1980 usa olympic hockey game

Exactly three minutes later, Phil Verchota Duluth, Minn. Christian shot the puck from the blue line with Verchota parked in front of the net. Verchota was able to deflect it past the glove of Suttner to cap the scoring for the U. Earning his third win of the tournament, Jim Craig N. Schneider put the U. On a three-on-two, Mark Pavelich Eveleth, Minn. It was the first time in the tournament that the U.

Mike Ramsey Minneapolis, Minn. Strobel then picked up the rebound and put it past Romanian goaltender Valerian Netedu. Mark Wells St. Clair Shores, Mich. Schneider would respond with his second goal of the game shortly after.

Off an offensive zone faceoff, Schneider fired a slap shot into the back of the net to make it U. Following a Romania goal by Alexandru Halauca, the U. Norway scored the only goal of the first period just in. Geir Myhre got one past Jim Craig N.

The scoring would continue later on in the second period, as Dave Silk Scituate, Mass. Silk brought the puck in on his off hand and had it knocked away right to Mark Pavelich Eveleth, Minn.

Pavelich then passed back to Silk who snuck it through the five hole of Martinsen. Ken Morrow Davison, Mich. Team USA would score two more times in the third period.

Silk then dropped it back to Wells whose initial shot was stopped by Martinsen. The rebound was left in front and Wells crashed the net and put it home for a U.

The puck bounced toward Morrow, who slapped it toward the net on the ice and past Martinsen. Czechoslovakia started the scoring early, as Jaroslav Pouzar scored just into the contest.

Frantisek Kaberle and Milan Novy picked up assists. Following a neutral zone draw, Neal Broten Roseau, Minn. Eruzione fired it past goaltender Jiri Kralik to tie the game at one. Peter Stastny picked up the assist. The score would remain heading into the second period. Schneider scored his first of two goals into the frame. Pavelich brought the puck down the right wing and eluded his defender.

Schneider headed toward the front of the net where Pavelich made a backhand pass which Schneider put past Kralik. After collecting the puck on the boards, Johnson headed toward the slot where he made one move and fired it in on the backhand.

After Dave Christian Warroad, Minn. Schneider scored his second of the game exactly one minute later. After a good forecheck, the puck was centered to a wide-open Schneider, who made it Two days later, the Americans defeated Finland to clinch the hockey gold. The Soviet team had captured the previous four Olympic hockey golds, going back to , and had not lost an Olympic hockey game since The Americans looked scrappy, but few blamed them for it—their average age, after all, was only 22, and their team captain, Mike Eruzione, was recruited from the obscurity of the Toledo Blades of the International League.

Few had high hopes for the seventh-seeded U. The Soviets, however, were seeded No. On Friday afternoon, February 22, the American amateurs and the Soviet dream team met before a sold-out crowd at Lake Placid.

Midway through the period, Buzz Schneider, the only American who had previously been an Olympian, answered the Soviet goal with a high shot over the shoulder of Vladislav Tretiak, the Soviet goalie. The relentless Soviet attack continued as the period progressed, with Sergei Makarov giving his team a lead. With just a few seconds left in the first period, American Dave Christian shot the puck down the ice in desperation.

Mark Johnson picked it up and sent it into the Soviet goal with one second remaining. After a brief Soviet protest, the goal was deemed good, and the game was tied.

In the second period, the irritated Soviets came out with a new goalie, Vladimir Myshkin, and turned up the attack. The Soviets dominated play in the second period, outshooting the United States , and taking a lead with a goal by Alesandr Maltsev just over two minutes into the period.

If not for several remarkable saves by Jim Craig, the Soviet lead would surely have been higher than as the third and final minute period began. Nearly nine minutes into the period, Johnson took advantage of a Soviet penalty and knocked home a wild shot by David Silk to tie the contest again at For the first time in the game, the Americans had the lead, and the crowd erupted in celebration.

There were still 10 minutes of play to go, but the Americans held on, with Craig making a few more fabulous saves. With five seconds remaining, the Americans finally managed to get the puck out of their zone, and the crowd began counting down the final seconds. When the final horn sounded, the players, coaches, and team officials poured onto the ice in raucous celebration. The so-called Miracle on Ice was more than just an Olympic upset; to many Americans, it was an ideological victory in the Cold War as meaningful as the Berlin Airlift or the Apollo moon landing.

The upset came at an auspicious time: President Jimmy Carter had just announced that the United States was going to boycott the Summer Games in Moscow because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and Americans, faced with a major recession and the Iran hostage crisis, were in dire need of something to celebrate.

Johnson then saved the day by adding a shorthanded backhand goal of his own just minutes later to give the U. From there Jim Craig just hung on for the final few minutes of the game as Al Michaels this time screamed "This impossible dream comes true! The country went crazy with a newly found sense of national pride. Sports Illustrated named the team as "Sportsmen of the Year.

The line of Schneider-Pavelich-Harrington led the team's four lines in scoring with 17 goals and 20 assists in seven Olympic tournament games. A Lasting Legacy A grateful nation hailed the team as heroes. A visit to the White House followed, as well as appearances in cities across the land. Covers of Wheaties boxes, magazines, awards, honors, speaking engagements and more followed for all the players. In the heart of the Cold War, beating the mighty Soviets was something bigger than they could've ever imagined.

Looking back, the icy miracle was achieved by enormous ambition, coupled with great passing, checking, speed, and sound puck-control.

Shrewdly, Brooks refused to play the typical dump-and-chase style of hockey. It's the same as punting on first down. The style I wanted combined the determined checking of the North American game and the best features of the European game.

I pushed this team really hard, I mean I really pushed them. But they had the ability to answer the bell. Our style of play was probably different than anything in North America. We adopted more of a hybrid style of play - a bit of the Canadian school and a little bit of the European school.

The players took to it like ducks to water, and they really had a lot of fun playing it. We were a fast, creative team that played extremely disciplined without the puck. Throughout the Olympics, they had a great resiliency about them. I mean they came from behind six or seven times to win. They just kept moving and working and digging. Many went on to play professional hockey, while others went into business and began their careers elsewhere.

They would not al be reunited again, however, until , when the team was brought together in an emotional gala to collectively light the Olympic torch at the Winter Games at Salt Lake City. Most importantly perhaps. The impact of the event was far reaching, and is still being felt today.

Since that milestone game in , hockey in the United States has grown significantly at the professional and amateur levels. Hockey Hall of Fame Search. The U. Olympic Team.

Do You Believe in Miracles? Road to the Gold Team Final Score vs.