By Steven
It was a momentous victory that united Canada in pride and passion, reminding its people that hockey is Canada’s sport. Team Canada hadn’t won a hockey gold medal for the Winter Olympics since the Edmonton Waterloo Mercurys won 50 years earlier. If you thought the people of Canada were crazy back then, you didn’t watch the 2002 Men’s Ice Hockey in Salt Lake City. The energy during the tournament kept rising and rising until the final game when the third period buzzer blared out that famous noise ending the game, and ending all sanity in the arena. People were going crazy! Team Canada had beaten the U.S. 5-2 in this obviously exciting game. Let’s go back to the start of the tournament to see how Team Canada went from zero, to a hero for all of Canada.
In the quarter-finals, tension was on the down low in the arena as Canada faced off against Finland, a sizable opponent. Even though Canada won 2-1, the game was pretty even until the second period. Then Canada got that beautiful goal that won them the game. The people of Canada weren’t really surprised. It was like they already knew that the final game would inevitably be Canada against the U.S. Then Canada found out that Team U.S beat Team Germany 5-0. The tension between Team Canada and Team U.S was going up by the second.
In the semi-finals, Team Canada faced off against Team Belarus. Tension was high in the first period when it was 2-1 for Team Canada. In the next two periods of the semi-final game, the tension was going down every time Team Canada scored against Team Belarus. The final score was 7-1 for Canada. The people of Canada were now watching the semi-final game between the U.S and Russia. It was the third period and the score was 3-0 for Team U.S.A. Nobody was worried that Russia would catch up and get three goals. The tension got high when Russia scored two times and needed just one measly goal for them to tie the game and give them another chance of going to the finals and getting that gold medal. But, the U.S. kept their wall up until the buzzer went, telling them that they were going to the finals against Team Canada.
It was February 24, the big day of an even bigger game. This game would go down in history, obviously. The game was Team Canada fighting against Team U.S.A. Nearly every person in Canada was watching this historic, exciting game. The tension was palpable as the teams came out of the dressing rooms. Both teams were pumped up and ready for the greatest game they would probably ever play. In the first period, the tension was higher than ever before because Canada was winning 2-1, but the people of Canada were reminded of the many losses over the past fifty years caused by American teams. The tension was the same throughout the second period. Canada and U.S.A both scored one goal to make the score 3-2 for Canada. The game came down to the third period. When Canada scored two more amazing goals to take the lead at 5-2, the tension of every person in Canada was suddenly gone. When the buzzer rang throughout the arena, the weights that had been holding Team Canada down for the past fifty years had been lifted off of their shoulders. The hope of Canada and its hockey team was restored.
Team Canada had always had unwanted pressure of its people because they were hoping for a gold medal but this year, they got one. It just goes to show what hope of a whole country can do. Rarely does a hockey game create a lasting emotional connection with fans, and instill a tremendous amount of national pride. This game brought Canadians closer together as we collectively cheered on the remarkable efforts that Team Canada had shown in that final gold medal game. That game was so memorable the Royal Canadian Mint had created a commemorative coin in honor of Team Canada.
This was my favorite Winter Olympic moment because it showed what Canada as a country could do with their national sport. My favorite part of the final gold medal game against Team U.S.A was when Jerome Iginla and Joe Sakic both scored two amazing goals against Jim Craig, the goalie for the U.S. team. When that final buzzer rang, I could actually feel all of the tension being dissolved like there was nothing ever there. The people of Canada were finally relieved of the stress of worrying for Team Canada not winning the legendary gold medal for fifty years. Even though I was only ten years old at the time, even I was relieved that Team Canada had been reborn at the 2002 Winter Olympics.