Burlington, V.T. — This season, Army has found a ton of success against both Hockey East and ECAC. Dartmouth took it to Army Friday night, but the Black Knights would respond Saturday night in Vermont, beating the Catamounts 3-0 at Thomas Arena.
The Army offense exploded in the last 21 minutes of the game, with junior Vincent Salice scoring on a breakaway to end the second period, and both Jack and Ben Ivey scored in the third period. The real hero tonight was sophomore goaltender JJ Cataldo, who made 22 saves to earn his second shutout in the past two weekends.
“It was a good effort by our guys, Army head coach Zach McKelvie said. “We never were overextended, so we managed their storm. They had some good looks tonight, but overall, we did a good job of managing and pushing everything to the perimeter, and we got better as the game went on.”
The win improves Army to 6-9-4 on the season and 2-8-3 (11 points) in Atlantic Hockey play, while Vermont drops to 5-10 and 3-5 (9 Points) in Hockey East.
JJ Cataldo Gets Army Through Another Slow Start
The Catamounts came out of the gates as the better team in the first period. Just as they did on Friday night, Army was able to weather the storm. The Black Knights weren’t able to generate a ton of offense in the first 20 minutes, but JJ Cataldo had his teammates’ backs, saving all seven shots that got through on net.
“It’s such a big confidence boost to have him [Cataldo] behind us in the net,” says sophomore Jack Ivey. “He makes every save he’s supposed to and more, and it’s really shown these past couple of games. We’ve seen what he could do after last season, and it looks like he’s just getting better.”
Army found its legs in the middle period, thanks to the power play. The Black Knights had two opportunities on the man-advantage, with three shots on net. They didn’t find the breakthrough on Aiden Wright, but it wouldn’t be far away.
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Salice Continues His Hot Streak
As the second period moved along, Army continued to pick up momentum, leading to the opening goal just before the end of the period.
Vermont looked like it was going to go on the attack after a successful exit and zone entry into the Army zone. Except Thomas Sinclair was met at the line by Jack Ivey, and the sophomore forced a turnover.
In one motion, Ivey retrieved the puck and sprung Vincent Salice on a breakaway. Last weekend against Sacred Heart, Salice hit a crossbar on a breakaway. But this weekend, he didn’t miss, beating Aiden Wright over the blocker and just under the cross-bar to give Army a massive 1-0 lead heading into the locker room.
“Yeah, it was a huge goal by Salice to give us the lead first,” Jack Ivey said. “Vinny is a tremendous player off quick turnovers like that, and it showed today. To give our team the confidence and momentum going into the rest of the game was huge.”
The goal for Salice was his third in his last five games. Salice has looked more dominant in his game. The speed, the feistiness, and the shot he possesses can be a difference maker for this Army team, something Zach McKelvie sees from Salice right now.
“Vinny is awesome, had a great game tonight, and has been playing well. His speed is his best asset, and he can create when he uses it. He has been really good for us.”
Army Hockey News:
- Army Goes Toe-to-Toe with Dartmouth, But Falls 3-0 in New Hampshire
- Army Sophomore Jack Ivey Named Atlantic Hockey Forward of the Week
- JJ Cataldo Shuts Out Sacred Heart to Earn Army Its First Series Win of the Season
- Army Hockey Stuns No. 17 UMass 5-4, Earns Second-Ranked Win of Season
Army Builds on Its Lead in the Third
That Salice goal changed the whole game with Army, with the Black Knights able to lock down a victory in the third period.
Army had to kill an early-period power play from Vermont just 11 seconds into the period. And credit to Zach McKelvie’s penalty kill units, who have struggled mightily this season, the Black Knights, led by junior captain Barron Woodring, were able to kill off both extra-man opportunities for the Catamounts.
The penalty kill only added to the momentum they had built in the second period. With the boost from the kill, Army would double its lead with eight minutes remaining.
Junior Brent Keefer won a one-on-one battle in the neutral zone to start an Army attack. Keefer would be dragged down just over the blue line, but the puck fell to an oncoming Nils Forselius. A Vermont skater was missing his stick, and Forselius took advantage and skated right around him. With Forselius attracting two defenders, the sophomore found fellow sophomore Ben Ivey sneaking into the slot, and in one motion, rifled a shot past the glove hand of Aiden Wright to give Army an enormous 2-0 lead.
Two and a half minutes later, Army would make it three with Jack Ivey getting on the scoreboard alongside his brother. Sophomore Adam Marshall got on his horse after dumping the puck into the Vermont zone and caused havoc below the goal line. Marshall hounded the Catamounts defender, stole the puck along the boards, and got the puck put to Ivey in the slot. The finish wasn’t pretty, but Ivey got the puck past Wright as it bounced over his shoulder and over the goal line to make it 3-0 Black Knights.
Jack Ivey has been on a roll in his last five games, recording seven points (2 Goals & 5 Assists). Ivey says he credits his linemates for getting him going.
“Woodring and Salice make it easy for me,” Ivey said. “They are great players on both ends of the ice, and it’s great for us to get production going for our team. We hold each other accountable on the bench, and we push each other in practice. They are two well-rounded players that are easy and fun to play with.”
One thing that stuck out to head coach Zach McKelvie on the goal was Adam Marshall’s play below the goal line that led to the third goal.
“We talk often about playing below the goalie and being hard on loose pucks. That’s what Marshy did there, and Jack was in a good spot to get the puck.”
Securing the Shutout and Still Undefeated Against Hockey East
Army had just three shots on net in the third period, but they were uber efficient, scoring on two of them. On the other side of the ice, JJ Cataldo was called into action once again.
Cataldo made eight saves in the third period, earning his second shutout in three games as Army skated off the Thomas Arena ice with a 3-0 win over Vermont.
After the win, Catlado credited a lot of his recent success to the teammates in front of him getting in the shooting lanes and either blocking shots or forcing shots wide of the net.
“From my end, I see all of the guys incredibly dialed in to defensive habits and playing for each other. The guys have done an elite job at shot blocking. I’m unsure of the numbers, but we have been hitting our goal of shot blocks consistently in these last few games. Even the goal that was scored this weekend, we have guys selling out to block the shot. Unfortunately, it took a funny bounce and found the back of the net [against Dartmouth]. With that, it fires us all up to see a guy put his body on the line for everyone else. We all know it isn’t easy taking one in the ankle or the side of the knee, but our guys have been doing it for the team lately, and it’s been paying off.”
With the victory, Army now improves to 3-0 this season against Hockey East. Head coach Zach McKelvie has been impressed with the way his team has been able to compete against some of the best teams in the country and limit their strengths so far this season.
“Hockey East is one of the best leagues in the country, so to get wins against these teams is nice and shows our guys that when we play as a team, we can compete against anyone,” McKelvie said. “I like how our guys respect the skill on these teams, and we seem to be understanding how to take away some of their strengths.”
Wrapping up the First Half of the Season
Saturday night’s win is Army (6-9-4, 2-8-3 AHA) last game until after Christmas. Head coach Zach McKelvie thinks this recent run of games from his team is something they can build on as they push for a playoff spot.
“You definitely get confidence from a win, so it’s nice to go into the break the way we have been playing in our last five. We still have a long way to go, but we are getting better, and we will build off of where we finished the first half.”
How the team played in the first half of the season helped set up a difficult new year for Army, but a win like tonight could lay the foundation for success in 2026.
Goaltender JJ Cataldo, who has had his own struggles, says wins against Hockey East opponents like UMass and Vermont show that the Black Knights can play with any team in the country.
“This win was huge for us. The first half of the season we’d all admit wasn’t our best, but these games against top opponents have shown we can hang with the best, and we know what we need to do to take it into conference now.”
Jack Ivey echoed his goaltender’s sentiment, saying that spirits are high in the locker room after Saturday’s victory.
“Ending the first half of the season on this big win is huge for the guys. Morale is high, and the belief is strong. We know what we are capable of, and we need to continue it into the second half and league play.”
Army will be back in action on December 27th, when they make the trip into Brooklyn in a rematch against LIU. The two teams began the season with an exhibition at West Point, resulting in a 3-0 LIU victory.
Game Summary
Final Score: Army 3, Vermont 0
Date: December 13th, 2025
Venue: Thomas Arena, Burlington, V.T.
Attendance: 2,103
Officials: Referee – Sam Heidermann & Jeremy Tufts; Linesman: Steven Murray & Anthony Valle
Scoring Summary
First Period
- No Goals Scored
Second Period
- 19:02 — Army: Vincent Salice (Jack Ivey) EV — 1-0 Army
Third Period
- 11:59 — Army: Ben Ivey (Nils Forselius & Brent Keefer) EV — 2-0 Army
- 15:35 — Army: Jack Ivey (Adam Marshall) EV — 3-0 Army
Team Stats
| Stats Categories | Vermont Catamounts | Army Black Knights |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | 0 | 3 |
| Shots | 23 | 14 |
| Power Play (Shots) | 0-2 (1) | 0-2 (3) |
| Penalty Minutes | 4 | 4 |
| Faceoffs Won | 29 | 21 |
| Blocked Shots | 8 | 12 |
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Goaltending
Vermont Catamounts
- Aiden Wright (L): 11 Saves on 14 shots (.785 SV%)
Army Black Knights
- JJ Cataldo (W): 23 Saves on 23 Shots (1.000 SV%)
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