Some things you need to know about the 80th hockey game between the teams from Royal Military College and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point:

The game: Saturday, 7:30 p.m., at the Rogers K-Rock Centre

Genesis: A conversation more than 90 years ago between the two commandants, Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Gen. Sir Archibald Macdonell created what was once the longest continuous international rivalry in sport.

First game: February 23, 1923; RMC beat Army 3-0 at West Point, N.Y.

Series: Army leads 43-29, with seven games tied

In Kingston: RMC leads 17-15-6

Last year: Army won 8-0 at West Point.

Last game in Kingston: Jan. 25, 2014; Army won 5-2

Last RMC victory: Feb. 9, 2002; 3-2 in overtime, in Kingston

Lately: Army has won seven of the last eight games; the only one it didn’t win was a 3-3 tie in Kingston in 2006

Long dry spell: In the 26 games since winning three straight, 1982-84, RMC has won just three times; besides 2002 there were wins in 1987 (4-3 at West Point) and 2000 (3-0 at Kingston). In that time there have also been three ties

Army this year: 5-11-6 overall, 3-9-6 in conference play; Black Knights have won just one of their last eight games

RMC this year: 3-16-3 in Ontario University Athletics competition; Paladins have won two of their three games since Christmas

Army’s best: G Parker Gahagan has a 2.52 goals-against average, .902 save percentage and all five of his team’s wins; sophomore Conor Andrie leads the team with 17 points; no one on the team has scored more than five goals

RMC’s best: Second-year man Bruce Hornbrook leads the team both in goals—8, tied with captain Eric Louis-Seize—and points, 17; Louis-Seize has 16 points, and has scored twice and assisted on another of RMC’s five goals in the Paladins’ last three games

Familiar face: Army goaltender Matt Penta played last year with the Kingston Voyageurs. The freshman from Waltham, Mass., hasn’t played this year but he’ll be part of the travelling group this weekend.

Overheard: “Matt has worked extremely hard on his own game every day. He’s got an unbelievable attitude and tremendous work ethic; he’s just waiting for his number to be called. I was talking to Matt this week about going back to Kingston and his face kind of lit up. He talked about what a great experience it was and actually wished he’d been able to do it for a couple of years. He said the people in Kingston were awesome and it was exciting that he could go back there and see some people he knows.” — Army coach Brian Riley.