A year ago, I found myself gripped in hockey fever.
The anticipation of the Olympics, successful seasons for both the Devils and Sabres, and even getting a few pickup games in myself, I could not get enough hockey.
The most exposure I had to international games was the World Cup of hockey which I attended at Madison Square Garden in 1996, and the Olympics every 4 years. But even as I was aware of the World Junior Championships, I had never had a chance to even watch a game on TV. Enter the NHL Network.
During what Time Warner Cable would later call “a preview period,” my roommates and I would have the great fortune of not only being able to watch the Network, but watch some of the action from the 2009-2010 WJHC.
Watching the youngsters who would soon populate the NHL was an excitement to say, “Hey, I remember when he played in the tourney that year.”
We watched every game we could, making it a point to skip whatever regular season NHL game was on in order to focus our national pride, in practice for the Olympics. Even our neighbors took an interest in the Championships and found their way into our apartment for a game or two.
We sat on the edge of our seats as the Americans faced off against the Canadians in Canada for the Gold Medal, we screamed, cheered and celebrated when Jack Campbell’s kick save sprung a 3-on-1 rush and John Carlson ripped a no-look shot past Martin Jones for the winner in a 6-5 game.
Tonight, the USA hockey team opened up their 2010-2011 campaign with a 3-2 overtime winner over Finland. The game was one which the US had tried their hardest to give away, especially in the third period, when it seemed as if only a handful of players were trying to get the goal which would give them the 2 goal lead they desperately needed. That group was lead by Montvale, NJ native Kyle Palmeri who single-handedly nearly gave the Americans that lead.
Unfortunately, defensive breakdowns would allow the Fins to tie it up with over 10 minutes to go, putting doubt in minds of the USA supporter crowd, and fueling the cheers of a mostly Canadian Pro-Fin side.
Luckily, the Americans would have the last laugh with their overtime winner, sending the masses into the Buffalo night happy, and those going back across the border with a little knot in their stomach knowing the Americans could play like crap and yet still come out victorious.
Look out, Canada, we’re coming for you again.
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Showing posts with label World Junior Championship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Junior Championship. Show all posts
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Sunday, January 3, 2010
National Pride
There is always something that I seem to find deep inside whenever I see team representing the United States in competition on TV.
Be it softball, soccer, or heck even curling, I find my attention being drawn to the competition and pushed away from the remote.
Case in point: hockey’s World Junior Championships. Sure, I heard a little about it and kept it ever so slightly in the back of my mind this past weekend when I learned the USA was taking on Canada in group play, but the thought then became lost behind New Years plans, traveling back to Buffalo, and the final Bills tailgating of the season which I was highly anticipating for the sheer fact it was the last Sunday I would need to be away at ungodly hours of the morning to begin the pregame festivities.
When the game and weather turned to be completely miserable, my roommates and I decided to head home and try to fight the lake affect snow that had set up shop over the greater Buffalo metro area.
Following a 2 hour shoveling session which was 1 part shoveling the driveways and pathways to our apartment, and the other part being spent laying the foundation for a snow table in the back yard, we took to the couches for something entertaining to watch.
Enter the WJC: Canada vs. Switzerland semi-final game. While I will lay my personal take/bias aside for this particular article, it was during this game we found out about the USA-Sweden game later this same evening
When 9 pm rolled around, we begin to flip to the game during the commercials of an entertaining animated show on a certain network station, but once the show ended, our remote became locked on the hockey game.
Our living room quickly filled with armchair coaches, and analysts providing our own insight to the game while still sharing a common bond of pulling for the red white and blue. Cheers, boos, swears were just a few of the utterances coming from the trio of die-hard hockey fans who suddenly wanted to know anything and everything about the players on the ice.
Even after learning that 3 of the talented teenagers were prospects of the hated New York Rangers, my displeasure quickly vanished when the US took a 3-2 lead in the 3rd period.
Following the 4th goal by the Americans, we began discussing changes in our plans for Tuesday night in order to compensate for the 8 pm start of the USA Canada rematch.
It truly is quite remarkable, at least for myself, when just the fact an American team is in contention for a championship, how quickly many will jump on the bandwagon trying to somehow will the team to victory.
Be it softball, soccer, or heck even curling, I find my attention being drawn to the competition and pushed away from the remote.
Case in point: hockey’s World Junior Championships. Sure, I heard a little about it and kept it ever so slightly in the back of my mind this past weekend when I learned the USA was taking on Canada in group play, but the thought then became lost behind New Years plans, traveling back to Buffalo, and the final Bills tailgating of the season which I was highly anticipating for the sheer fact it was the last Sunday I would need to be away at ungodly hours of the morning to begin the pregame festivities.
When the game and weather turned to be completely miserable, my roommates and I decided to head home and try to fight the lake affect snow that had set up shop over the greater Buffalo metro area.
Following a 2 hour shoveling session which was 1 part shoveling the driveways and pathways to our apartment, and the other part being spent laying the foundation for a snow table in the back yard, we took to the couches for something entertaining to watch.
Enter the WJC: Canada vs. Switzerland semi-final game. While I will lay my personal take/bias aside for this particular article, it was during this game we found out about the USA-Sweden game later this same evening
When 9 pm rolled around, we begin to flip to the game during the commercials of an entertaining animated show on a certain network station, but once the show ended, our remote became locked on the hockey game.
Our living room quickly filled with armchair coaches, and analysts providing our own insight to the game while still sharing a common bond of pulling for the red white and blue. Cheers, boos, swears were just a few of the utterances coming from the trio of die-hard hockey fans who suddenly wanted to know anything and everything about the players on the ice.
Even after learning that 3 of the talented teenagers were prospects of the hated New York Rangers, my displeasure quickly vanished when the US took a 3-2 lead in the 3rd period.
Following the 4th goal by the Americans, we began discussing changes in our plans for Tuesday night in order to compensate for the 8 pm start of the USA Canada rematch.
It truly is quite remarkable, at least for myself, when just the fact an American team is in contention for a championship, how quickly many will jump on the bandwagon trying to somehow will the team to victory.
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