USA! USA! Americans Win Battle; NHL Winning War

There were more than a few of us who groused about a phony tournament with only four teams, the two-week stoppage of the NHL season, and the resulting grind of the compressed NHL regular season schedule. As Team USA beat Canada Saturday with a fight-filled first period, there is no question that we doubters of the Four Nations Face-Off were wrong.

Very, very wrong.

In the most entertaining hockey game in years, if not decades, the hockey world was glued to the screens and social media as the USA beat Canada 3-1 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. In a game that rose to one of extreme consequence, Team USA led by general manager Bill Guerin and coached by Mike Sullivan, showed what looked like a superior construction and scheme.

“It was a virtuoso performance in defensive effort,” said analyst Mark Messier. “They looked like they’ve been playing together for years.”

The Americans are guaranteed a spot in the Final Thursday night at TD Garden in Boston, regardless of their result against Sweden.

The Canadians are not guaranteed anything and must win their way into the Final. The country that claims ownership of the game and for which the sport is a matter of national identity was beaten. Underscoring the American’s feat, Canada captain Sidney Crosby was 26-0 in his last 26 games with Team Canada.

The game began with each team sending a message. At the opening puck drop, USA’s Matthew Tkachuk and Canada’s Brandon Hagel fought. On the next faceoff three seconds later, Brady Tkachuk and Sam Bennett dropped the mitts. And just to complete the hat trick of fisticuffs, four seconds of hockey later, USA’s J.T. Miller went down swinging against much taller Canadian defenseman Colton Parayko.

Connor McDavid exploded past USA defenseman Charlie McAvoy for the game’s first goal. However, the U.S. scored the next three goals. Jake Guentzel scored midway through the first period. Dylan Larkin ripped a shot past Canadian goalie Jordan Binnington midway through the second period, and Guentzel iced the historic win with the empty netter late in the third period.

The Americans won the game, and the NHL might as well have raised its collective arms in victory, too.

The U.S. win over Finland on Wednesday delivered 1.5 million viewers and was the most-watched non-playoff game on ESPN ever. For USA-Canada, we don’t need to wait for the ratings Sunday morning; the United States’ thrilling victory over Canada on ABC probably delivered millions of viewers. While casuals had long checked out before Florida beat Edmonton in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in late June, this was primetime hockey season with all eyes available.

The NHL can only hope there’s a rematch next week in the Final. The spectacle will be epic.

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There’s even a political backdrop as U.S. President Donald Trump has angered Canadian fans with multiple references to Canada becoming the 51st state.

Whether Trump is genuinely serious or not, Canadian fans have expressed their irritation at the comments by booing the American national anthem.

It’s just another layer of heightened drama. The magnitude of this four-team tournament, with Finland and Sweden as the other included teams, is much greater than anyone could have predicted.

3 Thoughts

1. Fans may not realize how consequential the Team USA coaches are in the evolution of the game. U.S. assistant John Tortorella revolutionized the game with his aggressive forecheck scheme while the bench boss of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa Bay won the 2004 Stanley Cup with a speedy forecheck that crushed the competition. Tortorella’s system ran counter to the slow, plodding game played by heavy-footed defensemen who spent a decade in the clutch-and-grab league, which squashed talent.

After being fired by the Boston Bruins in 2006 after just two seasons, Sullivan spent eight years as Tortorella’s assistant.

When Sullivan got his next chance, he unleashed another game-changing speed scheme with the 2016 Pittsburgh Penguins. Every team took immediate notice and began chasing the Penguins, literally and figuratively.

The game we know today, which is played with extraordinary speed and talent, was largely shaped by Tortorella and Sullivan.

Team USA’s forecheck performance on Saturday stuffed Canada, which probably boasted the most talented roster since the 1987 Canada Cup, with Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky leading a Hall of Fame-laden roster.

2. With more consistent wins in the World Junior Championships and Saturday, the conclusion is inescapable. The United States is quickly catching Canada in the hockey hierarchy. Stiff competition from the rest of the world, but especially the U.S., is undoing some of the Canadian dogma on team construction.

Team Canada has exited the World Juniors at the quarterfinal level in each of the last two years. Even if Canada rallies to win the Four Nations Face-Off, the USA has proven to be its equal.

If Canada doesn’t win the tournament, there will be serious questions about Canadian hockey and consternation leading to the 2026 Winter Olympics.

3. Come on, Sullivan has done a masterful coaching job, and Guerin has done a brilliant job putting Team USA together.

Defenseman Noah Hanafin played the hockey of his life Saturday, shadowing Connor McDavid as well as anyone ever has.

The Tkachuk brothers are perfectly suited for Sullivan and Tortorella, too. Sullivan’s preference for gritty hockey isn’t always evident because his Penguins teams just haven’t had many ornery players. The Tkachuks can forecheck, play down low, play on the rush, and they make life absolutely miserable for opponents.

I can’t wait for Thursday.