(ORDA/Museum)

So, the U.S. Olympic hockey team beat Canada Sunday night 5-3. The upset victory just happened to fall on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the 1980 Miracle on Ice, the U.S.-Soviet Union classic in Lake Placid, N.Y. And it’s the first time the United States has beaten Canada in Olympic competition since 1960. Adding to the drama, the game pitted a group of young, hungry Americans against a dominant group of experienced Canadians.

All right, time for sportswriters to break out the hyperbole. “THIS WAS THE BIGGEST UPSET IN THE HISTORY OF THE OLYMPICS!” “The greatest game in international hockey history!” “One for the ages!”

Well, here’s the Associated Press report on the game:

Now, the latest hockey team to capture the American public imagination needs only to write a happy ending to this success story in the making, just like the 1960 and 1980 teams did. This game wasn’t for a medal. Canada wasn’t eliminated; the Americans are assured of nothing but a bye before they play the Switzerland-Belarus winner. Even so, this was a magical moment for U.S. hockey that, at least in the Olympics, hasn’t been matched since the Miracle on Ice in 1980.

Thankfully, watching ESPN and reading most accounts of the game, reporters and commentators were able to keep from going too over the top. By saying this is the biggest moment since the 1980 Miracle isn’t saying it is as big, just that U.S. hockey hasn’t had a lot to get excited about since that magical game.

However, the claim in the AP story that this hockey team has captured the American public’s imagination is a stretch to say the least. At the height of Sunday night’s Olympic coverage, 26 million people were watching. I have no idea what the numbers where in 1980, but I can assure you it was more than 26 million. The U.S.-Soviet Union game was tape delayed, and whisperings had gone on through the day about what transpired before ABC showed the game that night. The interest that night was at a fever pitch. Everyone was watching.

Just to refresh your memory of how absolutely insane that game was, below is the last five minutes.

To me, even putting Sunday’s upset and The Miracle in the same sentence is downplaying probably the biggest sports moment in American history. What I wish they’d say in stories is, after totally taking the 1980 Miracle out of the conversation, this is one of the biggest moments in U.S. hockey. Now, that would be fine.

This was an upset, but comparing a young group of U.S. NHL players beating another team of Canadian NHL players pails in comparison to the 1980 game. ABC Olympic voice Jim McKay likened the 1980 victory to an American college intramural football team beating the then-Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

The U.S. was a team of college players, average age 22, playing against the most experienced international hockey team in history, average age 26. This was a Soviet team with many players who had faced the NHL All-Stars in 1979 and beaten them by an embarrassing 6-0 score.

So, as for the 2010 U.S. victory over Canada, was it a huge upset? Absolutely. Miracle? No way.

Here are some great stories about the 1980 Miracle.
Sports Illustrated
ESPN Classic’s story

And if you want a laugh, check out this 4-year-old’s impersonation of Herb Brooks’ inspirational pre-game speech and compare it to Kurt Russell’s version in the 2004 movie Miracle

I first heard of the Rocket from the wonderful Roch Carrier cartoon The Sweater. I was entertained because it was a funny story, I had a passing interest in hockey, and I’d never heard a French-Canadian accent before. It wasn’t until later that I looked at who Maurice Richard was.

Every sport needs a prototypical player. The guy. The guy who does everything right, who you can forever compare to, the guy who even when his records are broken will never fade in importance because he was the first to even get there. In short, every sports needs a Babe Ruth.

To ice hockey, Maurice Richard is that guy. Sure, Gordie Howe became Mr. Hockey, and Gretzky became The Great One, but the conversation starts with the Rocket.

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By Stephen Turk

I’ve waited long enough.  So here goes, my favorite sports game of them all, bubble hockey.

The game was the very first coin operated foray of Innovative Concepts in Entertainment, and they named it “Chexx.”  Logistically speaking, bubble hockey (also known as dome hockey, or the greatest game ever) is very similar to foosball.  Players are controlled via bars and the object is to score goals.  There are some key differences; as opposed to foosball, where a bar controls a line of players, bubble hockey guys are controlled individually and move about and spin in a slot cut into the “ice.”  While this removes the possibility of an exciting hockey fight, it also removes the more pesky penalties such as off-sides and icing.  It also allows you to pull of some pretty complex and thrilling moves, what with the ability to rotate your players 360 degrees.

An iconic feature of the game is the large plastic dome that covers the game.  This serves several purposes.  One is that it provides a structure for the nifty electronic scoreboard to hang from, and the other is that it prevents cheating and the loss or theft of the puck and players.  You see, a big factor of the game was its pointed approach.  Whereas foosball has a parlor and garage game legacy, bubble hockey was aimed squarely for the arcades, where no one wanted to take any chances with what kids might to an unprotected machine.

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By Stephen Turk

Hockey season is starting, and this time of year reminds me of what a great game ice hockey is, and what a shame it is that it isn’t more popular.  There is only so much national attention that can be doled out to sports at a time, so to quote so many members of the pro sports world “it is what it is.”  Hockey will always have one thing no one can ever take from it, however, and that is the best trophy in the world. 

It’s a bold statement, I know, but If I could win one championship in professional sports, it would have to be the Stanley Cup.  The trophy for the NHL is simply the best around.  The reasons are many and there are some great facts here: http://www.nhl.com/cup/fun_facts.html but there are tons of great reasons to love the Stanley Cup and a great history behind it. 

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