What a depressing way to bring Sunday to an end. Not only did Canada beat the U.S., but in dramatic fashion with a game-winning goal by Sidney Crosby. To make it even worse, it was against Buffalo’s Ryan Miller….again.
Crosby beat Miller in a shootout to give the Penguins a win at the Winter Classic a few years back. Now he beats Miller again to win gold.
On a positive note, the U.S. was not even predicted to make it that far. They played their hearts out, and earned the silver medal. Obviously, the gold would have been better, but the team played extremely well throughout the tournament.
Ryan Miller was the most valuable player of the tournament, allowing eight goals in just six games played. He couldn’t do much better than that. Team USA held the Canada team to just three goals, but couldn’t get enough offense to come out on top.
Miller played well, and it was a thrill watching him compete in the Olympics. Buffalo fans knew he was good, but they saw an elite goaltender in the tournament.
It’s a tough loss for the Americans, and it may sting for a while. The USA should be proud of what their team has done. To go in to Canada, and beat them at their own game (twice), is a challenging task.
The team effort by the U.S. proved that they don’t need all of the best players to succeed. With all of the right players, and everyone playing their best, they have what it takes. Canada scored the game-winner, but that doesn’t make them the better team.
Technically, yes. Canada was the best team in the Olympics. The U.S. played better as a team, and came out on the short end. In the two games played against each other, the U.S. outscored Canada 7-6.
Lindy Ruff won the gold medal as an assistant coach, and shared a touching moment with Miller during a handshake. It will be interesting to see if the two of them can come back to Buffalo and fire up the Sabres.
If you’re still trying to recover from the tough loss, just know that it could have been much worse. Canada is a powerful team, but the U.S. was able to stick with them. At least they did not get blown out, they made a game out of it.
Although they came up short, it was a great effort by Team USA. As we will soon focus back in on the NHL, let’s go Buffalo.