On Sunday morning, the United States national team won its first hockey gold medal in 46 years with a thrilling victory over the Canadian National Team to cap off their run in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. This was not an easy win by any feat of the imagination, but Team USA ultimately got the win thanks to a goal in overtime from Jack Hughes.
At one point in the game, United States goalie Connor Hellebuyck made a play for the ages with an epic save against Devon Toews of Team Canada.
(per Pardon My Take on Instagram).
The image of Hellebuyck extending his hockey stick back beyond the rest of his body to keep the shot from finding the back of the net will go down in US hockey history, and instantly went viral on social media.
Hellebuyck was understandably later named as the best goalkeeper in the Olympics tournament, as well as an All-Star for his efforts during the winter games in Milan.
With the win, the United States national team won its first gold medal since 1980's “Miracle on Ice” against the Soviet Union, breaking an ugly streak and further solidifying the country's prominence as a hockey powerhouse on the national stage, with more and more stars of the modern NFL hailing from the country.
Meanwhile, it certainly helped matters that the Canadian national team was playing without iconic star Sidney Crosby, as the Pittsburgh Penguins legend was forced to miss this one after suffering a lower-body injury in an earlier round of the tournament.
Still, that won't take away from the collective sigh of relief that the United States took when Hughes' shot found the back of the net in overtime.
The team will be honored with the closing ceremony later in the day on Sunday.
