Army Hockey Shuts Out Lakers 5-0, Splits Series

ERIE, Pa. – Army West Point hockey (8-10-5, 3-9-3 Atlantic Hockey America) claimed a 5-0 shutout win over Mercyhurst (1-18-1, 1-10-1 Atlantic Hockey America) on Saturday to split the series with the Lakers.

The Black Knights were dominant on the ice in Erie on Saturday, tallying 34 shots on goal to Mercyhurst’s 19 with both a power play goal and a short-handed goal in their tally for the night.

JJ Cataldo returned to the ice and earned his third shutout of the season with 19 saves against the Lakers’ 19 shots on goal.

Mercyhurst sent Charles-Edward Gravel out to face the Black Knights once more where the freshman tallied 29 saves against Army.

The Black Knights came out swinging as they sought to turn the tide of Friday night’s result in their favor. The two teams traded blows back and forth throughout the first 12 minutes of action before Army found an opportunity to seize the momentum.

After the Lakers mishandled the puck in their defensive zone, Nils Forselius jumped on the loose puck and took it to the net for an unassisted goal to break open the scoring in Army’s favor.

Just three minutes later, Jude Brower and Nils Forselius combined to put the puck on net where Bent Keefer tipped in Army’s second goal of the night to send Army into the break with a 2-0 lead.

The Black Knights worked hard to maintain the momentum and were rewarded four minutes into the second frame as Adam Marshall fired a shot from the lefthand circle that slipped past Gravel and the Mercyhurst defense to take a 3-0 lead for Army.

Army continued to press the Lakers and found the back of the net once more after action at both ends of the ice as Ben Ivey chipped in a loose puck from the edge of the crease after a set of passes from Barron Woodring and Jack Ivey eight and a half minutes into the second period.

The Black Knights kept the pressure high on the home team as the second frame continued, but the Mercyhurst defense stood tall and despite a 16-5 shot differential in Army’s favor for the second period, the score held at 4-0 for Army through the second intermission.

Army jumped out on a quick pace for the final period of regulation with two shots on goal in the first minute of action.

The Black Knights continued to hammer shots on goal and the Black Knights found the back of the net for the fifth time after a series of penalties for both sides as Stephen Willey tore out of the penalty box and picked up a pass from Barron Woodring in the Lakers’ defensive zone to score his third goal of the season shorthanded just before the eight-minute mark.

The Lakers logged a bevy of shots on goal to try and cut into Army’s lead, but strong work from Cataldo in goal kept the home team scoreless and secured Army’s 5-0 win on the road.

Army returns home to Tate Rink on Friday, Jan. 16 for the first game in a series against Robert Morris. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET.