Quotation of the Week

I consider myself very fortunate indeed to have competed in seven RMC - West Point hockey games, two as a player and five as a coach.  On hearing the news that this unique and historic hockey tradition had been cancelled (or indefinitely postponed according to the RMC Athletic Department) memories of those seven games came flooding back to me, as I am sure they did for the many others who experienced the series as competitors.  As a rule, I do not write letters-to-the-editor.  However, in this case I would seek your indulgence to share a few personal anecdotes in the hopes that in so doing I will experience at the very least some form of catharsis. 

In 1997 we were beaten 7-3 at West Point.  It was my first game in the series as the coach.  After speaking with our team after the game, I went to the West Point dressing room to offer proper congratulations to the West Point  coach, Rob Riley.  He was standing with his father Jack Riley, the legendary West Point coach who was behind the bench during my time as a player.  As Rob began to introduce me, the elder Riley pointed a finger at me and interrupted saying in a thick Boston accent and only half-jokingly, “I know  you.  You’re that bastahd that stole those two games from us back in ’82 and ‘83….”    Fifteen years on a man who coached the United States to an Olympic gold medal in 1960 and is a hockey icon in the United States still felt the sting of those defeats.  That experience impressed on me that the series meant as much to them as it did to us. 

Three years later, RMC ended its longest winless streak in the series with a thrilling 3-0 victory at home in the Memorial Centre before a packed house.  The team had not enjoyed a great year up to that point.  What had been an empty bandwagon the week before the game came to resemble, after the victory, a passenger train on the sub-continent with people hanging out of every door and window.  I recall entering the statistics and probability class that I taught on the Monday following the game.  As I put down my books, the entire class began clapping in a spontaneous (and very touching for me) display of genuine pride from a group of cadets that did not include a hockey player and who on most other days would have been giving me good-natured grief about coaching the “privileged hockey team”.  It strikes me that this game, particularly when played in Kingston,  is one of the few events on the RMC calendar that truly brings the College together both literally and figuratively. 

I now live in the United States and coach junior hockey.  Several weeks ago, I was perusing the roster of our opponents of the day and came across a goaltender named Jim Stenson.  Coincidentally, this happens to be the name of the West Point goaltender who I faced in the 1982 game.  As was the custom in those days, the players were billeted together, so I got to know Jim a little bit.  RMC was a big underdog in that game.  We ended up winning 4-3 on two late goals after being badly out-shot.  It was a tough loss for them but Jim was a great sportsman.  Just before getting on the bus to leave, he said to me, in what can be forgiven as the bravado of youth, “Hey, maybe we’ll fight in a war together someday.”  Thankfully that did not come to pass, although it is mildly prophetic that our two countries are currently allies in the war on terror in Afghanistan. 

The hockey world being as small as it is, I decided to seek out the young Jim Stenson before the game.  I asked him if his father was indeed the Jim Stenson who played hockey at West Point.  He answered yes.  We sat and talked about the series in general and about “what kind of player my father was”.  He promised to remember me to his dad when he got home.  We met again a few weeks later.  He approached me and said his father had remembered me and the 1982 game in particular.  He confided to me that his dad sometimes thought about that game and still felt a twinge of disappointment at the outcome…just like I sometimes think about that game and still feel the warm satisfaction of our improbable victory. 

One can only imagine what the creators of the series, General Douglas MacArther and Sir Archibald Macdonell, would think about the current situation.  The RMC – West Point hockey series survived postponement due to World War II.  It is my fervent hope that it somehow will survive the current paucity of leadership and initiative. 

14080 Andy Scott (RRMC RMC ’83) 

Ed:  Coach thank you for sharing some of your memories on what many of us consider a classic rivalry.

I recently read the articles on the cancellation of the traditional RMC WestPoint Hockey match (eVeritas 001/2007) and felt that I needed to provide my support to those who wish to ensure its continuance uninterrupted.  I have long been of the belief that we should not throw away traditions just because they are inconvenient or do not accord with current thinking. They should only be discarded if they conflict with the achievement of some other goals that are clear and tangible. This does not seem to be the case here and I think the College risks losing something of immeasurable importance because nobody cared to give it a thought.  This is a traditional match that represents a continuum between the past and the present. It connects the College to its history and that of our country and fosters a connection and affiliation with the US military, which we need and must nurture. The match does not in any way create a burden or an obstacle in the way of achieving the College's real goal, which is to train leaders for the Canadian Armed Forces. Unfortunately, this decision seems to be consistent with the other recent announcements concerning the elimination of the traditional battle dress and allowing, or was that expecting, fourth years to live off the College. All of them seem to have been made on the basis of "convenience" only and not to the overall impact it may have on the College, its traditions and purpose.  

I feel it is important to forward my comments before other similar decisions are made either by default or design. What is next - civilian clothes on College for all...? It would save the CF a lot of money. 

I would appreciate if you would convey my thoughts and feelings to the powers that be and my support to those who are trying to resurrect this tradition. 

12530 Stephen Ellis (RMC ’80) 

Ed:  Thanks for expressing such a candid opinion. College authorities are working hard to ensure something is salvaged.  We will continue to do our best to keep our readers abreast of developments.

I am disappointed about the prospect of the cancellation of the RMC-West Point hockey game for this season would be too weak for the rage I feel inside.  I have never liked hockey but this game is much more than hockey for all those who really get its significance.  

Perhaps this is one more illustration that RMC is now being run more like a University than a Military Academy.  Pretty soon, if the trend continues, not only will IV year Cadets live in town, perhaps everyone but First Years will, but Cadets may also be given the option to pack a lunch and wear civvies to classes; great way to save on the College’s ever-melting budget. 

For RMC to have senior leaders that were not Ex-Cadets perhaps is no help either.  I have constantly been promoting the virtues of RMC and fighting misconceptions about it, more often ignorance, since I joined CMR in 1993.  Turning our back to traditions can never be justified.  Makes about just as much sense as asking the 22s to get rid of their mascot (Basil if my memory serves me right) or the Dragoons to do away with their horses.

I hope common sense will prevail and that the game will still happen.

TDV

21113 Alexandre Lebel (CMR / RMC ’98)

Ed: We hope so too.

Just read the article about RMC-West Point hockey.  I also didn't know that football had been cancelled.  So what else is new?  

Civilians, gutless politicans and the politically correct have managed to change RMC into a creature I no longer recognize or relate to.  A kind of civvy u with school uniforms.  The disgust with the confusion and lack of direction about RMC is so apparent that when we have our monthly beer call for classmates here in the city - we don't even talk about the place. 

You keep asking for financial support - why? It's supposed to be a government-owned and operated institution.  If funding is required, then the feds should pony up.  More to the point, I no longer feel motivated to support a school that, at one time, I had a great deal of affection and respect for.  I wish this was just sour grapes on the part of one ex-cadet - but the reality is, there are a lot of us there who feel the same way and who have had a belly full of the B.S. 

The articles and letters get written, people object to certain changes - but it's all ignored. 

So please Bill - don't ask anymore. 

7788 Bob Mellon RRMC / RMC '68 

I read with some sadness the two articles about the omission/end of the West Point series this year.  But it is with mixed feelings.  I remember playing at West Point in 1972 where we were billeted with their junior varsity team.  Nice guys and I learned about their life at the Point.  But I never met a Varsity Army player socially.  Ever.  There was a formal ball after the game and I'm not sure their team even showed up. (not that it mattered as West Point had arranged for a number of ladies to attend from several of the local girl's colleges!)  But the game was not what MacCarthur and MacDonnell had in mind when they established the tournament in 1922.   I think that the two original commandants would suggest that intended purpose of this rivalry ended years ago in most aspects.  It was a cultural and social event and then a hockey event.  You met your rivals as a prelude to the game. There was no body contact until the 1950's when supposedly both teams dressed a few football players!   I would suggest that both institutions have had it wrong and it's been wrong for well over fifty years. 

In fact, after 1972, we never stayed with or formally met another Junior Varsity (let alone a Varsity) player again. Nor with USAFA when we were down there too.  As an aside, we had one of the greatest beerups with the "Pleebs" (1st year USAFA cadets) in their mess leading to a very, very "difficult" plane flight home early the next day!  But again, we never met a USAFA player the entire time we were there.  My sense is that we Canadians would have partied with anyone who showed up!  It was the emphasis on winning the games that overshadowed our annual visits.  West Point was exciting to be sure.  Don't get me wrong, I play every game to win, but exhibition games are just like the name implies.  I have played far better hockey since I left RMC with Hall of Famers, Ex-NHL players, and most of UofT CIAU '70's championship teams.  It has nothing to do with the winning.  And what really is remarkable, satisfying - and clearly more important than any win or loss - are all the friends and business associates that I've made through my hockey.  Hockey players are great people.   

But the West Point deal was a very, very intense rivalry - which I, to this day - never understood since I always put much more emphasis on doing well in our OUAA/QUAA schedule.  I remember tying West Point in Kingston in '73 or '75.  Jack Riley was so ticked with his team's performance that he loaded them on a bus back to West Point right after the game.  That is not the "perspective" and "friendly rivalry" that is discussed in the video (www.cstv.com).   It was rumored that Jack Riley's cousin was used as a referee at one of the West Point games.  It seemed stupid to me back then, and it still does now. 

My sense is that RMC commitment to its history is increasingly being lost due to the creeping imbalance between the military, academic and athletic faculties.  If you want to be an academic, go to a civy U.  RMC and other military leaders - many majoring in Administration - seem to believe that tinkering with something that ain't broken is preferable to leaving it alone.  To be sure, the RMC/Army game is but a small (but significant) piece of RMC and Canadian athletic history.  If the Whig Standard article is true and RMC was unable or unwilling to reschedule the game for 2007, then that is shameful.  "Let's just forget about this and maybe nobody will notice" is a great way to end one of the longest rivalries in any sport!   

West Point has an issue with using "non traditional"/reserve students on the team.  So do I.  You're either a cadet or you're not - at least for the West Point game.  And like the Army/Air Force hockey rivalry, why not resurrect the RMC/Air Force game too?  But, regardless, revert the contest back to what the original commandants had in mind.  With West Point and USAFA umpteen times the size of RMC you'd expect them to have decent players.  A "no body checking" contest does not mean "non contact"!  You don't have to turn it into a NHL All Star game with its glorified shinny.  But turn it into a fast skate which would avoid the kind of "dump and chase" crap that pervades many of the NCAA and the OUAA games.  Each player should meet with another player and stay with them.  A 1922 format.   with a party.  Buddies for a weekend.  And possibly friends for life.

If the "leaders" at RMC aren't careful, some politician with an anti military agenda (oh, right, that would be most of them!) is going to do a cost/benefit on the value of RMC and we'll end up like CMR and RRMC.  Losing the West Point/RMC rivalry is one thing.  Losing RMC's identity?....Priceless. 

10950 David M. Hall (RMC ’77) 

Ed:  Dave thanks for the thoughtful letter.  Your comments helped prompt us to conduct the survey (see details elsewhere in this e-Veritas) for all those who wore the Red & White RMC jersey against West Point.

We have always found it interesting talking to different players from the ‘40s; 50s; 60s; 70s; 80s; 90s; and 00s and hearing what their memories and perspective are of the series.  We are hopeful that we will receive a lot of feedback from players from as many years as possible.

We may even find out when things started to go off the rails!  We have already started working on Volume II for the RMC Hockey History Digest.  The results from our survey should make for an interesting chapter and ensuring history is properly recorded. Please spread the word!

RMC Athletics would like to thank the editors for this opportunity to correct a number of inaccuracies in the two articles included in the January 9, 2007 issue of eVeritas.

In the article “Keep RMC tradition alive” originally published as an editorial in the Kingston Whig-Standard on Friday, December 29, 2006.

 1)     The rivalry between RMC and West Point has not been continuous.  After starting the tradition in 1923, games were not played in 1926, 1940-41 and from 1943 to 1948.

 2)     There is no 10 year agreement or contract in place between USMA and RMC for the date of the game.  There were dates established in 2002 for the game up to 2010.  However these were acknowledged by both institutions for planning purposes only and could be and have been changed by mutual consent.  Case in point, the 2005 game was shifted a week by USMA at RMC’s request in 2003. 

 3)     “RMC soured on the game….”   RMC has never soured on the game but have expressed concerns about the timing of the game.  Everyone in the Athletic Department and the College recognize how great this event is and look forward to this event every year as do many others on both sides of the border.  RMC has been working with USMA to improve the event and increase the social interaction between the institutions since the fall of 2004.    

4)      In the current season, the RMC hockey team sits in 2^nd place in the mid-east division and has a 6 win, 12 loss and 2 tie record.  The team has made the playoffs five years running and is in a tight race to make the playoffs for the sixth year in a row. 

5)      The Women’s Volleyball and Women’s Basketball team are not “0-for-their-existence”.  Both teams have won numerous games however they have not won a game in league play.  It should be pointed out that Women’s Basketball is in only their fourth year of competition at the University level and Women’s Volleyball is in their third year of competition.     

In the article “Army's Biggest Hockey Rivalry In Jeopardy” by Ken McMillan originally published in the Times Record-Herald on 27 Dec 06 and reproduced in ESPN.com’s Inside College Hockey on January 4, 2007. 

1)   The former Head Coach of the RMC Hockey Team, Kelly Nobes, was not dismissed from RMC.  He was offered a position at Wilfrid Laurier University (currently ranked #7 in Canadian University hockey), and upon accepting the position, resigned his post at RMC in July 2006.  The press release can be found at http://oua.ca/news/?id=5038.  Jim Hulton was subsequently hired in August, 2006.   

2)   The article states; “A conflict has arisen in recent years with RMC using players who were non-traditional students …  Army is bound by NCAA rules that require traditional students taking a proper load of classes.”  RMC is a diverse university, distinctly different in terms of its overall mandate from even ten years ago.    With different types of students at the undergraduate and graduate levels it is no longer a purely “undergraduate Redcoat” institution, and has a much broader mandate to serve the academic needs of the entire Defence Team (including dependents of members of that Defence Team).  This has had an impact upon the composition of all RMC Varsity squads.  All of RMC’s Varsity athletes are required to take a “proper course load” as per Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) regulations in order to attain and maintain their continued CIS eligibility.  It should be pointed out that the minimum course load for CIS student-athletes exceeds the minimum course load required in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and therefore, RMC varsity athletes would meet or exceed the eligibility requirements at any NCAA governed university or college.     

The RMC Athletic Department would like to thank 12046 Pierre Ducharme, President of the RMC Club of Canada for his understanding, support and leadership and Cdr Darren Rich, (13789, RRMC 78-83) RMC’s OPI for West Point relations for the past three years for his hard work as we continue to work with West Point to improve the overall RMC-USMA experience for Cadets and Officer Cadets alike.

The RMC varsity sports year is winding down and we encourage everyone to head out and see a game in person.  A schedule for all RMC teams can be found at www.rmc.ca/athletics

Go RMC!

Darren Cates, Director of Athletics

A letter asked where the Colours of RRMC ended up. I and many others were at the last parade of RRMC in late Spring 1995. The Colours were then deposited shortly thereafter in a moving ceremony into the care of Christ Church Cathedral here in Victoria where they are on display with several other colours including retired RCN, RCAF and C Scot R colours. 

(By the way, having been on a few peacekeeping missions and watched how the govt manipulates info, I agree with Sean Henry's thesis his letter wherein he doubted peacekeeping added any lustre to our international reputation except in the minds of some of the public. During the Wars in Bosnia and Croatia, what was loosely termed peacekeeping was anything but. The Cdn public would be hard-pressed to tell you about the various combat actions that took place there though) 

10218 Paul Crober (RRMC RMC ’74) 

Ed:  Paul, thanks to you and many other readers who sent us e-mails regarding the fate of the RRMC Colours.