59 Teams in 59 Days RIT

The 59 Teams in 59 Days tour continues with a trip to Rochester, New York where the newest Division I team, the RIT Tigers are featured.

RIT was an independent team last year. After making the jump from Division III to Division I, they immediatley signed a contract to join the Atlantic Hockey league this season.

Head Coach Wayne Wilson and the rest of the Tigers will have a lot of work ahead of them this year. With out of conference opponents such as St. Lawrence, Clarkson, and Niagara among others, the Tigers will have to at least stay competitive in those games if they have any shot of making an immediate impact in Atlantic Hockey.

Last year as an independent, RIT went 6-22-2, with one of the victories coming against St. Lawrence.

Junior Simon Lambert was the teams leading scorer last year. He averaged over a point per game as he tallied 16 goals and 18 assists for 34 points in 28 games last season. Expect him to be their impact player. A sleeper to watch out for is Junior Darrell Draper, the teams second leading scorer from last year.

On defense the Tigers lost two Seniors, in Marc Hyman, and Tony Bifulco. Matt Smith will be the go to guy for the Tigers on D. Smith tallied 19 points last year, and is a good all around defensemen.

Goaltending wise Junior Jocelyn Guimond will probably get the start between the pipes. He started 26 games last year. While only getting four wins, Guimond will have some Division I experience coming into the season. Expect his numbers to improve.

Overall I think it will take RIT a few years to get used to Atlantic Hockey. However, they do have a future, and the move to Division I will improve their status as a school.

The predicted ceiling for RIT is seventh in Atlantic Hockey, while the gutter is 10th.

Tommorrow we will make our way to Moon Township, Pennsylvania where the Robert Morris Colonials are featured on day number 50 of the 59 Teams in 59 Days tour.