Happy Anniversary, 1980 U.S. hockey team

It was shown live in Canada.

There was one player from the local state U playing on Team USA and there was considerable interest in the games. I first started following the story when Bill Baker scored (against the Swedes or Swiss) with about 20 seconds left to give the US a 2-2 tie in one of its first games.

When they crushed the Czechs ("Take that Koho and shove it up your a**!") momentum really started to grow, and it really took off when they beat Germany.

Watched the first two periods on TV, then had to go to work, at which point I saw on the wire the US had already won. We still watched the third period, on a dinky B&W TV in the AP office, which was just across the hall from the newsroom.

Watched the gold medal game at my girlfriend's, and the medal ceremony at my house that night. Thirty years later, it's still very powerful stuff, something Eruzione commented on in the ESPN retrospective they did yesterday. The memory of the impact of that game has not faded one iota, in fact the magnitude of the accomplishment and the legend has continued to grow.

It's still the greatest sporting event of my lifetime, my "Where were you when Kennedy was killed" sports moment.


About a year afterward Eric Strobel came to my city for a fundraiser. He showed a highlight video of the Games, then spoke. He'd probably seen that video about a thousand times. But he had to brush away tears when it was over, before he went to the podium to speak.

That's a mighty smart quote.

 

I was there. I was there. I was there.

... somewhere in the hallways underneath, with my dad who was off-duty with the State Police, with no idea what was going on or why it was important. I was 4 years old then and have to memory except the hallways underneath. The first time I saw the ice was as a tourist 25 years later.

 

So did he just show his badge & walk in?

If so, it shows how different security is now.

 

Well that complex had been his post during the Olympics. We hadn't seen him for a week or two and we were able to meet him there when he got off.

But yes, no way that kind of stuff happens now. The biggest security perimeter seemed to be around the village itself. If you didn't have legitimate business, you couldn't even get into the village. Trying to get to Saranac Lake? It's a three-hour detour.

 

I was hooked on that team after the tie to Sweden and it crushed the Czech Republic. Will never forget listening to the gold medal game on the radio with my parents, and it was so loud in the arena when Mike Eruzione scored I couldn't really tell what happened. After the game we went over to a friend of the family's place to watch it.

I knew that night I would never see a greater sports moment during my lifetime. I also remember watching the Finland game (and crossing my fingers that they didn't blow it) and the medal ceremony.

 

I remember ABC showing the highlights of the tie with Sweden right after the game ended that night and the announcer, Jim McKay I think, commenting what a huge point it was the US to pick up if they had any hope of reaching the medal round due to the fact they probably wouldn't beat the Czechs.

What a lot of people don't realize is that the Czech team they boatraced a night or two later was considered to be the only team in the tournament that had a shot in hell of beating the Soviets. That's what made the score of that game (7-2 I believe) so stunning.

And no, what the US team did last night does not come anywhere near what the 1980 team did in beating the Soviets. That win was more than winning a hockey game.

 

Incredible that the only member of the team who has died is Brooks.

 

... your fucking graves!

 

When Brooks died, every single member of the '80 team showed up for his wake, and only Pavelich -- who was always a bit of an odd duck -- didn't attend his funeral.

And this was just after the huge east coast blackout that disrupted travel nationwide.

That all of these men dropped their plans and attended is a real testament to Brooks and the bonds that were built between them.

 

Frosh year of college, watched it in a "community" tv room, basement of the dorm. None of us had a clue as to the outcome...wanted it that way (actually, not all that difficult to do, in those days). We had "smuggled" in quite a few "forbidden" beverages. As the game started to feel like it was slipping away (not a great second period for the home team...), we started hitting it pretty hard...

As a child of that era, it's hard to describe just how important this victory felt. In hindsight, maybe it shouldn't have felt that way. But in a cold war era....during a rough economic stretch (made worse by living in the heart of the rust belt), it simply meant the world to us. Can't imagine I'll ever forget that feeling.

 

I know a lot of people in Minnesota who listened to the game live on the radio (I was 8 and living in Wisconsin; I don't remember if I knew the outcome beforehand or not) before watching the TV broadcast. People tell stories of cars pulled over to the side of the road and drivers cheering. Lots of horns honking and headlights flashing.