USA! USA!

It's not often I feel this patriotic, and really there are probably tons of people blogging about this and there's a good likelihood what I have to say is nothing that hasn't been said a million times, literally. But after team USA's performance against the big bad All-Star Hall of Fame Canadian team, I just gotta gush a bit about it.

What a great game, that was a team effort, with the most important component being unending hard work. From start to finish the Americans out worked the Canadians. And Ryan Miller spearheaded the effort. The whole game the Canadians took the path of over passing and almost arrogant, "we know we're better we can score when we want" kind of play. Very relaxed, very confident. The Americans on the other hand, just did not stop. It wasn't confidence one way or the other, it was just concentrating on hard work. Winning the battles, digging deep in the corners, and just skating, skating skating.

Towards the end of the game the Canadians began to panic, they began to feel the pressure, and an insane barrage ensued. At that point both teams were fighting for their lives. Ryan Miller stood on his head and played out of his mind in those last few minutes. Especially after the Crosby tip in. The best part, to me, is that the finishing stroke laid by the US was one of just blue collared hard work effort. That Ryan Kesler goal was just pure busting his ass to get to that puck, and even though Perry had body position on him, Kesler made a last ditch effort to just swat the puck away from Perry, and the puck just happened to go into Canada's empty net. It couldn't have been a better game for the US. A true team effort. Poetic really.

Now as far as the rest of the tournament, I'm deffinitely rooting for the US, and I like our chances, but that game, that was a big game. Historic, and memorable no matter what happens, we beat Canada on their own soil decisively. Go USA.