Brian Schnee
Equinox Staff
There is a sport that followers remember playing on ponds during the wintertime or at a higher level of competition. However, this sport has rocked the world for years in the Olympics and the national American spotlight. With the National Hockey League currently locked out, the NCAA lives on with competitive, cold-blooded hockey that seems nearly worthless considering there is no “next-level” in hockey that has any stability in America, specifically. Don’t shy away please–this sport is for real, ladies and gentlemen.
I wish I could say that hockey was significant at Keene State College, but I would only be lying. Hockey is a true sport that involves an unbelievable amount of athleticism and skill, but a majority of onlookers wouldn’t have a clue about that. An argument about hockey being popular at KSC isn’t what should be challenged considering there is a competitive men’s club hockey team. The truth about KSC is that we need an accredited program with the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
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I promise I am not the only one who believes in the faith that the Owls will somehow rise above the rest of the Northeast and join the ECAC and become a powerful hockey school that students would dream for. It won’t happen, at least for the next five years.
When I remind you that Owls fans of all ages want to see hockey at the institution, it’s not an over exaggeration. After being at the Cheshire Ice Arena this past week for a home game between the club teams of KSC and UMass-Amherst, the fans and students need this. After speaking with various students, many agree that hockey is a great sport to watch and support. They also agreed that Keene needs a facility. It is evident. Even a few local youth players went to the game and showed their support. The excitement despite the terrible conditions of “The Barn” didn’t stop the believers.
The Cheshire Ice Arena is a hideous place but Ray Waldron, who handled public relations for the Owls Club Hockey team, said that there is a lone positive to the arena. “We always play well here,” Waldron said. “It’s a home ice advantage.”
Take a walk into the rink on a frigid Friday evening, and there is no doubt it is a home rink advantage for anyone who can stand calling it their “home.” There is no heat, the smell is putrid, the bleachers are old and rickety, the player and fans facilities are terrible and to top it all off, I can place money that it barely passes safety inspections both with the rink and the building itself.
It’s a slab of ice that is a poor excuse of a New Hampshire College to play at. It’s disgusting. Once the new Keene Ice facility is in place, within years, the college will have a men’s and women’s hockey program that will defeat title nine and conquer the ECAC.
“We’ve been looking for a partner for a long time for Keene Ice,” Owls Head Club Hockey Coach Bobby Rodrigue said. “We thought that Keene State would be that partner but they don’t have interest in ice while the City of Keene however has stepped up and said they want to partner.”
After talking to KSC Athletic Director John Ratliff, he mentioned the hopeful future of having a varsity NCAA sport. Yet, the two main concerns aside from having a facility are financial and making sure this fulfills Title IX a measure ensuring gender equality in collegiate athletics. “No doubt that Keene State [College] could be a hockey school,” Ratliff said.
Coach Rodrigue also touched on the fact that Title IX would be an issue which these days goes without saying but he is one the biggest supporters in making KSC Ice Hockey a reality in the NCAA. “It’s a shame that we don’t have varsity hockey here at Keene State [College],” Rodrigue said. “But the truth is for all the energy we put in for this team, it’s a conversation that is two steps ahead of us.”
So, let’s make this conversation a half step away.
Financial matters in our society today are terrible and being in New Hampshire couldn’t be worse. The college isn’t going to receive state funding any time soon, especially after last year when the state’s budget cut aid to higher education by 45 percent alone. There is a need for donors, a need for ambition and a need for teamwork. That is the only way that the Keene Ice project could be completed earlier.
The project has been approved for the facility at 350 Marlboro St. in Keene, NH. The next step according to Rodrigue is to get the fundraising approved, which would need to raise upwards of $1.5 million. “In the grand scheme of things, we think this is very, very do-able,” Rodrigue said.
“We’re still optimistic that we’ll be on new ice by September 2014 judging by the feasibility of the fundraising itself.”
After a brand new facility is built, Keene has no choice but to be a hockey school. KSC practically sounds like it skates to championships on the ice.
A school in New Hampshire with powerful school colors and an Owl as the mascot? That is enough to believe that KSC wouldn’t only have a team but a darn good team as well. Just give it some time and spread the word.
Hockey doesn’t just benefit the school for adding another program; it gives athletic training majors a chance to work with a higher-risk sport. Hockey will link the community and the college to strengthen the relationships on both sides. Hockey will put the college out there at a national level and give those athletes the ability to compete against the best of the best considering the ECAC is a dominant hockey conference.
Aside from money, there isn’t much to think about. Coach Rodrigue and the Owls Club Hockey program have a great reputation in the region.
Day-in and day-out, the Owls work on the same level of intensity as varsity programs with a lot less resources and funding. It’s an obvious choice that KSC needs the ice to bleed red.
“As an alumni and someone who lives in Keene, I would love the college to support a varsity team here,” Rodrigue said. “But, we’re proud of what we’re doing right now and ready to roll with it.”
Brian Schnee can be contacted at
bschnee@keene-equinox.com