DaytonDailyNews.com

OXFORD — When Enrico Blasi became head coach of the Miami University hockey team in 1999, he began "trying to cultivate a culture of togetherness," he said, a philosophy by which to play and live.

The RedHawks' 71.1 winning percentage, the best in the nation during the last three years, suggests that they have fully embraced that culture, which they call "The Brotherhood."

And this year it has become obvious that the rest of the country has embraced the RedHawks.

Miami, which opens its regular season at 7:05 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, at Ohio State, is ranked No. 8 in the major preseason polls despite the daunting loss of several players from the 2007-08 season, some of the best in team history.

"There are high expectations," Blasi said. "They used to be just in our locker room. Now they are in our community, our conference and the country ... Our guys have done an unbelievable job of gaining respect."

"The culture is shifting somewhat," junior forward Jarod Palmer said. "There are higher expectations coming in. Freshmen coming in are a little more timid (around the upperclassmen) than normal. It's not like when I came in as a freshman. Expectations were a little lower then."

The pressure is not limited to the newcomers.

"When you have guys like Ryan Jones and Nate Davis and Jeff Zatkoff and Alec Martinez, you go into the season thinking, well, if I don't have a good game they'll carry the weight," said Palmer, referring to four players from last year's squad who now play professionally. (Now) you've got to be the guy carrying the weight."

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.