Army Hockey Lets Late Lead Slip, Falls in Shootout to LIU: McKelvie Candid on Lessons Learned

East Meadow, N.Y. — For 55 minutes, Army West Point Hockey (6-9-5) looked every bit the team on the rise—dictating play, scoring in bunches, and staring down payback against a familiar foe. But in a sport where the smallest lapses are punished, the Black Knights saw a two-goal lead vanish in the final minutes, ultimately falling in a shootout to LIU, 4-4 (SO loss), in a game that stung as much as any defeat this season.

Fast Start, Relentless Pressure

From the opening puck drop, Army’s intent was clear: attack, pressure, and leave no doubt. The Black Knights were hungry to erase the memory of October’s exhibition loss to LIU, and it showed as they owned the pace. Brent Keefer’s finish off a textbook cross-crease pass from Nils Forselius and Ben Ivey electrified the bench and set a tone of urgency and aggression. When Jack Ivey jumped on a Sharks turnover to make it 2-1, the energy was palpable. The Black Knights were buzzing, every line rolling, every check landing with purpose.

Special Teams, Missed Opportunities

The second period was a back-and-forth battle of special teams. After LIU tied it on the power play, Army responded with a man-advantage tally of their own—Nik Hong finding the back of the net off a Vincent Salice rebound. Keefer’s second goal, a quick release from Ben Ivey’s feed, seemed to put the game out of reach at 4-2. But even as the offense flowed, Head Coach Zach McKelvie saw warning signs:

“It was frustrating to give up a two-goal lead. We made some bad errors and it allowed them to get back in the game late. We did some decent things offensively and made a few good plays. Overall, the game was a bit sloppy and there are several areas we need to clean up moving forward.”

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Third Period: Ten Minutes of Dominance, Then Heartbreak

Army came out of the locker room with fire, dominating the opening ten minutes of the third period. They pinned LIU deep, rolled four lines, and killed off a crucial power play, with JJ Cataldo standing tall in net. The Black Knights were relentless—winning puck battles, cycling in the offensive zone, and suffocating the Sharks’ attack. With eight minutes left, Army looked poised to close out a statement win.

But hockey is cruel. A bad penalty with under three minutes to play cracked the door open. LIU, desperate and with their goalie pulled, seized the moment—Brett Rylance pounced on a rebound and tied the game at 4-4 with just 1:23 left, stunning the Army bench into silence and sending the contest to overtime.

Coach McKelvie, never one to sugarcoat, was direct about what went wrong:

“I thought for the most part JJ [Cataldo] made most of the saves he had to but LIU was all over their own rebounds and we did not do a good job of limiting their retrievals off rebounds.”

Overtime & Shootout: Inches from Glory

Overtime was chaos—crossbars ringing, breakaways denied, and desperation on both benches. Army pressed, Cataldo made a show-stopping save, but the game remained deadlocked. In the shootout, LIU’s Noah Serdachny scored in the opening round, and the Black Knights couldn’t solve Daniel Duris, leaving Army with only a single point to show for their efforts.

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Lessons, Leadership, and the Road Ahead

No one in the Army room was satisfied. The pain of letting a win slip away was evident, but so was the resolve to learn and grow. McKelvie’s message was clear: it’s about more than skill—it’s about game management, mental toughness, and playing the full 60.

“We have to clean up a few areas before Friday, we were a little sloppy with the puck at times and our compete on pucks wasn’t high enough. Both things our guys are committed to and so we will learn from it. Northeastern is a very good team, it’s a game where we will need to manage pucks and play hard both on the puck and away from the puck.”

And on the bitter taste of the result:

“Absolutely, anytime you give up a lead it feels worst. The biggest lesson we learned tonight is about game management, time and score reads, and understanding the situation in the game.”

Stat Leaders

• Goals: Brent Keefer (2), Jack Ivey (1), Nik Hong (1)
• Assists: Ben Ivey (2), Nils Forselius (1), Vincent Salice (1), Lukas McCloskey (1)
• Goaltending: JJ Cataldo (38 saves)
• Power Play: Army 1/3, LIU 2/4

Looking for Redemption

There’s no time to dwell. Army returns to Tate Rink to host #13 Northeastern on Friday, January 2nd at 7 p.m. ET. The Black Knights know what they’re capable of—and what it takes to finish the job.

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