On the 46th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice, the United States sought its first gold medal since 1980, battling Canada for the honor. Both Jaccob Slavin and Seth Jarvis were dressed and ready to go for the biggest game of the year, pitting the world's premier hockey nations against one another. With the skill possessed by each side, it was destined to be a showdown for the ages.
The Americans scored the lone goal of the opening frame, coming on an incredible individual effort by Matt Boldy. He flipped the puck to himself, lifted Devon Toews' stick, and finished it on the backhand past Jordan Binnington to break the ice six minutes into the game. The Canadians were pressuring throughout, but the United States refused to relinquish its lead before the first break.
Things got hairy in the second period for the U.S. They had a prolonged 5-on-3 to kill, but Connor Hellebuyck came up with some big stops to keep it 1-0. However, it felt inevitable that the Canadians would get one. Cale Makar had way too much space, and he put it under Hellebuyck's blocker to tie it up. Brock Faber had a shot redirected off the post in the final seconds, but it stayed tied at one.
The third period was more insane goaltending from Hellebuyck. He made a paddle stop on Toews that might go down as one of the great saves in Winter Olympics history. Nathan MacKinnon had a golden chance with a vacant net, but he hit the outside. The Americans generated next to nothing against Binnington, sending the Gold Medal Game to overtime.
With shades of the 2010 Winter Olympics starting to creep in, the United States reversed its fate. Jack Hughes scored less than two minutes into overtime to end the 46-year drought, delivering one of the biggest moments in American hockey history.
Slavin and Jarvis left it all on the line for their countries
Getting to finish out the tournament, Seth Jarvis didn't play a lot in the Gold Medal Game. His 7:59 on the ice was the second lowest on the team, only to Sam Reinhart. He didn't record a shot, but he was still noticeable when he was on the ice. In the first period, he had a meeting in the corner with his Hurricanes teammate.
The American defense was pushed to its very limit. Anyone talking negatively about Jaccob Slavin's performance during the Olympics, not that they should, was silenced today. Slavin was just as crucial to the win as anyone. He threw his body into so many shots and was on the ice for Boldy's goal in the first period. Not to mention his incredible work on the penalty kill, which was perfect in Milan.
For all of the Hurricanes involved, it was an incredible tournament. The Danes put in outstanding work, falling short of the playoff rounds. The remaining three players found the podium, with Sebastian Aho taking home the bronze yesterday before Jarvis secured the silver and Slavin won the gold today. It was an incredible moment to behold, made even sweeter with an American victory.