Derek Dunning:Not many games this week but still five top 15 teams were in action. The only game of significance though was at the Cooler in Geneva between Hobart and Oswego.
Hobart trounced the Lakers scoring six goals in the second period on their way to a 6-3 win. The only movement in my rankings were dropping Oswego out of the top 15 completely because at 8-5-1, they are not playing like a team that deserves to be ranked. 2-4 in their last six? Sorry, it's Geneseo's turn to be ranked until the Lakers prove they belong again.
Thought about dropping Norwich out for Eau-Claire but chose against it this week. However, if the Cadets falter at their tournament right after New Year's they'll likely be dropping out.
Ryan Maloney:
Not much movement with the light "weekend before finals" schedule. Like Dunning, my rankings don't show the Lakers. The team desperately needs stability between the pipes and hasn't been able to get it. Could there be a Golden Knight in shining armor on the way to rescue the season? Perhaps the team is under a spell and can only be rescued by Harry Potter-esque magic---alright, I'm done with that.
St. Olaf slides into the#14 slot. The Oles haven't lost since Nov. 8 and played pretty competitively with Norbert and Stout. Between Hamline, Olaf, and St. Thomas it should be an interesting race to the finish in the MIAC. Looking at the numbers, Olaf's two-headed monster in net, freshman Ben Leis and sophomore Nick Krauss, seems like a potential x-factor in that race.
With Oswego falling out, someone has to move in. I decided to cut Nichols a break on their 10-0 loss to New England College. Yes, they play in the crap-tacular ECAC Northeast. However, having the second-best winning % of all 71 teams in D3 is good enough for a spot in the top 15. Does this mean I think they're a better team than Oswego? Yes, because I've never had to drive 90 minutes to see them disappoint me.
READER FEEDBACK FROM LAST WEEK:
Hey Derek how about a little side-by-side comparison, so your homer eyes can get cleared up a little, okay?
Oswego: 8-4-1
Geneseo: 9-3-1
Oswego: 5-2-1 SUNYAC
Geneseo: 5-2-1 SUNYAC
Oswego: 3-1-1 Home
Geneseo: 5-3-0 Home
Oswego: 5-2-0 Away
Geneseo: 4-0-1 Away
Oswego: 3-2-0 Last 5 games
Geneseo: 3-1-1 Last 5 games
Oswego: 0-1-0 vs Geneseo
Geneseo: 1-0-0 vs Oswego
Oswego: 2-3-0 vs Ranked teams (for some stupid reason, doesn't include Geneseo)
Geneseo:1-1-0 vs Ranked teams
Oswego: 8th in your rankings
Geneseo: Not in your rankings
What's that? The lenses in your glasses are green and gold? How about you take them off and get back to reality. At least your buddy Vampire Of The Loonybin was closer, even though he still screwed it up. "WTOP" Power Rankings, indeed. Get a clue.
-USCHO Fan Forum User RogueViking
As a third party, I have to say that Oswego's loss by 1 in OT to Plattsburgh looks a lot better than the 5-0 shutout Geneseo faced. Both teams have played 13 games, but Oswego has scored 60 goals to Geneseo's 44. Oswego has an acknowledged goalie issue, but still have given up only 7 more goals (40 vs 33). SUNYAC only numbers also favor Oswego, as Oswego has scored 37 and given up 23 to Geneseo's 28 & 24. Neither team can claim "bragging rights" based on their performance against Morrisville, both going to OT and neither losing - though Geneseo did score in OT. Oswego's 6-4 win, despite their 2-3 loss to Elmira (ECAC-W #1) looks slightly better than Geneseo's 3-2 win and 3-4 loss to Neumann (ECAC-W #2). Oswego's 11-3 thumping of Brockport is far better than Geneseo's 2-7 loss.
In conclusion, both teams are favorably matched, as shows with them tied for second in the SUNYAC, but IMHO, despite Oswego's 2-4 loss to Geneseo, Oswego as a whole, is better than Geneseo at this point in the season.
-USCHO Fan Forum user norm1909
(In an attempt to be a bit more reasonable voice from Geneseo I'll offer this):
It depends on your definition of power rankings. I would say if you define PWR Rankings as " Best Players " or " Most potential " then certainly Oswego has a strong case to be higher than Geneseo. If you define PWR Rankings as " Who would you least want to play in a game tomorrow" then Geneseo could be ahead of Oswego.
Geneseo showed improvement this past weekend from the Oswego game as they started to strut their stuff offensively. DeCosse's sweep across the crease, Galan's rocket off the criss - cross passing on the PP, and Panetta's bar down shorty were three highlight reel plays in one weekend.
Based on what I saw at least "flashes" of in the game at Oswego the lakers can be a very scary team if they can get comfortable with their goalie situation and find consistency amongst the skaters.
I believe the Oswego game was more of a "jumping off" point for Geneseo and not their peak. Assuming Oswego rights the ship and Geneseo continues on their upward trend the game on Feb 14 could be a top 10 matchup.
-USCHO Fan Forum user SB_in_the_'Seo
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