The "Miracle on Ice" was something Craig Conroy became quite familiar with having attended Northwood Prep School in Lake Placid, New York.

Conroy counting on a 'Miracle'
By Doug Ward | NHL.com correspondent
Jan. 23, 2006

When he was a teenager attending Northwood Prep School in Lake Placid, New York, Craig Conroy used to watch a videotape of the 1980 United States Olympic team's "Miracle on Ice" every time he set foot inside the Olympic Center for hockey practice.

"At Northwood, they used to play the 'Miracle on Ice' game over and over again," the 34-year-old center says. "I've seen that game more times than I can remember."

After stopping to watch a portion of the historic game, Conroy would then go out on the very same surface where the miracle happened to prepare himself for the day he'd wear red, white, and blue in the Olympics, too.

The "Miracle on Ice" changed Conroy's dreams and shaped his future.

"After that game," he says, "I stopped pretending I was Guy Lafleur and became Mike Eruzione, instead."

Two years ago, as a member of the Calgary Flames, Conroy revisited the scene of earliest fantasies, when he saw Miracle, the movie that dramatized the accomplishments of Eruzione and his teammates, in a Canadian movie theater.

"I saw the movie when I was in Calgary," Conroy says, "and it was a little different seeing it there. The Canadians didn't quite feel the same passion as the Americans did. They didn't quite understand how proud we felt."

Watching Conroy play, you feel the pride. It's something that still drives his game, 26 years later. "That game remains a huge inspiration for me," he says.

It helped fuel Conroy in pursuit of his lifelong goal of reaching the NHL. After his countrymen's success at Lake Placid, Conroy added playing in the Olympics to his own personal wish list. This year, that dream will finally become a reality as he plays in the Olympics for the first time.

"I was nine in 1980," says Conroy, who lived in Potsdam, N.Y., about 80 miles away from Lake Placid, at the time. That makes his dream of Olympic glory 26-years-old. Conroy says that after more than a quarter of a century had passed, playing in the Olympics began to feel like an impossible dream.

"It's pretty special," Conroy says, "that at the age of 34, a dream of mine that I thought was slipping away is now coming true."

Conroy, who is in his first season with the Los Angeles Kings, is a veteran of 10 NHL seasons, but he's an Olympic rookie, and that, he says, is the fun of it.

"For me," Conroy says, "the anticipation is the most exciting part. I've never been to the Olympics, so I don't know what to expect. It's such a short tournament, and you have to win to move on. When I think about that, I get excited."

Conroy, a product of Clarkson University, admits to being susceptible to getting caught up the emotional tidal wave that comes with pulling on a sweater with the letters U.S.A. stitched across the front.

"Sometimes," Conroy says, "I start thinking that I need to control my emotions when we get there because you have to be on top of your game right from the start."

Conroy, who is known playing a balanced all-around game, has already committed himself to enjoying all aspects of the Olympic experience.

After competing in the World Cup of Hockey, Conroy will make his Olympics debut.

"Just to be over there," he says, "will be a thrill. To be in the Olympic Village and see all the other athletes will be a thrill. Just thinking about being a part of it gets me excited. It's going to pretty special to play and be a part of the team. For me to be in my first Olympics, it will be very exciting."

In addition to being Conroy's Olympic debut, the trip to Torino will mark his first visit to Italy.

"I've never been to Italy before," he says. "I know it's going to be a busy week and a half, but it will be a fun one, too. I think my wife and her brother might come with me, and that will add to it.

While upbeat Conroy is embracing the unknown, there is a part of the experience that will be familiar. He has international experience as a member of the Team USA at the 2004 World Cup tournament.

"Because I played in the World Cup the year before," he says, "I do know a lot of the guys that are on the team. In that regard, I kind of have an understanding of what's going to happen. But it's not like our team has been together for a whole year. It's not like it was when they took college kids. We've got to come together quick and be on top of our game."

In an Olympic tournament there is no time to waste and there are no throwaway games, which adds to the intensity.

"There won't be any easy games," Conroy says. "Every night you're going up against the best players in the world. You have Joe Sakic, Martin St. Louis, and all these great players on Canada's team. Then you look at Russia, and they have so many great players. The depth of every country is amazing to think about."

The United States team might need another miracle to medal, but Conroy says his country's team has as much depth as anyone.

"We have good group, a good mixture of guys. We have Doug Weight, Keith Tkachuk, Billy Guerin, and then you have young guys like Erik Cole. You have to say this is the time for us all to come together. I think the older guys are going to be the key because they've played together so long. Because a lot of the other teams haven't been together for very long, that could help us."

If you insist on underestimating Team USA, Conroy suggests you do so at your own peril. At the age of nine, he learned that miracles can happen.

"Being an underdog could help us," he says. "A lot of people think we're too old. It never hurts when you're the underdog because you don't have anything to lose. We don't want to be the underdogs, but, if you want to call us that, go ahead."

If it turns out that the United States needs another miracle to win a gold medal, well, at least in Craig Conroy they have one guy who's been prepped on the subject.