Moving Up in Hockey

[Obadiah]

In the club hockey world, Penn State and URI were once big rivals, but now Penn State has elevated the program to varsity D-1 level. And this is just a reminder of how the big guys do it!

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/13/sport ... -team.html

[STC]

Zzzzz... So tired of this hockey talk. How about we focus on winning in the sports we have first?

[ATPTourFan]

Built with that dirty football money...

[OBRAM]

Well, you can do a lot when you have $40 million in TV money coming in because you are in the Big 10.

[rambone 78]

URI: Football TV money = $0.00

[Bos8]

I've watched two URI football games on TV this year, both with high production values. (The win vs. Albany and the loss to William and Mary).

[OBRAM]

I don't know what the NBC Sports network deal with the CAA is, but I do not think URI TV football money is $0.00.
I watched the Nova at Towson game saturday night, it was a very exciting game to watch. I think the CAA games are more fun to watch than many other FBS games on TV.

[RF1]

The Big 10 TV money really didn't factor in the upgrade. It was the 88 million dollar gift from the Pegulas to build the new arena and start the program up along with another 14 million from them to endow 18 scholarships.

If any one of the URI hockey supporters were to make a similar offer, I am sure a D1 program in Kingston would be a reality very soon.

[OBRAM]

Here is a link. Wow, stuff is expensive these days. I think the Ryan Center would cost at least $100 million to build today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pegula_Ice_Arena
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMgZRSsLz4w

[Puck Frovidence]

Hey all, this is my first post on the forum. The Boss as it is would be more than adequate for Atlantic Hockey (our most realistic D1 conference) play, and would actually not be the smallest in the league. Those who have been to Boss Arena recently will know that it is modest in size, but modern and possesses all requisite facilities.

AHA was originally put together as a sort of "cost-containment" league, to accommodate teams from the remains of the CHA (College Hockey America) and the MAAC (they used to sponsor hockey ala the B1G). Nowadays it is comprised of a more competitive set of teams (Niagara, RMU, Bentley, RIT) and "the rest", who are generally considered the worst in college hockey but are given to upsetting big teams (as in #59 Sacred Heart's upset over #1 Lowell last week). Boss Arena would actually be on the high side for AHA Rinks, which range in capacity from 1k to 2700.

[hrstrat57]

Hey all, this is my first post on the forum. The Boss as it is would be more than adequate for Atlantic Hockey (our most realistic D1 conference) play, and would actually not be the smallest in the league. Those who have been to Boss Arena recently will know that it is modest in size, but modern and possesses all requisite facilities.

AHA was originally put together as a sort of "cost-containment" league, to accommodate teams from the remains of the CHA (College Hockey America) and the MAAC (they used to sponsor hockey ala the B1G). Nowadays it is comprised of a more competitive set of teams (Niagara, RMU, Bentley, RIT) and "the rest", who are generally considered the worst in college hockey but are given to upsetting big teams (as in #59 Sacred Heart's upset over #1 Lowell last week). Boss Arena would actually be on the high side for AHA Rinks, which range in capacity from 1k to 2700.

Agree 100% perfect league to start out in! Could be competitive very quickly!

D1 Rhody hockey every Friday night?

Woo hoo!!

[Rhodymob05]

Just went to a game at PC. My girlfriends brother played on the opposing team (AIC) and was able to experience to the new area. Nice place, stands were about half packed and I saw two or three basketball players walk by and was tempted to talk some trash but I didn't lol. Anyways I would love to see URI D1. Just keep the football team too. I heard you don't have to make the womens hockey team D1, as long as a womens team from any sport becomes D1 when mens hockey does. Sounds realistic.

[Hal Kopp]

2000 people for a hockey game??
Not generally against. But,based on attendance,this could be tough sell.

[RF1]

Holy Cross is a member of Atlantic Hockey. They have had just one home game thus far and their 1,600 person capacity facility (within the Hart Center) is smaller than Boss. They had just 801 people see them take on Hockey East member Northeastern in an OOC game.

Atlantic Hockey does not draw very well from the looks of it. It looks like Holy Cross averaged 1231 last year. Sacred Heart averaged 366. UConn averaged 791. Bentley averaged 530. I don't think college hockey at this level excites many fans and don't think it would be different in Kingston.

UConn plays in a facility with a capacity just below 2,000. As a precondition to joining Hockey East, the Huskies agreed to play games at the Hartford Civic Center. The situation is similar at URI where Boss has a capacity of 2,500. It would be ok for Atlantic Hockey but not for a higher rated conference. Serious facilities investment would be required for that.




http://www.goholycross.com/sports/m-hoc ... 4/hc02.htm

http://www.atlantichockeyonline.com/sta ... onnecticut

[URI96]

As I recall when Boss was built it was designed in such a way so that additional stands could be added. As of now they are on only three sides

[Hal Kopp]

The only thing I can say about these attendance figures-is OMG!
Any sport not drawing needs to be reconsidered.

[RF1]

The only thing I can say about these attendance figures-is OMG!
Any sport not drawing needs to be reconsidered.

Atlantic Hockey is not a big draw elsewhere and wouldn't be here. The best conference from a play and attendance level in the northeast is Hockey East and if URI were to play D1 hockey, that league would be the ultimate goal. Attendance for that league however varies widely with a low of 2,012 at PC and a high of 6,384 at BC. Based on the success, history, and tradtion of the hockey programs of many schools in Hockey East, I would think a new program at URI would be near the bottom for attendance even if URI were to find many tens of millions of dollars to start a program and invest in a facility upgrade.


2012-2013 Hockey East Overall Attendance Summary
Team Avg
Boston College 6384
New Hampshire 5521
UMass Lowell 5246
Boston University 4527
Massachusetts 4209
Maine 4201
Vermont 3736
Northeastern 2804
Merrimack 2340
Providence 2012
Totals 4093


http://www.hockeyeastonline.com/men/sta ... attend.php

[RF1]

As I recall when Boss was built it was designed in such a way so that additional stands could be added. As of now they are on only three sides

I also recall that it could be expandable. My guess is that they could probably add another 1,000 to capacity with additional bleacher seating on the present seatless sideline. This facility however would really lack creature comforts and likely still be among the smallest venues in Hockey East. URI would be hardpressed to recuit for that league having the worst facilities. It would be akin to URI's attempt to compete in the present CAA Football league.

Boss Arena is and will likely always be at an Atlantic Hockey League level. Membership in this league however will never exicte large numbers of URI fans. The more attractive option would be membership in Hockey East but that would require a significant facilities investment and even with that there is no guarantee of success on the ice and in the stands.

I for one am not intersted in URI making an additional half hearted attempt at another D1 sport in Kingston. That already happens far too often. For D1 hockey to succeed, there would have to be big bucks thrown at it and URI does not look to have them. Rhody can't even adequately fund the sports programs it currently fields.

[hrstrat57]

Just went to a game at PC. My girlfriends brother played on the opposing team (AIC) and was able to experience to the new area. Nice place, stands were about half packed and I saw two or three basketball players walk by and was tempted to talk some trash but I didn't lol. Anyways I would love to see URI D1. Just keep the football team too. I heard you don't have to make the womens hockey team D1, as long as a womens team from any sport becomes D1 when mens hockey does. Sounds realistic.

The women's team is equally deserving after several years of strong club play.....going to be difficult to leave the ladies out of the equation....

[Rhodymob05]

Just went to a game at PC. My girlfriends brother played on the opposing team (AIC) and was able to experience to the new area. Nice place, stands were about half packed and I saw two or three basketball players walk by and was tempted to talk some trash but I didn't lol. Anyways I would love to see URI D1. Just keep the football team too. I heard you don't have to make the womens hockey team D1, as long as a womens team from any sport becomes D1 when mens hockey does. Sounds realistic.

The women's team is equally deserving after several years of strong club play.....going to be difficult to leave the ladies out of the equation....

just saying anything is possible, if womens hickey didn't work out

[hrstrat57]

Just went to a game at PC. My girlfriends brother played on the opposing team (AIC) and was able to experience to the new area. Nice place, stands were about half packed and I saw two or three basketball players walk by and was tempted to talk some trash but I didn't lol. Anyways I would love to see URI D1. Just keep the football team too. I heard you don't have to make the womens hockey team D1, as long as a womens team from any sport becomes D1 when mens hockey does. Sounds realistic.

The women's team is equally deserving after several years of strong club play.....going to be difficult to leave the ladies out of the equation....

just saying anything is possible, if womens hockey didn't work out

Wasn't taking a shot at you rhodymob05, I hope there are other options......just wasn't sure you were aware how solid the women's club team was.....I've been to a couple games and our ladies pretty much just skate circles around most other club teams, at least the games I saw....

Of course our men's club team often does the same and often beats up on NCAA D 3 teams too!

KB members, if you haven't taken in a Friday nite game at boss give yourself a treat....I think it is still just $5....I promise you will come away impressed.

[Puck Frovidence]

In terms of Atlantic Hockey, URI would be one of the biggest member schools (second after RIT, once UConn moves to HE). From my experience this year I would guess that Friday games at the Boss draw between 200-300 people, and that's without any kind of promotion or support from the athletic department. I'm not saying D1 hockey in AHA play would be a nightly sellout, but with hockey popularity on the rise (and generally strong in RI anyway), I doubt you'd see huge swathes of empty seats in the crowd. Non-con games against the right opponents (traditional rivals like PC, Brown, UConn, UMass-Amherst) would certainly pack the house, and since they're all close by it would keep costs down if they were played home-home. Similarly, Atlantic Hockey is pretty much a bus league proposition with the exception of games at Air Force, which we'd probably play every other year. The Pennsylvania and New York teams would be quite a hike by bus, but this still helps to keep costs low.

As for AHA presenting a less-than-enticing in conference schedule for attendance, it's probably somewhat fair - with the caveat that of course natural rivalries develop and fans will come to see a winning team play just about anyone. However, I would argue that the same is true of the A10. I don't have URI MBB attendance numbers by game (if someone can point me to those I'd love to check them out), but just gauging "the buzz" as a student I'd say most people aren't that excited about our conference opponents (with the exception of UMass, because they're a big, familiar, area school and rival and maybe Fordham). Students pack the house to see URI play a hot A10 team, or because the Rams are hot, not because the have strong feelings about say the Billikens one way or the other. The "exciting games" are against teams that are either good or ones that are familiar: certainly PC and UMass, but also the other big New England flagship public school and the Rhody D1 programs like Brown and Bryant. That's why you get freshies walking around asking about the next game against "Du-kwes-nee". I'm not trying to bag on the A10 by any means - clearly students and alums alike are still more than ready to get up to the Ryan Center for conference play. I just don't think the idea of URI Hockey sitting in AHA for 7-8 years is necessarily a bummer either.

[RF1]

In terms of Atlantic Hockey, URI would be one of the biggest member schools (second after RIT, once UConn moves to HE). From my experience this year I would guess that Friday games at the Boss draw between 200-300 people, and that's without any kind of promotion or support from the athletic department. I'm not saying D1 hockey in AHA play would be a nightly sellout, but with hockey popularity on the rise (and generally strong in RI anyway), I doubt you'd see huge swathes of empty seats in the crowd. Non-con games against the right opponents (traditional rivals like PC, Brown, UConn, UMass-Amherst) would certainly pack the house, and since they're all close by it would keep costs down if they were played home-home. Similarly, Atlantic Hockey is pretty much a bus league proposition with the exception of games at Air Force, which we'd probably play every other year. The Pennsylvania and New York teams would be quite a hike by bus, but this still helps to keep costs low.

As for AHA presenting a less-than-enticing in conference schedule for attendance, it's probably somewhat fair - with the caveat that of course natural rivalries develop and fans will come to see a winning team play just about anyone. However, I would argue that the same is true of the A10. I don't have URI MBB attendance numbers by game (if someone can point me to those I'd love to check them out), but just gauging "the buzz" as a student I'd say most people aren't that excited about our conference opponents (with the exception of UMass, because they're a big, familiar, area school and rival and maybe Fordham). Students pack the house to see URI play a hot A10 team, or because the Rams are hot, not because the have strong feelings about say the Billikens one way or the other. The "exciting games" are against teams that are either good or ones that are familiar: certainly PC and UMass, but also the other big New England flagship public school and the Rhody D1 programs like Brown and Bryant. That's why you get freshies walking around asking about the next game against "Du-kwes-nee". I'm not trying to bag on the A10 by any means - clearly students and alums alike are still more than ready to get up to the Ryan Center for conference play. I just don't think the idea of URI Hockey sitting in AHA for 7-8 years is necessarily a bummer either.

If what you write is true about hockey in this area and you believe a big school in Atlantic Hockey could draw well, why then was attendance at UConn so bad averaging just 791? UConn is a much larger school than URI, has a far higher % and number of students that live on campus, is exponentially better supported in its home state, and has the most successful D1 athletics program in New England. It's hockey program however still struggled to gain support. You also contend that URI could bolster attendance with home games against high profile regional programs. In looking at UConn's past schedules, they were not really able to do so as they played no such teams in Storrs last year. Hockey East teams rarely visit Atlantic Hockey member venues.

I don't subscribe to the "if you build it, they will come" theory that all URI has to do is upgrade Boss and add a D1 program and things will take care of themselves (as regards attendance/support, recruiting, on ice success, etc...). Hockey at the Atlantic Hockey level won't excite many in RI and the only conference membership (HE) that would excite some, would require a very significant facilities and expense investment.

[RhowdyRam02]

I'd love to see URI move up in hockey, but Hockey East is a total pipe dream. The better solution is to move up into the Atlantic as soon as possible and try to lobby as hard as possible for entry into the ECAC. It's a 12 team league that would offer us an instate rival with Brown, and the furthest members are Princeton and the duo of Clarkson and St. Lawrence in NW NY. This year their conference championship is being held in Lake Placid. The average arena size is 3246 with Princeton having the smallest with 2092 and Rensselaer having the biggest with 4780, so Boss Arena with a modest expansion would put us right in the middle to toward the top. Right now three of the schools in the conference have a lower seating capacity than Boss has with no expansion. And as a college hockey fan I can tell you the quality of play is at or right below Hockey East levels. 9 out of the 12 teams are ranked or receiving votes in the current polls, led by Quinnipiac at #5. Last year's national hockey champion? ECAC's Yale. Last year's national hockey championship finals? Yale vs. Quinnipiac. Last year's number one seed heading into the tournament? Quinnipiac. The ECAC had three of the 16 teams in the tournament. The conference also boasted the 2nd and 9th leading scorers in the nation and the 3rd and 4th best goalies in the nation by GAA.

[RF1]

The ECAC is probably a more realistic conference (vs HE) within a few years of an upgrade. While a high level of hockey is played in the conference as you note, I have my doubts that many of its members would excite the average URI fan. Quinnipiac, Union, St. Lawrence, Clarkson, Colgate, RPI, Brown, Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, and Cornell would still be a hard sell.

I fear that URI is already maxed out with its allocation of limited resources. Adding a D1 hockey program with or without replacing football doesn't change that dynamic. URI would be competing half-heartedly predestined for failure.

[hrstrat57]

Word had it that ECAC wanted URI back a few years ago to replace Vermont when the Cats jumped to the HE from ECAC. Can't prove it was just the chatter around the rink at the time....

I firmly believe any well marketed and competitive D1 hockey team would bang out the building regardless of the league.

The recent UMASS model is a good one to follow.....a few solid RI HS players every year would put a competitive team on the ice. Augustine can still flat out coach too.

What happened to the "blue line club"????

[RF1]

I firmly believe any well marketed and competitive D1 hockey team would bang out the building regardless of the league.

Disagree with that assertion. For the most part the long established programs (Brown and PC) at the schools in Providence haven't done so and I doubt a newly estabished program at URI playing in a low level league would buck that trend.

[hrstrat57]

Neither pc or brown properly market their team..... Friars should absolutely have lines waiting to get in the building.... Great team and venue they have it all going on except fans.....

Rams would do a better job.

[Hal Kopp]

This should be in another forum,under fantasies.

[RhowdyRam02]

The ECAC is probably a more realistic conference (vs HE) within a few years of an upgrade. While a high level of hockey is played in the conference as you note, I have my doubts that many of its members would excite the average URI fan. Quinnipiac, Union, St. Lawrence, Clarkson, Colgate, RPI, Brown, Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, and Cornell would still be a hard sell.

I fear that URI is already maxed out with its allocation of limited resources. Adding a D1 hockey program with or without replacing football doesn't change that dynamic. URI would be competing half-heartedly predestined for failure.

I think they would excite the average fan. What program at URI gets that many nationally ranked programs not just on the schedule but at home? It would be unprecedented. Add in the fact that you would have an instate rival, four of the 12 teams play in CT, RI, or MA, and all of the 12 teams play in the states that most of the students come from and I can see it being huge quickly. Not only would it be a great home environment but the proximity of the other league members would create plenty of road trip opportunities.

As to your point about resources I do think that’s a very valid concern. That said, URI hockey would have one advantage not enjoyed by other programs on campus. Boss Arena is already ready to go and would provide a facility that would probably be competitive day one with Atlantic Hockey schools and should be in line with ECAC schools with modest renovations that were already built into the design of the building. Outside of the basketball teams I can’t think of another URI program whose facilities would be that competitive both nationally and with the conference they’d be in. And if URI dropped the football program you could provide scholarships for both men’s and women’s hockey with scholarships to spare.

The biggest issue is whether the ECAC would admit us at this point. They’re at an even 12 and are the most stable conference in the country right now. If the offer was there when Vermont left for Hockey East then it’s probably off the table with Quinnipiac joining so they’ll probably have to find a partner school and present a bid for membership that involves the league jumping to 14.

[hrstrat57]

This should be in another forum,under fantasies.

My fantasy is the Ryan Center piped for ice a la Mullen Center, Conte Forum with 6k crazy Rhody hockey fans banging it out every Friday nite as the Rams tangle with another top ranked NCAA major conference opponent.

Kinda like the RI Auditorium in the 60's without the smoke....you could see the other end of the rink in the third period which would be nice....

That is my fantasy and I am sticking to it!!