Just in time for the beginning of the 2026 Winter Olympics, “Miracle: The Boys of ‘80” was released on Jan. 30, 2026, on Netflix.
Unlike Disney’s “Miracle,” the documentary combines archive recordings and footage of present-day interviews with players and pundits to tell the firsthand story of the 1980 Olympics’ United States gold-medal winning hockey team.
Despite passing away over 20 years ago, Head Coach Herb Brooks is the star of the documentary. Primarily featured through archive recordings of old interviews and through the memories of his players, Brooks comes off as disciplinarian and rather hated by some. That isn’t to say his players didn’t respect him, as most shared the sentiment that he coached them in a manner that pulled the best out of them.
“I’m pushing you because I admire your talents,” Brooks said in one of the recordings about his players.
Individual players from the team were also highlighted extensively in the documentary, shedding light on their personal lives both before and during the Olympics.
Two stories in particular that stand out are those of Ralph Cox and Steve Janaszak.
Cox was the final player cut from the roster before the team went to Lake Placid. He shares how Brooks broke the news with him, while a similar situation that Brooks went through during his playing career is interluded through the story to show the emotional toll the conversation took on the coach.
Janaszak’s story is comparatively more lighthearted. Even though he was the backup goalie on the team, he considers himself luckier than any of his teammates as he married an employee of the Olympics.
Beyond just the players, the documentary shines a light on the political climate of America at the time. Political commentator George Will called America “depressed” in the documentary.
The war was “about as cold as it could get before it got hot,” said sportscaster Al Michaels, who called the “Miracle on Ice” game.
The climax of the story mirrors this stress during the semifinals matchup between the USA and Soviet Union, in which the U.S. were definitive underdogs. Watching Michaels tear up while looking back on his introduction to the broadcast is a touching moment that humanizes the famous journalist.
This documentary also does a fantastic job humanizing the players, including hearing about what was going through their heads as the game went on and understanding the respect and fear they had for the Soviet team.
With the Cold War standing as a time in American history where fear was used by both sides to put a wall in front of the shadowy figure on the other side, the game is a nice reminder on a smaller scale of the regular people fighting that war.
One of the quiet highlights of the documentary is the emphasis that is placed on the finals game against Sweden. Although typically part of the story often glossed over compared to the Soviet game, the emotional drain impacting the team and them banding together in the locker room to pull off the win put a nice bow on the journey and preparation it took to get there.
“Miracle: The Boys of ‘80” is a comprehensive telling of the story of one of the most legendary teams in American sports history while also humanizing the team in a way that shows a group of regular people achieving greatness.
Rating: 4.7/5