It might not have been a shocker on the order of a bunch of scrappy college kids toppling the polished Soviet juggernaut at Lake Placid. But 46 years to the day of the Miracle on Ice, it often felt that way as another underdog United States men’s hockey team ended their Olympic gold drought in a white-knuckle contest dominated by Canada until Jack Hughes’ seismic overtime winner.
Call it the Marvel in Milan.
“Listen, they probably outplayed us a little bit tonight,” said Hughes, the 24-year-old center for NHL’s New Jersey Devils. “Our goalie stood on his head, though. And then in overtime we both have skill players. Anything can happen. We’re just so proud to win for our country.
“To break the golden drought with this group of guys, and for us to win gold here at the Olympics, is just an unbelievable moment.”
The US were outshot 42-28 by the Canadians but the run of play often felt even more one-sided than the stat sheet indicated, requiring a sensational performance from goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to keep the Americans alive. He stonewalled Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini on separate in-alone breakaways. He somehow denied Devon Toews with the paddle of his stick from point-blank range. Staring down a ruthless Canada power play that had converted nearly half their opportunities in the tournament, he made a string of saves during a lengthy five-on-three midway through the second period, the pièce de résistance for a US penalty kill that finished a perfect 18-for-18 at the Olympics.
“Unbelievable game by Hellebuyck,” Hughes said. “He was our best player tonight, by a mile. Unbelievable game, unreal game by our team. That’s just a ballsy, gutsy win. That’s American hockey right there.”
But the sequence that will forever be etched into Olympic folklore started late in the third period with the game on a knife-edge. Hughes had two of his teeth knocked out when he took a stick to the face by Canada forward Sam Bennett, left the ice and went back into the game almost immediately. Then, with less than two minutes gone in sudden-death overtime, he skated on to a cross-ice pass from Zach Werenski and buried it through the five-hole for the most important US goal since Mike Eruzione beat Vladimir Myshkin to vanquish the Soviets in 1980.
“I kind of just saw a white jersey on the far ice and just tried to throw it over there as quick as I could,” Werenski said. “I got it to the right guy. He’s been hot all tournament.”
US forward Brock Nelson, whose uncle won gold with the 1980 team, was quick to put the scale of the moment in perspective.
“As a kid, when you’re growing up and you’re watching the Olympics, you kind of remember moments. I’m sure this is going to be a moment that younger kids are talking about: ‘You see Jack scoring the OT winner?’” Nelson said. “I’m sure that’s a moment that kids are probably going to try to recreate and try to envision themselves in that spot later on in life.”
It’s been a turbulent 12 months for Hughes. He was panned for his underperformance in last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off before undergoing season-sending shoulder surgery. This season he missed five weeks after slicing his right thumb open at a team dinner, and often found himself in the headlines more for his relationship with Canadian pop star Tate McRae than for his on-ice exploits. His older brother Quinn, the Minnesota Wild defenseman who paced the US team with eight points at the Olympics, beamed with pride after Sunday’s game.
“[Jack] is an animal,” Quinn Hughes said. “He starts on the fourth line. He just kept going, mentally tough. He’s gone through a lot with his shoulders. He takes a lot of shit. No one loves the game more than him. He’s got so much passion. He’s a gamer. He made it happen.
“For Jack it’s very special, and extra special for me to watch him do that. I just can’t believe it.”
USA center Tage Thompson also praised Jack Hughes: “He is built for these moments. He loves the pressure, loves the spotlight, that is when he shines most. He is a gamer. He wants the puck on his stick at all times. He wants to be the guy who makes the play. And he did.”
In the end it was that newly gap-toothed American hero, whose seven points in the Olympics were second on the team only to Quinn, who penned the fairytale ending to the first Olympic tournament to feature NHL players in 12 years.
“I think every single person in that game can be proud,” Hughes said. “Just a great game between USA and Canada.”
