It was a sit on the seat of your chair kind of moment for both American and Canadian hockey fans yesterday, as the US men's hockey team took on the Canadians in the gold medal game to end the 2010 Winter Olympics. After already beaten the Canadians in an earlier game, team USA came onto the ice already tasting that gold medal, which with utter disappointment to American hockey fans they had to spit out.
At the start of the game, you had to pin your ears to your television set speakers in order to hear the hockey announcers at this crowd roaring stadium. Canadian hockey fans were set and ready to beat their biggest hockey rival, team USA. In the first period of the game Canada scored and crazy signs and flashes of red and white filled the stadium. The game itself was fairly clean, with few penalties, and competitive action which made for a perfect atmosphere for the finale of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
Into the second period both Canada and Team USA scored 1 goal, making it a 2-1 lead for the Canadians. The Canadian defensemen played well, and supported their hometown goalie Roberto Luongo who had a surpassing amount of pressure on him to pull through for not only his country but for his die hard Canuck fans.
Finally reaching the third period with no goals scored, and a panicked team USA calling for a time out; millions of Canadian fans rose to their feet hoping that 2-1 win against the Americans would happen in just a matter of seconds. But with 24.4 seconds left in the game, and the US goalie Ryan Miller pulled from the net, team USA managed to pull it together and score to make it a 2-2 tie.
In this tie breaker situation a 20 minute overtime period was to be played and the first to score a goal took the win. So, this game excitedly ended with a battle of do or die between the Americans and Canadians. Luckily the Canadian Nova Scotia super star Sidney Crosby or as the Canadians refer to him as "Sid the kid", managed to slip it through goalie Ryan Miller's legs to win the game.
Fans from across the nation, including Gretzky's own Toronto bar, and the outside streets of downtown Vancouver, cheered louder than ever before for this Olympic moment in history.
The Canadians won the gold in both Men's and Women's hockey, a sport they invented, and a sport they call their own. But, not only did the Canadians manage to win gold in hockey, they took home 14 gold medals, and broke the record for the country that has won the greatest number of gold medals ever at any Olympic Games in history.
Way to go Canada!
