In the ECAC, Rinks to Rile You Up

CANTON, N.Y.--"It's a great atmosphere to play in," Peter Ciavaglia said.

But, Pete, that atmosphere is custom-designed for the other team.

"The big crowd gets you going," he said.

But, Pete, it's not your crowd. Folks in the stands aren't cheering for you.

"They care about hockey here," the freshman said.

But, Pete, they don't care if you hang by your underwear on a tree outside with icicles dripping from your nose.

No matter. Peter Ciavaglia, a freshman forward on the Harvard hockey team, had lavish praise for St. Lawrence's Appleton Arena and its 3000 plus maniacal fans here following the Crimson's 6-5 victory over the Saints.

And why not? This weekend, the Crimson played like it had gulped down a bottle of that old sports liquor--"Enthusiasm" (110 percent proof). Against SLU, the Crimson jumped out to a 3-0 first period lead.

The building was loud throughout the game. Did it matter that the cheers were not for Harvard, but for the struggling home squad?

When people in the stands care about their hockey, so do the people on the ice.

Two weeks ago, the Crimson played its last regular-season home series, against Vermont and RPI. The Harvard basketball team was also playing at home, at the same time, so true Crimson sports fans were forced to choose between games.

Still, Bright Center was nearly packed. And, yet, a displaced geek from Lamont Library might have felt right at home within its cool confines. Bright Center was as silent as the aftermath of a terrible joke.

Harvard may have the best team in the ECAC. But its fans finish in the bottom half of the league.

Sure, Harvard fans are able to come up with some of the best wisecracks in the ECAC. Against Cornell last year, in a game played February 14, the Crimson was blanking the Big Red. The crowd's jest: "Hey, Cornell, it's Valentine's Day and you can't score."

Or against Yale this year. The Elis were down by five or six goals. The crowd: "Hey, Yale, you should be used to coming from behind."

Once the laughter subsides, however, there is nothing to take its place except an occasional chant of "sieve, sieve" and scattered applause better suited to an amateur golf tournament.

Despite the efforts of one heroic fan--the big guy with the signs--Harvard fans internalize, not vocalize, their feelings. Such is not the case elsewhere.

Here Saturday, people were lined up four and five deep in the aisle that winds around Appleton Arena. In the front rows, people pounded against the glass, even stood and jestered wildly at the players on the ice.

Elsewhere the atmosphere is just as wild and enthusiastic. In nearby Potsdam, N.Y., where Clarkson plays, a local TV station broadcasts the games live. A radio station covers the Golden Knights as well.

Fans in Burlington, Vt., give the University of Vermont a standing ovation every time it steps on the ice.

And, of course, nothing tops Lynah Rink for crowd crudity and enthusiasm. Chickens are tied to goalposts between periods. Strange--often tasteless--objects are thrown on the ice during play. And the noise level would drown out the Concorde.

P.T. Barnum and Mr. Bailey could hardly provide a better circus than Lynah Rink.