February 22, 1980
With another off day for the New York Rangers, it’s a great day to talk about USA hockey and how far it
has progressedsice the greatest upset in sports history, not hyperbole, people. The Miracle On Ice.
Team USA beating the big, bad Soviet Union, 4-3, 43 years ago today. How’s that for symmetry?!
I sure hope everybody knows the backstory. A bunch of college kids, led by the late great, coach
Herb Brooks, beat our cold war enemy, the USSR. This team was a machine, literally, they were Red
Army soldiers who were in their late 20s and early 30s. They had run roughshod against all comers
from 1964-1980, winning gold medals, world championships and had beaten many an NHL team leading
up to the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid, NY. I was 4 years old, so I can say with all honesty that I do not
remember watching the game the way my Mom, Dad ,Uncles and cousins did. I have flashes if I think
about it, the house in New Jersey , full of family around a small tv. My Mom would tell me that I was
right in the middle of it, yelling, screaming, banging pots and pans out the window, while my dad
jumped in his truck, blaring his horn, with all our neighbors in unison yelling “ We beat the Russians!”
An awesdome time in our history as well as in my life. Family and sports, Cannot beat it. Its what
makes hockey so important in my wifes and my life, now. Thers hope, happiness, optimism. That’s
what makes America such a great country. Those 3 things. It was a tough time in the country at that
moment. Gas prices. Inflation. The hostages in Iran. U.S. backed forces in Afghanistan fighting an
invasion by Russia. That game united us all and brought back our pride and we rode that wave of
Patriotism thru the decade and beyond. ..but I digress. That team spawned millions of kids like me, to
get a hockey stick and skates, find a pond, or a makeshift net to shoot at, and pretend we were Eruzione
scoring or jim craig, with his shamrock mask, stopping shot after shot.
Alas, many like myself, never made to the pro’s or the Olympics, but that team spawned all time
greats, Jeremy Roenick, Mike Modano, Brian Leetch, Chris Chelios et al, who in turn, expanded the game
to where it is now. In good hands, with adam fox, all the Hughes bros, Jack Eichel, Zegras, McAvoy,
johnny hockey, Austen Matthews, and last but not least, Patrick Kane, whose career is going to put him
at the top of all time greats. Peeriod..
Thanks to Herb Brooks, who helped bring a lot of the members of that 1980 team, to the NY
Rangers, it helped give a name to talented college players who did not want to go the junior route. and if
the Rangers, with jacob Trouba being the most recent American named captain, follows, Brian Leetch,
Chris Drury, Ryan Callahan and Ryan McDonough. So Raanger fans and the hockey world, please alwaya
remember that 1980 Miracle on Ice team and its legacy. 43 years and counting now….
NY Rangers visit the Detroit RedWings tonight in an original six battle. Captain Dylan Larkin has
been on fire since the all star break and with the red Wings in a re-tool type mode, the question is will
they keep their captain for the long term deal he is seeking or will Larkin have to leave some money on
the table and does he want to be a forever red Wing? I as a hockey fan, hope so . Tonights tilt will be a
a good one, lets hope the Rangers can bounce back after a tough loss to the Jets. I am expecting a good
game from Tarasenko, as he is familiar with the wings, playing against them as a Blue for a decade. The
power play and goaltending needs to carry this team now and for the playoff push, through the
playoffs, to the cup. Look for a big night from both. In other news, how great haas Patrick Kane AND
Max Domi looked the last 4 games! Man, if only