The US men’s hockey team had an exciting finish in the gold medal game in the Winter Olympics, winning 2-1 in overtime. The USA went undefeated (6-0-0), dominating the entire tournament and impressing the entire audience.
They started off with three big wins in the preliminaries: USA vs. Germany (5-1), USA vs. Denmark (6-3), and USA vs. Latvia (5-1). After already qualifying for the playoffs, USA beat Sweden 2-1 in a nerve-racking OT victory in the quarter-finals. They then proceeded to destroy Slovakia 6-2 in the semi-finals, which secured their spot in the gold medal championship. Before the USA could bring home their gold medal victory, they needed to beat one more outstanding team, Canada. This final game included numerous twists and turns that left viewers in awe. The regulation time ended with a score of 1-1, which meant both teams would battle it out in an amazing OT. The USA, fortunately, came out strong, and in 1 minute, 43 seconds, Jack Hughes received a clean pass from Zach Werenski, took a fantastic shot, and scored the game-winning goal. This secured the USA’s first gold medal since 1980, famously referred to as the ‘Miracle on Ice,’ when the USA beat the Soviet Union (4-3) in, probably, the most stunning game they have ever played in the Olympics.
In an interview with a captain of Mendham High School’s hockey team, Brandon Eigner (senior), and another player, Thomas Finn (senior), had a lot to say about the tournament. When asked about the most exciting games in the tournament, Brandon said, “It’s the gold medal game…it felt lopsided even though the USA won,” he explained. Both Brandon and Thomas were rooting for the USA, but they were very impressed by some of the other teams as well. They were most impressed by Czechia, which was not expected to perform that well. Thomas said, “Czechia has a good history of building some good hockey players, but considering the fact that they were polling from the NHL this year, the other countries that had a more heavy NHL presence just had the upper hand.” Thomas also added that he felt the playoff game between Latvia and the USA was the most exciting. He explained, “it was just kind of like the first game of the playoffs… and it showed that we [USA] were there to play.” For a very long time, the USA and Canada have been dominating the hockey Olympics and other national hockey tournaments like the Juniors. Brandon stated, “they have a lot of hockey players compared to their population. And the U.S. just had a lot of people relative to these other countries.” He added that the USA’s hockey program has developed over the last 10-20 years, meaning that they started adding players from the NHL to their roster. These teams also get their immaculate skill from the chemistry on and off the ice. Brandon explained that the “guys grew up playing together, and especially, the American and Canadian teams.” Due to this deep friendship the players have with each other, it makes it easier for the top teams to dominate in these tournaments.
Playing and representing a country in a national competition is not easy. But these players have to endure that and let it motivate them. Thomas remarked that the players took the pressure really well, and Brandon added, “Heavy underdogs, like France and Italy, took the pressure very well.” He mentioned that these two teams once or twice “got blown out and the rest of the games they stayed in it… even though they had very little top-end talent.” To the audience, this pressure sounds like too much, but these players need to try to use it to motivate them. Thomas explained this kind of pressure motivates them because “it’s one of the biggest stages for hockey,” and Brandon added, “it’s what you play for, right, to be in the Olympics.”
Getting a little bit more personal with the interviewees, when asked which Olympic hockey player they wished they’d meet, Thomas said that he wanted to talk to Charlie MacAvoy. He explained that it wasn’t easy for him to take the puck towards the chest in the goal to keep the USA alive and in the game. He emphasized, “That’s gotta be such a good feeling when you make that save that’s so important to your country.” Brandon wants to meet Quinn Hughes because he feels that he can learn about his great decision-making and try to “model” his own game after him.
Brandon and Thomas were all inspired by the Olympics and feel that they could learn some tips from this level of play. Brandon felt that he could learn to fix even the smallest mistakes, as they have a huge impact during the game. Thomas felt very inspired by the Olympics and clarified that “Canada dominated most of the game, but the U.S. just kept in there, and they found a way to produce when it mattered.”
The men’s winter Olympic hockey tournament was an inspirational event to watch. It showed the audience the level of play that players need to be at to compete and represent their country. It showed the pressure they needed to endure, but it also showed the motivation that came with it. All of the teams played great throughout the competition, and Team USA was able to come out on top.
