USA Reclaims Hockey Gold, Edging Out Canada - 46 Years to the Day After the Miracle on Ice

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By Susie Moore

The USA Men's Hockey team has done us all proud and secured Olympic gold against the favored Canadians to close out the Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. I haven't watched a ton of Olympic coverage this time around, but I did catch this game, and it was well worth it.

February 22nd was already a significant date in American history — after all, it was on this day, in 1732, that our nation's first president, George Washington, was born.

Also on this day, in 1980, the USA defeated the Soviet Union in a medal-round game of the Men's ice hockey tournament at the Lake Placid, New York, Winter Olympics (going on two days later to defeat Finland and secure the gold medal). 

In Sunday's gold-medal matchup, the U.S. scored first, with Matt Boldy hitting the net six minutes into the first period. Canada's Cale Makar tied it up with just under two minutes left in the second. 

A high stick from Canada's Sam Bennett in the third took out Jack Hughes' left front tooth and saddled the Canadians with a 4-minute double-minor penalty, but the U.S. wasn't able to capitalize on that, and the game went to overtime, still tied 1-1. Hughes got his revenge, though, scoring the game-winning goal less than two minutes into OT, and setting the U.S. back atop the podium for the first time in 46 years.

The elation of capping off the Winter Games with a hard-fought victory against a formidable foe was paired with the bittersweet nod Team USA gave to their fallen friend and teammate, Johnny Gaudreau, who, along with his brother Matthew, was killed by a drunk driver while cycling in August of 2024, in New Jersey. 

The players repeatedly held up Gaudreau's sweater in his honor, and then, for the team pic, went to the stands and brought his two eldest children back onto the ice with them. (Gaudreau's wife, Meredith, was pregnant with their third child when he was killed. Baby Carter Michael Gaudreau joined the family seven months after his father passed.)

Can't imagine there was a dry eye in the house with that — I know there wasn't in my house. 

I'm old enough to remember the Miracle on Ice (though not quite to remember the birth of Washington!), and so very glad I got the chance to see Sunday's victory as well. 

And the memes — the glorious memes — spawned by this one...well, stay tuned — we'll have some more of those for you to enjoy here shortly.

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