After their 3-1 win against Canada in their second game of the Four Nations Faceoff, “Dream On” by Aerosmith was blasting through the United States hockey locker room. An ode to the end credit’s song in the movie, “Miracle,” this USA win was very similar to their win against the Soviet Union in the 1980 Winter Olympics that “Miracle” was based off of.
However, USA has an even bigger task at hand, as they will face Canada in the championship game on Thursday night.
Saturday’s game between these two squads was nowhere near a regular NHL game. It was physical and fast, with three fights breaking out in the opening nine seconds of the game.
Hockey fans across the world know the USA and Canada hockey rivalries run deep, which means the championship game will feel like game seven of the Stanley Cup finals.
“It’s for everything. You’re going to see desperate hockey. You’re going to see everything you saw in the first game and more, I imagine. It’ll be great,” said Jack Eichel, a forward for U.S, to NHL.com.
Eichel, a player for the Vegas Golden Knights, is no stranger to the pressure of the Stanley Cup playoffs, after winning the coveted trophy in 2023. The 28-year-old elaborated in the article from NHL.com, that this championship game could take the cake for the most important game he’s played in his professional career.
If this isn’t any indication of how passionate hockey players are about playing for the country, fans should look back to the World Junior’s Championship in January when Ryan Leonard and his squad won the championship in back-to-back years. USA Hockey posted videos of Leonard singing the victory chant, “oh mama, don’t you cry,” to his teammates in the locker room.
Despite not having their annual All-Star game, it appears as if the Four Nations Faceoff is bringing more reception from fans in unseen ways.
“I think you’re going to see two really evenly matched teams go at it,” said the Canada head coach, Jon Cooper, to NHL.com. “The city of Boston will be treated to something special, I think, on Thursday.”
The USA is currently standing at the top of the standings for this international tournament and is expected to win Thursday’s game, despite injuries to integral players like Matthew Tkachuk and Charlie McAvoy.
However, even with injury, Tkachuk is still planning to take the ice.
“There’s been a lot of chatter and talk from individuals, but we care about one thing in this room,” said Tkachuk to NHL.com. “We have millions of people that are watching us and supporting us around this country and we’re very prideful in playing for them and the guys in the room. So, it’s an opportunity of a lifetime for us.”
Puck drop between these two rivals is scheduled for 8 p.m. at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. Fans can tune in on ESPN to see these two nations go head-to-head.