Well, the ECAC season has passed the halfway mark, and the top teams are 
         fighting it out to get a good seeding for the playoff series.  Here's a 
         look at how everyone's doing, plus how I tend to feel about them.

         1 Yale    

         Well, there must be sunspot activity because the Bulldogs are in first 
         place.  They also managed to spank the Big Red 11-0 in an astonishing 
         contest at the Whale.  And of course, the fair-weather Eli fans are 
         woofing it up like crazy.  Meanwhile, back at the ranch, 99 years out 
         of 100, the team is hardly holding its own in the standings.  Expect the 
         Woofing Gods to strike down on the 'Dogs success so the flaming Fidos 
         crash and burn one of these days, most likely against Clarkson.

         2 Clarkson

         Great team, consistent solid playing, the fans have a lot of spirit, 
         expect to see the Knights skate to Lake Placid.  But, I wouldn't put my 
         money on them getting into the Big Dance.  They're good, but I don't 
         know if they're that good (yet).  They took a big hit by losing Houle 
         and White.  Let's see if they can stay a-skate till the end of the 
         season.
            
         3 Colgate        

         Colgate came on very strong this year, putting on very impressive shows.  
         Starr Rink is one of the least classy rinks out there, but they've 
         obviously been cheering on their team well.  Their offense has been 
         powerful, and maybe this year they will actually skate on former Olympic 
         ice.

         4 Cornell        

         Cornell has been plagued with injuries.  This was most evident in their 
         11-0 flogging at the hands of the Elis.  The team's offense has been 
         badly hurt by the injury plague, no pun intended.  They have also been 
         playing very sloppily.  In the past three games there have been major 
         penalties called against the Big Red.  But the team has still had its 
         moments, beating Clarkson in a tough, fight-to-the-finish game, tying 
         Colgate at Nassau Coliseum and beating them at Starr.   Hopefully the 
         Big Red will turn it around and make the grand push this coming month.

         5 Harvard        

         Harvard doesn't deserve to be this high.  Overall, they haven't been 
         terribly impressive this year.  Maybe if the Woofing Gods wreak havoc on 
         their opponents, they'll manage to make the Finals, but I wouldn't hold 
         my breath until I turned Crimson.  

         6 Rensselaer     

         The Engineers have managed to build a very scrappy, offensively strong 
         team.  They've played consistently well this season, and they have the 
         firepower to come through in the crunch.  I don't know if they would be 
         ready for the Big Dance this year, but they've played very well so far 
         and have managed to maintain their fourth-place finish from last year.  

         7 Brown         

         Around the bowl and down the hole.  Brown's shining moment this year was 
         beating Yale.  But don't expect much from a team that shares a color 
         with potting soil and human waste.

         8 Princeton      

         The Tigers have also been a relatively unimpressive team this year.  
         Erasmo looked pretty mangy, allowing four goals against the Big Red last 
         Saturday, a number which has been near impossible for them to reach for 
         a couple of months.  I doubt they'll even qualify, much less make the 
         semis this year.  Meow.

         9 Dartmouth      

         Ehh, they suck.  Next?

         10 Vermont       

         This must be the biggest let-down of the year.  The Cats, who were 
         expected to go far last year and even got an NCAA bid even tho they 
         didn't even make the ECAC finals, have fallen into the sewer of the 
         ECAC.  With the loss of two of their best players as well as several 
         defections, the mount-a-Cats are really having it rough this season.  
         They should just lick their wounds and look towards the '98-'99 contest.

         11 St. Lawrence    

         SLU(T) may have beaten Cornell, but I hope they don't make the tourney 
         simply on principle.  They are the lowest class hockey players I have 
         ever met.  Anyone who spits at fans, curses and make obscene gestures at 
         opposing fans after winning deserves a swift kick down the standings by 
         the Woofing Gods simply for that.  The Skating Saints are in no way 
         immaculate, that's for sure.  Their play is sloppy and dirty, and they 
         don't have the ability to hold on to leads for long.  

         12 Union           

         Taking (it) up the rear, the skating Dutchmen didn't work much magic on 
         the ice this year.  Trevor Koenig may be awesome between the pipes, but 
         between both goals there needs to be strength as well, which wasn't very 
         evident this year.  Having a young team certainly didn't help the 
         Capital Region team, and maybe they'll mature a little more over the 
         post- and pre- season for next year in order to make things happen.  

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