The battle continued in the second, with the Americans taking the lead off a Jake Sanderson score off the rebound midway through the frame. The U.S. even kept the momentum rolling through a tough Vince Trocheck tripping, killing the penalty against the vaunted, big-three line of death. But the Canadians fired back when the U.S. got comfortable, with Sam Bennett sending one home to even the score 2-2.
The numbers backed up the eye test after two periods, with both teams tied at 19 shots and two goals apiece.
Both defenses clamped down for a scoreless third, highlighted by yet another relentless block from American defenseman Jaccob Slavin, whose been heralded as one of the unsung heroes of this tournament for Team USA.
And then, who else?
In overtime, after a peppering of opportunities on both ends, Connor McDavid finally hit the dagger to send Canada to 4 Nations glory.
68 minutes of hard-nosed hockey—sealed by arguably the best player in the world. If it isn’t the storyline you asked for, it’s the one that makes the most sense.
For Bolts fans, Canada’s championship victory puts Brayden Point, Brandon Hagel, Anthony Cirelli, head coach Jon Cooper and GM Julien BriseBois at the winning podium of the biggest hockey movement in decades.
The revived rivalry will get a chance to meet again at next year's Milano Cortina Olympics.
Until then, if there's a silver lining for Team USA: “Free Bird” is still a pretty great pick-me-up song.
