would have given Niagara a 5-on-3 advantage.

Offer Half-Season Tickets

Those who participated in the “No Line in ‘09” ticketing process know that the Athletics Department made great strides this season toward implementing a fairer method of ticket distribution. Specifically, the most dedicated fans were given an opportunity to select tickets ahead of others. However, despite a clearer process and the cancelation of the campout in the Ramin Room, season tickets still did not sell out for the third straight year.

In speaking with many would-be hockey fans, we discovered the reason is not because of the success or failure of the on ice product, but rather it is the price of purchasing a season ticket.

At $247, the cost of a student to attend every Cornell home game places Cornell in the top-5 of all D-1 hockey programs.

We understand the price will not lower, so we suggest that Athletics begin offering half-season ticket packages to undergraduates. By halving the cost of attending home hockey games, the Athletics Department will find itself selling more tickets to more fans and increasing its desperately needed revenue.

Early season gimmicks for Parents’ Weekend and Halloween were sure to attract a few more fans, but that was a short-term fix for what is a systemic problem in the ticketing process.

Defensive Breakdowns Costly

At several instances against the U.S. Under-18 Team and Niagara, defensive malfunctions by the Cornell led to high quality scoring opportunities. Neutral zone turnovers, weakness on the puck, untimely penalties and defensemen caught flat-footed led to a large number of odd-man rushes.

Additionally, Scrivens appeared to still be wearing some preseason rust in terms of handling the puck and communicating effectively. We are very bullish on his capacity as a netminder, yet as the anchor of the club he must make smarter decisions such as not choosing to clear the puck by baseball swinging with his stick. According to the Ithaca Journal, Schafer was not pleased with this play, and one can reasonably expect Scrivens to work out the kinks by next Friday.

Cornell’s defensive corps is exceptionally strong and skilled, yet for all its ability, mistakes like these can cost a team dearly. In what may be Cornell’s toughest schedule in many years, fans can expect to see very tight, low-scoring affairs. All that is required for the scale to tip is another 3-on-1 break or a careless tripping penalty when Cornell is already a man down.