Army Earns Colorado Springs Split, Leaves Air Force Series Encouraged by Performance

Colorado Springs, C.O. – Entering a rivalry weekend out in Colorado, Army (5-1, 4-0 AHA) was ranked for the first time since March 2021. Owning a four-game winning streak against Air Force (3-5, 1-1 AHA) at Cadets Ice Arena, Army brought that success and confidence out to Colorado.

It was a mixed bag for Army this weekend. After a dominant Friday night performance yielded three points and extended their overall winning streak to six, the Black Knights were unable to complete the sweep in Colorado Springs.

Army got out to a big first period, heading into the intermission with a 3-0 lead. That period set them up for the rest of the weekend, and they skated off the ice with a 4-1 victory, with junior Nils Forselius and freshman Noah Mertz leading the team with a goal and an assist.

The very next night, Army had the same mindset and process, but it didn’t translate to success. Army still created chances to score, but Falcons goaltender Dominik Wasik was at the top of his game, making 25 saves in a 2-0 Air Force shutout victory.

Despite the split and the team’s first loss in over a month, Army head coach Zach McKelive said he was pleased with how his team performed in Colorado Springs.

“I was pretty happy with the way we played Saturday and just overall this weekend,” said McKelive. “But you need to score to give yourself a chance. We created and had a lot of possession, but there were more opportunities to get into the high-danger areas. We also missed the net a lot, and that has been a problem. Air Force is a tough place to play, and they are well coached, so we knew they would have a big response. Wasik was great, and their team as a whole just committed to the hard details of the game. It was a really good series this weekend. We just need to get back to work because we have done a lot of nice things this year and this weekend.”

For Army (6-2, 5-1 AHA), securing a split on the road against rival Air Force (4-6, 2-2 AHA) is a solid outcome. Picking up three points brings the Black Knights to 15 through six conference games, keeping them atop Atlantic Hockey—four points ahead of Bentley and six clear of Sacred Heart.

Speaking of the Pios, they’ll make their way down to West Point next weekend. Army will be looking to test themselves against the preseason favorites to win Atlantic Hockey. It will also be the first opportunity to see the best two goaltenders in the conference, JJ Cataldo and Ajeet Gundarah, go head-to-head. Army has beaten a top-10 team this season, but this weekend will be the real litmus test for Zach McKelvie and the Black Knights.

A Three-Goal First-Period Fuels Army to Victory Friday

*The Army team celebrating Noah Mertz goal on the glass in front of the Air Force crowd; 11/06/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

In rivalry games, throw out the records and stats. Army has had Air Force’s number in Colorado Springs, winning four straight at Cadets Ice Arena. But these games are always won with hard work. The Black Knights would reap the rewards of that hard work with three first-period goals.

An early penalty from Ben Ivey could have spelled trouble for Army if the Falcons capitalized, but JJ Cataldo stood up to the challenge and made a huge save on Christian Cole in the lower right circle, moving from right to left. It was a major momentum swing for Army.

As the penalty was expiring, Nils Forselius sprinted to block a shot above the circles, and his hard work created a breakaway the other way. Forselius had the wheels to get away from the Falcon defender on his back and, with a silky forehand-to-backhand move, beat Dominik Wasik’s left pad to give the Black Knights a 1-0 lead 4:30 into the game.

*Nils Forselius skating off to celebrate after opening the scoring on the road against Air Force; 11/06/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

“It was a great feeling to get the guys going with an early goal,” Forselius said about the timing of the goal. “I was kind of spun around on that penalty kill; JJ had to come up big a few times, and I got fortunate there getting in the lane and getting hit with it. Obviously a terrific play by Billy to steal the puck and make a great pass to spring me the other way.” Forselius continued by saying it was a great pre-scout from assistant coach Jack Riley that helped him on the breakaway. “To be honest, I was so tired on the breakaway, I thought I was going to get caught by the defense, but I managed to get free. I was originally thinking five-hole, but a terrific pre-scout by JR [Jack Riley] about how far the goalie comes out. So I tried to fake the shot and pull it backhand, and fortunately it went in.”

Army would score two more times in the period. With the man advantage, Jack Ivey scored his second goal of the season after playing a couple of in-tight passes with his brother Ben to open up the lane for his one-timer to beat Wasik. Then, right before the end of the period, Nik Hong would expand the lead to three. Hong, sneaking out from behind the net, received the puck on his tape from a gorgeous cross-crease pass from Billy Batten, and all he had to do was tap it into an empty net. It was a perfect first 20 minutes for the Black Knights.

That twin connection tho 💭😮‍💨#GoArmy pic.twitter.com/odgcpOmI0b
— Army Hockey (@ArmyWP_Hockey) November 7, 2026

One more for the good guys before the end of the first pic.twitter.com/VEZRbghzDj
— Army Hockey (@ArmyWP_Hockey) November 7, 2026

To begin the second period, Air Force, to be expected, came out with their hair on fire. That play ultimately got them on the board, with captain Brendan Gibbons getting the Falcons on the board after 28 seconds.

For the Black Knights, the game could have started to snowball, conceding a goal so early in a period. But to Arym’s credit, they didn’t let the game get away from them and regained control of play almost immediately. Despite being back in the game on the scoreboard, it didn’t seem to sway the momentum in Air Force’s favor.

Two minutes later, Army would head back to the power play, and the Black Knights would strike again. Looking to retake its three-goal lead, freshman defenseman Noah Mertz would do just that, giving the Black Knights a 4-1 lead.

Army’s puck movement above the circles and their ability to interchange in all five spots caught the Falcons all out of sorts. Nils Forselius, from the right circle, looking for a pass, found Mertz in the top of the left circle wide open. Mertz was able to step into a one-timer and got all of the puck, giving Dominik Wasik no chance to get across to deny the Rhode Island native his second goal of the season.

There’s a reason that the Army power play is currently top-five in the country. It’s not just because they’re putting puck in the net, but rather the trust all five players have in each other on the ice, according to Mertz. “I think there has been so much success because of the belief we have in one another,” said Mertz. It starts with the coaches, and they have a ton of faith in PK and PP. Every unit does it for the person next to them. It doesn’t matter who gets the goal or who gets the kill as long as we are contributing to winning hockey, and that’s what we are doing.”

*Noah Mertz leading the handshake line after scoring his second goal of the season to give Army a 4-1 lead over Air Force; 11/06/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

Army head coach Zach McKelvie knew how big of a goal that was from his power play. To score that goal right after Air Force seemed to have grabbed the momentum at the start of the period, it couldn’t have come at a better time. “It was huge. They have a good team, and we knew they would push. You always get a little nervous when they score early in a period, but credit to the guys, they just settled in and got back to our game.

From the players’ perspective, the Black Knights have put together a series of complete 60-minute performances rather than just isolated wins. Assistant captain Nik Hong emphasized the importance of staying energized for the rivalry game while remaining composed in a hostile environment.

“It was a great effort from start to finish. We know what this game means to our program, but I’m super proud that we didn’t change our approach,” said Hong, who was the lone captain on the ice. “Everyone committed to playing our game and wearing them down with our hard skill. We had some huge blocks in front of JJ that contributed to our momentum. And we just stuck together for the whole game. Great effort all around; now we have to reset and do the same tomorrow.”

Game Summary (11/06/26):

Final Score: Army 4, Air Force 1
Date: November 6th, 2026
Venue: Cadets Ice Arena, Colorado Springs, C.O.
Attendance: 2,395
Officials: Referee – Matthew Fuller & Andrew Bethmann; Linesman – Chase McGee & Ryan Demsey

Scoring Summary

First Period

03:30 — ARMY: Nils Forselius [3] (Billy Batten) EV — 1-0 Army
11:00 — ARMY: Jack Ivey [2] (Ben Ivey & Noah Mertz) PP — 2-0 Army
18:44 — ARMY: Nik Hong [3] (Billy Batten) EV — 3-0 Army

Second Period

00:29 — AIR FORCE: Brendan Gibbons (Nolan Cunningham) EV — 3-1 Army
18:44 — ARMY: Noah Mertz [2] (Jack Ivey & Ben Ivey) PP — 4-1 Army

Third Period

NONE

Penalites

Army – 1st: Ben Ivey, Boarding (01:24)
Air Force – 2nd: Brady Arneson, Hooking (08:32)
Air Force – 2nd: Christian Kim, Holding (10:47)
Air Force – 2nd: Zander Lipsett, Tripping (03:11)
Army – 3rd: Brock Jones, Slashing (08:47)
Army – 3rd: Nils Forselius, Unsportsmanlike Conduct (17:53)
Air Force – 3rd: Brendan Gibbons, Unsportsmanlike Conduct (17:53)
Army – 3rd: Liam Chapman, Cross-Checking (19:46)

Team Stats

Stats Categories	Army Black Knights	Air Force Falcons
Goals	4	1
Shots On Net (Attmpts)	33	18
Power Play (Shots)	2-3	0-3
Penalty Minutes	8	8
Faceoffs Won (Win %)	39/71 (54.9%)	32/71 (44.1%)
Blocked Shots	23	14

Goaltending

Army Black Knights

JJ Cataldo (W): 17 Saves on 18 Shots (0.944 SV%)

Air Force Falcons

Dominic Wasik (L): 29 Saves on 33 shots (.879 SV%)

Army Shutout Saturday to Snap Win Streak

*Sean Gibbons skating with the puck as the Army bench looks on; 11/07/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

Saturday was a different story for the Black Knights after dominating Air Force one night ago. The process was still the same, but the end product didn’t follow. A big part of that was the play of Dominik Wasik, who made all 25 saves.

“It was going to happen at some point,” Army head coach Zach McKelvie said. “We had a good response; we did not get away from the game plan. Air Force did a great job of keeping us to the outside and made it hard to generate high-quality chances. Giving up the first goal will likely happen again this season, and it’s just important that we stay with our game plan.”

Air Force opened the scoring 8:37 into the game, when Christian Kim was able to tip a cross-crease pass past junior goaltender JJ Cataldo. It was the first time all season that Army hadn’t scored the first goal of a game. Some adversity for the Black Knights, but they responded the right way. Zach McKelvie’s crew went on to out-shoot and out-chance the Falcons for the remainder of the period, with Wasik the only one standing in their way.

That momentum would fall dead in its tracks when senior defenseman Pierce Patterson was handed a five-minute major and game misconduct for spearing as the horn sounded. It might have been out of character for Patterson, but it potentially cost his team.

*Vincent Salice shooting the puck against Air Force; 11/07/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

“I didn’t talk to Pierce in the moment, but it was just a lapse in judgment,” said McKelvie. “That’s not who he is, and that’s not what we want our team to be. Just need to use it as an opportunity to learn and get better from it.”

Beginning the second period on a five-minute penalty kill, Army did an excellent job killing it off. The Black Knights limited Air Force to just one shot, while also getting a couple of short-handed looks.

The final 35 minutes were played almost entirely in the Air Force zone, but Dominik Wasik remained a persistent thorn in the Black Knights’ side. Air Force tightened up defensively compared to Friday night, needing just a single goal to claim the lead before adding a late empty-netter to send Army back home to West Point with a split.

Game Summary (11/07/26):

Brent Keefer playing in his final came in his hometown of Colorado Springs against Air Force; 11/07/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey — *Brent Keefer playing in his final game in his hometown of Colorado Springs against Air Force; 11/07/26; Photo Credit: Army Hockey*

Final Score: Army 0, Air Force 2
Date: November 7th, 2026
Venue: Cadets Ice Arena, Colorado Springs, C.O.
Attendance: 2,190
Officials: Referee – Matthew Fuller & Andrew Bethmann; Linesman – Chase McGee & Ryan Demsey