WEST POINT, N.Y. – The Army West Point men’s hockey team shut out visiting American International at Tate Rink on Friday night, 1-0. After two scoreless periods, Ian Mansfield netted the game winner in the third stanza to clinch the victory for the Cadets.
The Black Knights saw Mansfield tally his first goal of the season with 10:47 left in the game to break the deadlock and scoring the eventual game winner. Parker Gahagen was solid between the pipes tonight and made 25 saves to secure his fourth shutout of the season and eighth of his career.
ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES
Army improved to 7-5-1 overall and 7-4-0 in Atlantic Hockey. The Black Knights secured a crucial two points to maintain first-place in the league standings alongside RIT.
The Cadets now boast a 61-26-6 lead in the all-time series against the Yellow Jackets and lead 45-12-4 at West Point.
Mansfield netted the game winning goal in the final stanza with the assist credited to Michael Wilson.
It was Mansfield’s third career goal against the Yellow Jackets and fourth point.
The third period goal was Army’s 12th of the stanza this season marking it as the team’s most productive.
Tonight was Gahagen’s 11th game of the season with over 20 saves.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Through the first period, the score was knotted at 0-0 with the Black Knights holding a 17-11 shot advantage. The 17 shots were one shy of a period high 18 set at RIT two weeks ago.
The Black Knights had three power play opportunities in the first stanza alone, but could not convert on the opportunities.
The second period was a back-and-forth battle which featured no goals, but two power plays for Army and one for AIC.
Halfway through the third stanza, Gahagen made a point blank save to keep AIC off the board.
Mansfield then broke the 0-0 tie on a wraparound goal at the 9:13 minute mark. He attempted a shot on the near side of the net before carrying it around and breaking it through on the far post.
Nick DeCenzo helped ensure the Cadets’ victory when he came out of nowhere to eliminate a promising breakaway opportunity for Yellow Jackets with a poke check.
It was an aggressive game featuring seven combined power plays and 10 overall penalties, but neither team was able convert on the special teams unit.
UP NEXT
The Black Knights return to Tate Rink tomorrow night for a non-league matchup against Brown. The puck is set to drop at 7:05 p.m. Fans are encouraged to bring a stuffed animal as it is the annual Teddy Bear Toss during the first intermission. The stuffed animals will be donated to Toys for Tots which is a campus-wide initiative.
SCOUTING BROWN
Brown enters the weekend with a 1-8-0 overall record and a 1-5-0 mark in ECAC play. The team’s lone win was over Colgate on Nov. 12.
The Bears downed the Raiders 4-2 after falling to them the previous night by an identical score.
Brown is hoping to snap a three-game losing streak with recent deficits to Clarkson (3-2), St. Lawrence (7-2) and Maine (5-1).
The Black Knights have not seen a win over the Bears since 1991 as the Bears boast back-to-back wins and the teams fought to tie in the previous two meetings.
Riley is an alumni of Brown and was a co-captain of the Bears’ hockey team his senior season.
Riley earned honorable mention All-Ivy League honors and was presented the Class of ’36 Trophy for his outstanding contributions over his four-year career, and the Patrick Jones Trophy for having the most team spirit.
