Just How "Miraculous" Was the Win Over Canada?

Just shortly after Team USA upset Cananda 5-3 on Sunday many people were comparing this win to the "Miracle on Ice" in 1980 when we upset the heavily favored Russians in Lake Placid.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves here even though it is really easy to. Although it was a great win for U.S hockey, the gap between ourselves and Canada is nowhere near the gap that there was between us and the Russians in 1980.

Team Canada hasn't looked spectacular during this year's Olympics. It took a shootout to get past Switzerland while Team USA defeated the Swiss in regulation, 3-1.

You also have to really study the "Miracle on Ice" to understand how big of an upset that actually was.

The Russians were ahead by one goal three separate times during the game before Team USA notched back-to-back goals to take the lead. There was also still ten minutes left in the game for the Russians to tally the tying goal and go for the win.

Sunday's game was predominantly led by Team USA on the scoreboard as they scored 40 seconds into the game. They also led 4-2 before Sidney Crosby added a power play goal with less than four minutes remaining.

What really made this such a great game was the stellar net-minding by Ryan Miller. He made 42 saves including three simultaneous saves in the third period to keep Team USA ahead.

We also can't get too big-headed here. There's still a ton of work to do. When you really look at it Team USA got bailed out by Ryan Miller. They were outshot 45-22 which will probably lead to a loss in the medal rounds.

The next game will be against either Switzerland or Belarus. I expect a rematch against the Swiss to be the next game for Team USA. It's always harder beating a team a second time in a row.

One good thing about Team USA's spot in this tournament is that both Russia and Canada are on the lower part of the bracket meaning that one of them will be taken out by the other before they can reach Team USA in the tournament.

Either way, Team USA will most likely have to beat one of them if they want a silver or gold medal.

In the end the gap just wasn't as large as people originally thought between Canada and the USA in hockey. The Canadiens are better, but they're not on the same level as the 1980 Soviet team that everyone feared at the time.