Rensselaer Hangs Tough Despite Injuries

by Joshua Seguin/Staff Writer

All teams have their stretches dealing with injuries, but for Rensselaer, it's spent the better half of two seasons mending from them. This season, notable names such as Jason Kasdorf, Milos Bubela, Mark Miller and others have found themselves on the injury list, while Parker Reno, Riley Bourbonnais and Evan Tironese are currently out.

"We have had so many injuries, it doesn't even faze our guys," RPI coach Seth Appert said. "We don't even address it. It is just the next man up. It is not that we need the next guy to replace their style of play, we just need those guys to eat minutes in their own way. They do it differently than a guy like Parker would, but they do it well."

Despite the injuries, RPI is flourishing near the top of the ECAC led by a defense which is highly underrated.

"We are confident defending," Appert said. "That doesn't mean we want to sit in our zone and defend but we are confident in the way we need to play to win hockey games."

Playing defensive hockey like RPI does is hardly rewarding. Blocking shots is not a stat most hockey fans pay attention to, because ultimately most fans look towards goals and shots on goal to figure out how good a team or player really is. As a team, the Engineers are second in the nation in blocked shots with 433, and fourth in blocks per game at 16.65.

"We block shots all year," Appert said. "It is just what this team does. ... We just have a team that is willing to do things for each other because they love each other, they want to win, they want to do things the right way and they want to leave a legacy in this program."

It isn't just blocked shots, however, because in front of their net the Engineers are able to stay with every team in the country. Against Quinnipiac, it was dominated in possession but the net front was relatively clear.

"This is the staple of our team," RPI senior Zach Schroeder said. "The net front is huge on both ends of the ice. Those are the most important battles and that's where a lot of the games in our league are won. To be able to take care of that defensively, is something that we take pride in."

When there was danger, it was able to clear the puck or get it back to Kasdorf for a faceoff. Its stick-work on Quinnipiac attacks and its ability to strip Bobcats from the puck, which is no small task given how good QU has been, was the difference in that game like it has been in most games. It settled for a tie, but was 9.4 seconds away from the win against the No. 1 Pairwise team.

"The blocked shots are expected," Appert said. "Yes you are praised when you do block a shot, but it has become more the other way since the halfway point of the season. When guys don't block shots, it is like come on everybody else is doing it. That has become the expectation within the locker room, not just me."

Because of the injuries, the Engineers have had many unsung heroes. Chris Bradley is third in the country in blocks with 66, despite having just four points and a goal. Like Bradley, Mike Prapavessis is 11th in the country with 56 blocks. Prapavessis has also added two goals and 11 assists from the blue-line, including a goal on Saturday against rival Union.

Before their injuries, both Bourbonnais and Parker Reno were having great seasons. Bourbonnais led the team in goals and points, while Reno has a plus-13 and was picking up big-time minutes on the blue-line

Another player having a great season is sophomore Lou Nanne, who has 18 points, second best on the team, and tied for the team lead with a plus-13.

Having good goaltenders has helped RPI this season more than anything. RPI has been comfortable with Kasdorf in the net but while he was injured the team was able to go on a long unbeaten streak with freshman Cam Hackett. Kasdorf is arguably one of the best goaltenders in the country, when healthy.

"He gives us a lot of confidence back there," Bradley said. "We know he is going to make all the saves he needs to make and even the big saves that are going to keep us in the game. He has been doing it all season and he gives the whole team a lot of confidence."

Despite good defensive systems, the Engineers struggle to possess the puck. This struggle starts in the neutral zone but when the puck is in the zone, opponents are usually getting opportunities from the outside, and not the quaity scoring areas in the slots.

On average, it allows 34 shots per game and its opponents attempt 66. Its 44 percent is 10th-worst in the country. All these stats are great to look at, but RPI's strength is right in front of its goaltender, in the trenches. Teams that flourish here win hockey games, plain and simple.

Rensselaer may be a statistical anomaly, but there are reasons it has pulled itself to second place in the ECAC and on the doorstep of the NCAA tournament. It limits opportunities in the trenches and its hard-nosed defensive game will keep them there.