The Four Nations Face-Off Championship Game dropped the puck this evening with a showdown between 2 titans of Hockey, USA and Canada. We saw Connor McDavid start with Mark Stone and Brayden Point for the Canadians and the Bash Brothers-I mean, the Tkachuk brothers lining up on either side of Jack Eichel. With the world unsure of what would happen on puck drop, after the 3 fights in 9 seconds happening in the previous matchup, we waited with bated breath for the game to get going.

We got 4 strong minutes of hockey from both sides to start, but the US had better chances. All in the early first- a shot from the slot fired high and wide from Guentzel didn’t miss by much, a short side shot from the right circle from Austin Matthews was seen all the way by Bennington, but was a good test. Then, a driving play to the net with speed from Werenski kicked a rebound into the slot but no one was there to finish. Canada wasn’t generating much, but what happens when you have the leading NHL scorer and maybe the MVP of the season in Nathan MacKinnon? He drives to the high slot with speed and fires one from nearly 60 feet that Hellebuyck never had a chance on. That puck had eyes and it’s 1-0 Canada. Game On.

USA continued to roll as honestly the better team through the whole first frame even down a goal. The US forwards exposed the weakest part of Canada’s roster, the back end. Harley, drawing into this game with an injury to Morrisey, turned it over multiple times in his own zone adding to the mounting scoring chances. The best coming from Dylan Larkin yet again with a partial breakaway chance that saw him barely miss putting it past Binnington’s blocker and swiping a rebound through the crease.

Hellebuyck really shined in this first period as well, filling up the net after the MacKinnon goal and stuffing goal line scoring chances from Canada. Hellebuyck was getting no attention at all from the refs despite seemingly the entire 5 guys on the ice for Canada being in his crease slashing away at him. At a certain point you gotta get some space for this guy. He would get no calls.

For some reason the announcers were talking Canada up and how they were the better team with better chances. I’m not sure we were watching the same game. The majority of the period the Americans were pushing the pace of play and getting good looks and the only breakaway of the game. Leading in hits, leading in shots, leading in scoring chances (missing the net doesn’t really count, but they had 2 miss) and ultimately, tying the game. Brady Tkachuk, who else, jumped on a rebound near the crease and TD Garden erupted to a classic Brady celly. You gotta check this out, turn the volume up.

The second period was a back and forth fast playing pond hockey game with the heat starting to rise between the squads. Scoring chances both ways with a lot of neutral zone play, I couldn’t pick a team I thought was playing better. Enter maybe the most unlikely goal scorer for Team USA, young Ottawa Senator Jake Sanderson. The back to back 60+ goal scorer Auston Matthews made the extra pass that got swatted at and ended up perfectly on Sanderson’s stick for him to jam it home. Back in the lead for USA.

A Canadian power play off a Vincent Trochek tripping penalty (a solid USA penalty killer) saw some good chances and a lot of zone time. An incredible English Football play from a stick less Jack Eichel was the highlight of this one that saw him kick the puck to a teammate to get it out of the zone, along with great saves from Hellebuyck and a great 2 on 1 chance that saw Bennington keep a short handed goal out from Dylan Larkin.

After the penalty was killed the temperature rose even more. Tighter checking, more intensity, halfway through the game at this point they really settled in though. The best chance of the period came from Sidney Crosby who had a wide open net but was stuffed off a beautiful stick from a lowkey MVP candidate in Jacob Slavin for USA. He may not score prolific goals or be the first name you think of but he has been so so integral in the physical smart shutdown play of the back end for the Americans.

Shortly after the Crosby chance the Canadians tied it up at 2-2 off a beautiful goal from Sam Bennett, going short side and top CHEESE on Hellebuyck, his first goal of the tournament. Mitch Marner had a really nice dish on this one and Bennett just had to wait out Hellebuyck dropping down low to roof it.

The game is tied? It’s 0-0 to these players now, with nothing happening before mattering to them at all. After an anxiety ridden final few minutes of the second period the game would get even tighter, and somehow faster, setting up a chance for a spectacular third and final frame. The chance to be a hero.

The beginning of the final period was a back and forth with the first big chance coming from Guentzel off a partial breakaway courtesy of a terrible change from Canada. He couldn’t get much action on the backhand and Bennington kept it out. Werenski would get the next big chance on the Canada netminder as USA were just off and running in the 3rd. Line changes would start on the Canadian side as well this period, joining USA who had been juggling the lines since the early first period with Matthew Tkachuk still on the bench for USA, but not playing.

The first 5 minutes of the third seemed to go by in about 30 seconds. Back and forth, up and down, good chances from either side. Posts hit, pucks in the crease just squeaking through and staying out, this third started out with a BANG. It kept up the entire third period as it felt like all 20 minutes went by without a breath. The final portion amped up with pressure from Canada though. The Colorado connection was alive as Devon Toews had eyes up to catch teammate Nathan MacKinnon streaking right to left catching a stretch pass and flying in on Hellebuyck. The shot would fall short due to good positioning from the US netminder. Also in the final stretch of the 3rd, we saw the second insane defensive play from the Americans as J.T. Miller caught a backdoor pass near his own crease keeping it off the stick of McDavid and a wide open net. Miller and Slavin have been putting on a defensive clinic in this tournament. That play would set up an overtime sudden death period between the two teams.

This is what everyone talks about, what everyone dreams about. You don’t have your team’s sweater on. It doesn’t matter what name is on the back, the name on the front, in world best on best, is all that matters. With 5 on 5 overtime and no shootout, this game would go as many periods of overtime that it would take. And when it’s over, a hero, a legend, would emerge.

Sudden Death. One shot, one inch, one shift. Thats all that this would take for this unreal Championship to be decided. It felt like there might be 2 or 3 overtime periods before this one was over but no, it would only be 8 minutes and 17 seconds until it ended. By all accounts, the greatest player in the world, Connor McDavid, would put it top CHEESE on Hellebuyck from the slot off a perfect Mitch Marner special assist. Who else would put this one in the back of the net for Team Canada?

With this McDavid goal I wonder if we’ve actually seen a passing of the torch from longtime Canada Captain Sidney Crosby to Connor McDavid. What a game, from start to finish it was unreal action to witness. Like others are saying, the rest of the sports world needs to catch up with the NHL because this in season break for this tournament was some of the most exciting and best sports matchups I’ve seen in a long time. Although I was rooting for the US, this tournament, this goal, this setting, was just an incredible moment for hockey and hopefully it sparks a love for a game that I’ve loved for as long as I can remember for many around the world.