Gwozdecky's Boyz To Battle This Weekend In NY

From: Rocky Mountain News
by Pat Rooney

(left) Enrico Blasi will take his Miami Redhawks into Troy, NY this weekend to battle Seth Appert's RPI Engineers

While their mentor leads the University of Denver hockey team all the way on the other side of the continent, Seth Appert and Rico Blasi will be battling for bragging rights.

Appert, the head coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Blasi, the head coach for top-ranked Miami (Ohio), remain very good friends from their time together as assistants under DU coach George Gwozdecky.

And their respective staffs are filled with similar relationships that transcend the showdown their teams will have on Saturday and Sunday at RPI's home rink in Troy, N.Y.

"I lived with Rico for two years while we were both at Denver," said Appert, who has led the Engineers to an 8-5-3 mark in his second season. "He has helped me, along with George and (DU assistant) Steve Miller, and I'm very appreciative of everything they have done. One of their assistants (Jeff Blashill) is one of my best friends and we were in each others' weddings. There is a lot of interconnection on the staffs."

Appert hoped his Engineers would host the nation's top-ranked team for the first time in more than 20 years, but the Red Hawks dropped from the top slot after suffering a home split with Alaska.

"We'll definitely be trying to beat each other," Appert said. "I'm definitely proud of the success they have had and I know he feels about the same with us here."