Canada still rules men’s hockey

A friend sent me a meme about the gold-medal Olympic men’s hockey match between the U.S.A. and Canada. I include it here with no sense of endorsement.[1]

Dumb, crude, and inaccurate tweet

I wrote back,

That hockey game went like many hockey games go: the U.S. won against the overwhelming run of play. It happens.

Canada put on a clinic and anyone watching would have been humbled by the awesome and relentless power of the hockey that they played for long, long minutes at a time, non-stop. I had to keep checking the corner of the screen to be sure that they didn’t have a power play.

The U.S. got so lucky so many times.[2] They played well enough—especially in the first ten minutes—but, after that, it was Canada’s game to lose. And they lost on the scoreboard, but it wasn’t a victory for the U.S. to be bragging about. It was obvious to anyone who watched the game which team was actually better at hockey.

He wrote back,

“I started saying in the 2nd period that either Canada’s constant zone time was going to wear down the US or the US was going to hold tough and win on a freak breakout”

I wrote back,

I was in awe at Canada. Flat-out. That pressure was unreal. It was like watching the relentless Redwings playing against the Devils with Brodeur back in the 90s.

He riposted,

“Anyone playing Buffalo with Hasek in net”

This post is mostly nostalgia for anyone who watched a lot of hockey in the 1990s. Those who recognize the names, they know what we’re talking about.