# Air Force–Army men's ice hockey rivalry

The Air Force–Army men's ice hockey rivalry is a college ice hockey rivalry between the Air Force Falcons men's ice hockey and Army Black Knights men's ice hockey programs. The first official meeting between the two occurred on January 26, 1976 but didn't become an annual event until 1989.

## History

Army was one of the first college teams in the country, playing their first games in 1904. Air Force didn't start play until more than 60 years later but, due to the vast distance between the two campuses, the teams didn't play one another for several seasons. When the NCAA reorganized into numerical divisions in 1973, Army was dropped down to Division II in part because they still used an open-air rink as their home facility. The Smith Rink served as Army's home from 1930 to 1985 but, once the program began to build the more modern Tate Rink, the program was allowed back into top division. Army then played as a part-time member of ECAC Hockey until the late 1980s, after which, the team played as an independent. This coincided with Army and Air Force beginning an annual rivalry.
For the first decade of play between the two service academies, the teams alternated hosting duties. That trend continued once they both joined College Hockey America in 2000, however, Army left after just one season to join the MAAC, an east coast conference. Air Force remained with the CHA for several years before following in Army's footsteps, joining the MAAC successor, Atlantic Hockey in 2007. Over the span of 15 years, Air Force and Army have met 5 times in the conference tournament with the Falcons winning every series.

## Game results

Full game results for the rivalry, with rankings beginning in the 1998–99 season.
| Air Force victories | Army victories | Tie games |
| No. | Date | Location | Winning team | Winning team | Losing team | Losing team | Notes |
| 1 | 23 January 1976 | Smith Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 3 | Air Force | 0 | |
| 2 | 24 January 1976 | Smith Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 9 | Army | 2 | |
| 3 | 28 January 1977 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 6 | Army | 3 | |
| 4 | 29 January 1977 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 6 | Army | 2 | |
| 5 | 27 October 1989 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 6 | 28 October 1989 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 0 | |
| 7 | 26 October 1990 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 2 | |
| 8 | 27 October 1990 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | (OT) |
| 9 | 7 February 1992 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 7 | Army | 3 | |
| 10 | 8 February 1992 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 5 | Air Force | 4 | |
| 11 | 30 December 1992 | DU Arena; Denver, CO | Army | 5 | Air Force | 3 | Denver Cup consolation game |
| 12 | 29 January 1993 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 2 | |
| 13 | 30 January 1993 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 1 | |
| 14 | 21 January 1994 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 7 | Army | 3 | |
| 15 | 22 January 1994 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 6 | Air Force | 4 | |
| 16 | 17 February 1995 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 2 | |
| 17 | 18 February 1995 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 9 | Army | 6 | |
| 18 | 16 February 1996 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 3 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 19 | 17 February 1996 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 7 | Air Force | 0 | |
| 20 | 28 February 1997 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 6 | Air Force | 3 | |
| 21 | 1 March 1997 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 2 | |
| 22 | 27 February 1998 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 2 | |
| 23 | 28 February 1998 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 5 | Army | 3 | |
| 24 | 3 January 1999 | DECC; Duluth, MN | Air Force | 2 | Army | 1 | Silverado Shootout consolation game |
| 25 | 27 February 1999 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 3 | |
| 26 | 28 February 1999 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | (OT) |
| 27 | 3 March 2000 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | CHA play begins |
| 28 | 4 March 2000 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 0 | CHA play ends |
| 29 | 2 March 2001 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 5 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 30 | 3 March 2001 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 3 | |
| 31 | 7 December 2001 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | |
| 32 | 8 December 2001 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 5 | Army | 4 | |
| 33 | 18 January 2003 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 2 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 34 | 19 January 2003 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 2 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 35 | 16 January 2004 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 3 | |
| 36 | 17 January 2004 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 0 | |
| 37 | 14 January 2005 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 2 | |
| 38 | 15 January 2005 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 2 | Army | 1 | |
| 39 | 11 November 2005 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 3 | Air Force | 0 | |
| 40 | 12 November 2005 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 3 | (OT) |
| 41 | 19 January 2007 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 1 | AHA play begins |
| 42 | 20 January 2007 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 2 | Air Force | 0 | |
| 43 | 17 March 2007 | Blue Cross Arena; Rochester, NY | Air Force | 6 | Army | 1 | Atlantic Hockey Championship |
| 44 | 25 January 2008 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 2 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 45 | 27 January 2008 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 2 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 46 | 23 January 2009 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 1 | |
| 47 | 24 January 2009 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 2 | |
| 48 | 29 January 2010 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 49 | 30 January 2010 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | (OT) |
| 50 | 12 March 2010 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 0 | Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 1 |
| 51 | 13 March 2010 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 2 |
| 52 | 14 January 2011 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 5 | Army | 1 | |
| 53 | 15 January 2011 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 5 | Air Force | 4 | |
| 54 | 20 January 2012 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | (OT) |
| 55 | 21 January 2012 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | |
| 56 | 11 January 2013 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 1 | |
| 57 | 12 January 2013 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | |
| 58 | 10 January 2014 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 1 | |
| 59 | 11 January 2014 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | |
| 60 | 16 January 2015 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 3 | |
| 61 | 17 January 2015 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 1 | |
| 62 | 15 January 2016 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 1 | Army | 0 | |
| 63 | 16 January 2016 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Tie | 1 | Tie | 1 | (OT) |
| 64 | 4 November 2016 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 65 | 5 November 2016 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 1 | |
| 66 | 27 January 2017 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 1 | |
| 67 | 28 January 2017 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 2 | |
| 68 | 17 March 2017 | Blue Cross Arena; Rochester, NY | No. 17 Air Force | 1 | Army | 0 | Atlantic Hockey Semifinal |
| 69 | 3 November 2017 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 3 | No. 19 Air Force | 2 | |
| 70 | 4 November 2017 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 2 | No. 19 Air Force | 0 | |
| 71 | 9 March 2018 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 5 | Army | 3 | Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 1 |
| 72 | 10 March 2018 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 1 | Air Force | 0 | (OT); Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 2 |
| 73 | 11 March 2018 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 1 | Army | 0 | Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 3 |
| 74 | 2 November 2018 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | |
| 75 | 3 November 2018 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 4 | Army | 2 | |
| 76 | 11 January 2019 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 2 | Tie | 2 | (OT) |
| 77 | 12 January 2019 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 2 | Tie | 2 | (OT) |
| 78 | 10 January 2020 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Tie | 3 | Tie | 3 | (SOL) |
| 79 | 11 January 2020 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 5 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 80 | 28 January 2022 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 8 | Air Force | 3 | |
| 81 | 29 January 2022 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 3 | Army | 2 | (OT) |
| 82 | 11 March 2022 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 5 | Army | 4 | (OT); Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 1 |
| 83 | 12 March 2022 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 3 | Army | 2 | (OT); Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinals game 2 |
| 84 | 27 January 2023 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 3 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 85 | 28 January 2023 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 6 | Army | 4 | |
| 86 | 10 November 2023 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 3 | (OT) |
| 87 | 11 November 2023 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Air Force | 4 | Army | 0 | |
| 88 | 19 January 2024 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 8 | Army | 1 | |
| 89 | 20 January 2024 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Air Force | 7 | Army | 6 | |
| 90 | 17 January 2025 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 3 | Air Force | 2 | |
| 91 | 18 January 2025 | Tate Rink; West Point, NY | Army | 4 | Air Force | 3 | (OT) |
| 92 | 14 February 2025 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Army | 2 | Air Force | 1 | |
| 93 | 15 February 2025 | Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO | Tie | 4 | Tie | 4 | (SOL) |
| Series: Air Force leads 53–30–10 ||||||||

## Series facts

| Statistic | Air Force | Army |
| Games played | 93 | 93 |
| Wins | 53 | 30 |
| Home wins | 26 | 19 |
| Road wins | 24 | 10 |
| Neutral site wins | 3 | 1 |
| Goals scored | 307 | 242 |
| Most goals scored in a game by one team | 9 (24 January 1976, 18 February 1995) | 8 (22 January 2022) |
| Most goals in a game by both teams | 15 (18 February 1995 – Air Force 9, Army 6) | 15 (18 February 1995 – Air Force 9, Army 6) |
| Fewest goals in a game by both teams | 1 (15 January 2016, 17 March 2017, 10 March 2018, 11 March 2018) | 1 (15 January 2016, 17 March 2017, 10 March 2018, 11 March 2018) |
| Fewest goals scored in a game by one team in a win | 1 (15 January 2016, 17 March 2017, 11 March 2018) | 1 (10 March 2018) |
| Most goals scored in a game by one team in a loss | 4 (8 February 1992, 22 January 1994, 15 January 2011) | 6 (18 February 1995, 20 January 2024) |
| Largest margin of victory | 7 (24 January 1976, 19 January 2024) | 7 (17 February 1996) |
| Longest winning streak | 5 (1 March 1997 – 27 February 1999), (10 January 2014 – 15 January 2016) (28 January 2023 – 20 January 2024) | 3 (16 February 1996 – 28 February 1997), (18 January 2003 – 16 January 2004) (17 January 2025 – 14 February 2025) |
| Longest unbeaten streak | 10 (20 January 2012 – 16 January 2016) | 5 (11 January 2019 – 28 January 2022) |