February 22, 1980.
In the annals of U.S. Olympic performances, there is probably no more important date. It was the day that head coach Herb Brooks led a group of American amateurs past the Big Red Machine of Soviet hockey, and the day that Al Michales asked all of us if we believed in miracles.
Well, "all of us" isn't entirely accurate. I was just over two months old at the time, so the American Broadcasting Company's coverage of the Lake Placid Olympics was hardly a major event of my childhood.
Not until much later did I learn that the game, and sports in general, had meaning beyond the scoreboard. Not until much later did I accept the conventional wisdom that the game was the embodiment of Ronald Reagan's "Morning in America" rhetoric — the country was struggling and the smaller, less experienced Team USA gave every American something to believe in (miracle or not) when it upset the Soviets.
Most people forget that the 'Miracle on Ice' was not the gold medal game in those Olympics. Team USA had to play once more — against Finland — before the Star Spangled Banner could be heard on the ice in upstate New York.
'America on Ice'
A few weeks ago, before the American men's hockey team was due to play the Russians for the first time in this Olympic tournament, I found out that ESPN Classic, the not-so-instant replay channel founded by cable sports channel ESPN, was going to reshow the showdown from 1980. For days I went around telling people that the Miracle was going to be on TV.
The only problem was that, with my less-than perfect diction and enunciation, those same people thought I was telling them to watch 'America on Ice,' some imaginary, patriotic version of Disney on Ice. Oddly enough, in a way, the Miracle is America on ice — the hopes of an entire nation were heaped on the shoulders of an undersized group of amateur skaters. The game was frantic and desperate and today would be one of ESPN's "Instant Classics."
US hockey has suffered through some dark times since those games, with the low point certainly coming in the disgrace, both on and off the ice, at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
But now the games have come back to American soil, and the American hockey team is enjoying a resurgence — with Team USA just three games away from the gold medal international plotlines abound as the teams approach the medal round.
Oh, Canada
First, there were Wayne Gretzky's comments about how no one wants to see the Canadians win in these games. Specifically, Gretzky said that, "I don't think we dislike these countries as much as they hate us."
Hate? Canada? I'm not even sure that's possible. When was the last time that anyone not from Canada had strong feelings either way about our neighbors to the north?
Actually, it's not that people are rooting against the Canadians, it's that no one really cares about them; there are far more compelling plot lines in this tournament.
The German national team, for instance, decided that it wanted to play Team USA in this next round of the tournament, and refused to pull its goalkeeper in the final minutes of a 3-2 loss to the Canadians. It seems that the German head coach, who played and lost to the US team in 1980, has been holding a grudge these 22 years.
The German men gave the Americans a better game than their female counterparts did — the US women's team blanked the Germans 10-0 in an early round match.
But that's about the best the Germans could have hoped for. Brooks' odd comments about the Germans losing World War II because they wanted to face the Americans aside, the only way Germany could have beaten the US was if the Americans look past Team Germany to their potential opponents in the next round — the Russian national team.
The US and Russia will likely meet in the second round of the medal tournament in a rematch of the 2-2 tie that the teams played to last Saturday. The game will matter for more than just a win on the ice, just as it did in 1980. Just as 22 years ago, the country faces tough challenges from a wide and unforgiving world.
While it may not be as satisfying to cheer on a team of National Hockey League players against a country that is no longer a feared rival, but a key ally, people will be compelled to watch this game. And until a country from the dreaded 'Axis of Evil' develops a world-class hockey program, USA-Russia will always be the international hockey rivalry.
Brooks reportedly told his team in 1980, "Gentlemen, you don't have enough talent to win on talent alone."
This time around, the smart money seems to be on Brooks and his collection of multi-million dollar NHL caliber talent.
February 22, 2002. Not the Soviet team, but the Russian national team, and once again not for the championship.
No miracle this time, and not a gold medal just yet. But be patient — it's almost morning in Salt Lake.
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