Miracle on Ice
By Fatima Younis
Sports Writer
“Great moments are born from great opportunities. And that’s what you have here tonight, boys. One game. If we played ‘em ten times, they might win nine times. But not tonight.” Herb Brooks was the legendary coach of the 1980 American Olympic gold medal-winning hockey team, which defeated the legendary Soviet hockey team on an eventful day on Friday, February 22 in Lake Placid, New York. After the renowned game, flags were put up all over the United States and joyful crowds filled the streets, while the players of the Soviet Union did their best to completely erase the game from existence, burning their silver medals and leaving them in a heap on the ground without even bothering to get them engraved. The game, called the “Miracle on Ice” by North Americans, stands out in the history of ice hockey up until today, and Americans will forever cherish the moment they beat their great rivals in ice hockey. On a cold, blustery winter day in Lake Placid, New York, the Field House was packed to its capacity of 8500. Waving American flags and singing patriotic songs, the home crowd enthusiastically cheered on the United States team. Prior to the game, Herb Brooks gave his team a motivational speech he had written on a piece of paper, “You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours.” A few minutes later, the starting horn blew, and the game was on. Nine minutes twelve second into the first period, Vladimir Krutov deflected a shot by Alexei Kasatonov past American goaltender Jim Craig to give the Soviets the 1-0 lead. As usual, there was barely any reaction from the Soviets; Krutov just allowed himself a pat on the head by teammate Aleksandr Golikov. The Soviets continued to frustrate the Americans, who could barely get their hands on the puck, until a giveaway allowed Buzz Schneider to score with about six minutes to go in the first. Only three minutes later, the dominating Soviets struck again; this time Craig allowed a rebound fired by Sergei Makarov into the net. The Americans battled for the puck, and the Soviets had the advantage until about five seconds were left, when they apparently thought it would not be possible for the Americans to score in the final second. But Mark Johnson proved them wrong. Taking the puck down to center ice, he fired a shot, which went past a diving Vladislav Tretiak, and the first period ended with the game tied at two. The Soviet coach, Viktor Tikhonov, made a decision in the second period that would change the destiny of the game – and alter the future of Soviet hockey – forever. He replaced starting goaltender Vladislav Tretiak with backup goaltender Vladimir Myshkin. Had he not done that, the Americans likely would have lost the game, as the talent from the opposing team and their goaltender would have been too much for them to handle. Tikhonov later identified this decision as “the turning point of the game” and called it “the worst decision of my career.” Players on both teams were shocked by the decision, as Tretiak was one of the best goaltenders in the world, and years later, when Johnson asked Viacheslav Fetisov, who became his NHL teammate, Fetisov’s response was simply, “Coach crazy.” Even though Myshkin allowed no goals in the second period, he was the main factor that cost the Soviets this game. In the second period, the Soviets dominated the entire time, outshooting the Americans 12-2, but they were only able to score once: a powerplay goal by Alexandr Maltsev about two minutes into the period. With no further scoring in the middle period, the third period started with the Soviets leading 3-2. Able to remaining stone-faced, there was a restlessness in the Soviets that jeered at the Americans: all the players from both teams knew that no one ever scored against the Soviets in the third period. The third period was theirs. The Americans had already lost the game. The third period started out in typical fashion: the Soviets dominated, with the Americans managing only two weak shots on Myshkin in six minutes of ice time. It looked very obvious who the winner would be: the Americans clearly couldn’t keep up with the Soviet powerhouse. Then, with around fourteen minutes left, Vladimir Krutov was sent to the penalty box for high-sticking. Here the Americans had a powerplay and a rare offensive opportunity, as they had only managed to get two shots on Myshkin in twenty-seven minutes. Even with a 5-on-4, the Americans could barely get the puck. But late in the powerplay, Dave Silk was advancing into the Soviet zone when Valeri Vasiliev knocked him to the ice. The puck slid to Mark Johnson, who was able to tie the game at three with less than a minute remaining in the powerplay. The Americans jubilantly held up a finger for number one, hugs were exchanged, their eyes were shining with pure joy, and they continued their play. Only a few shifts later, Mike Eruzione intercepted a pass from Mark Pavelich, and fired a shot past Myshkin. For the first time in the game, the Americans had the lead. The Soviets, unable to believe what was happening, attacked ferociously, putting an unbelievable number of shots on the net in a short period of time. As the minutes wound down, Brooks kept on repeating to his players, “Play your game. Play your game.” With only a minute left, the Soviets began shooting wildly, and Sergei Starikov admitted, “We were panicking.” The clock ticked down; twenty seconds left and still the Soviets hadn’t scored. It was then ABC Radio Network broadcaster Ken Dryden made his famous call, “Eleven seconds, you’ve got ten seconds, the countdown going on right now! Morrow, up to Silk. Five seconds left in the game. Do you believe in miracles? YES!!!” The horn sounded and the game was over. As the Americans ran all over the ice in celebration and disbelief, Herb Brooks headed to the locker room and cried. The players, cheering, whooping in jubilation, spontaneously broke out in a chorus of “God Bless America.” The Soviets, on the other end of the ice, were watching. Vladimir Golikov was watching the celebration, stone-faced, but unable to believe what had just happened. His brother, Aleksandr Golikov, was smiling, because no matter how many times the Soviets had won, they had never had this passion, this love for hockey. The next day, Sports Illustrated ran the front page with a picture of the Americans celebrating, but added no headlines. They didn’t need to. Just the looks on the players’ faces and their emotion proved that the Americans will forever cherish this “Miracle on Ice,” the moment a bunch of college hockey players beat the greatest hockey team in the world.
Source:
Coffey, Wayne R. The Boys of Winter: The Untold Story of a Coach, a Dream, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team. New York: Crown, 2005. Print.