I got up early this morning. I was supposed to meet Ian and Laura this morning to watch the hockey game but I didn't hear from them. I knew that this being the Gold medal game things were going to get a little crazy so I hopped the bus and headed downtown. The bus was packed with people heading downtown to take in the game. I stopped in to get a coffee and a breakfast sandwich and headed my way up Granville to Robson. I wasn't really sure what to expect or where exactly i was going but I was sure that somewhere I would be able to find a screen to watch the game. Granville had been blocked off already and there were plenty of people dressed in red, proudly adorned in maple leafs and waving flags already. A number of the bars already had lineups to get in and the game was still a good three hours from start time.
I got to Robson which was busy as expected but I managed to find a spot on the stairs and I parked my butt on the wet cement right by the screen. There were some hardcore fans who had painted themselves up as well as some casual observers along with the completely clueless. We were asked a number of times what was happening. We chuckled at the uninititated. Ian called at about 10:30 to see where I was at. He had just gotten up and was going to try and get down to the Blarney Stone to catch the game. I told him I would drop him a line after the game and we would get together.
The American fans were good naturedly booed and as we got closer and closer to the game the excitement grew. There were a tonne of flags out and they even handed out a bunch for those of us who didn't have any. This was going to be a great game. The Americans who had previously beaten us in the round robin and the Canadians who rallied from that loss to shockingly dominate the highly talented Russian side to get to the Gold Medal game. I don't think anyone felt this would be a blowout and I think in the back of everyone's mind they knew there was the possibility we could get beaten in our own backyard. Optimism was high though. The national anthem spontaneously sprang up from the crowd on a couple of occassion leading up to the puck drop.
The whole atmosphere reminded me of the '04 cup run in Calgary. When the puck finally dropped the square roared approvingly. It was a tight checking game. Everything that this game was hyped to be. Two rival nations battling for gold. Everything was on the line and no one held back. When Jonathan Toews scored the first goal, Robson Square erupted. Everyone lept to their feet (some, including me got some hang time) and flage were waved furiously, horns were honked high fives were exchanged and the crowd shouted and cheered lustily as the hometown boys jumped out to a 1-0 lead. It was a great way to start off the game.
Mid way through the second, Cory Perry drilled a centering pass past Ryan Miller to cause the hometown fans to erupt again. 2-0 and the game was almost halfway done. Things were looking really good. I think many people felt this was it. We had a commanding lead, we were going to open it up, blow them out and take home the gold.
As everyone was celebrating I checked out the crowd and noticed an absolutely ENORMOUS line leading up to Robson Square. It was probably about ten people wide and a good 100 metres long. So glad I got here early. I was in the epicentre of the viewing public who weren't actually at the game. This was a lot of fun. It was crazy. I felt lucky to be there. This was a special moment.
I mentioned to the fellow next to me how funny it would be if we beat the US 2-0 and the final standings of both the men and women's hockey tournament were identical with even the same final score in the Gold medal game. Well, I must have jinxed it because not a moment later the US ruined Luongo's shutout bid with a tipped point shot that snuck through Luongo and into the net. The crowd murmured but only briefly. We still had a one goal lead and we were playing well. Several individuals rallied the crowd and the crowd came back to life urging Canada on.
The third period proved to be an incredibly tight game with both sides exchanging chances and Canada even hitting two posts in the first two minutes of the third. As time ticked away, the crowd began to anticipate the Canadian win. The last two minutes. The last minute. I think everyone sensed it. We were going to do it. We were going to win it.I think everyone believed it. We were going to win it. Everyone was on their feet jumping up and down, cheering. I turned on my video recorder with about 30 seconds left to capture the final horn and the celebration that would follow. The US had pulled their goalie and there was furious action as the home side clung desperately to their lead and collapsed around our net. And then... it happened.
A mad scramble in front of our net. The puck ping ponged and landed on the stick of Zack Parise who tucked it neatly behind Luongo. It was unbelievable. You could feel it. The shock. There were stares of disbelief and jaws hanging open. People holding their heads trying to come to terms with what had just happened. We were 24 seconds from gold and then, the unthinkable. A cloud of doubt could be felt cast over the crowd. Could it be that our party was about to be spoiled? This couldn't be happening. This was our moment. This was our time and in one split second, everything was uncertain. To make matters worse, CTV flubbed the feed at Robson square for the final 20 seconds and we found ourselves watching the game from halfway through the third period. When they got the feed back, the period was over. People booed. I can't even imagine what would have happened if they had botched the feed before the tying goal. There might have been a riot.
The lead up to overtime was intense. Collectively, the crowd was concerned. I think there was definitely some doubt, Were we about to choke on the biggest stage of them all? In previous games, Canada endured last minute surges by the opposing teams and we had survived them but this time we had failed. Overtime started and I think everyone held their breath. The stress and the tension was thick in the air. As the two teams battled back and forth there were gasps as each side had chances. Scott Niedermeyer gave away a pass deep in our own end and the US got a dangerous shot on net. The crowd roared in fear then cheered "LOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUU" as Luongo made the save. The action went back the other way as Niedermeyer fed a pass to Sidney Crosby who tried to split the defense and was deftly stopped. The next sequence happened so quickly that it took a moment for everyone to recognize it happened. Sidney Crosby collected the puck, cycled it down to Iginla who fed a pass back out to Crosby who found a bit of open ice. In an instant he had thrown it on net, past Ryan Miller and as Chris Cuthbert shouted "Crosby Scores!!" The entire place exploded.
When you watch moment like this on tv, the deafening sound of the crowd causes a, sort of, white noise to happen momentarily. For me, it happened in real life too. As the crowd celebrated, for a split second, you couldn't hear anything. I wish I could freeze that moment and walk around inside of it. People jumping up and down, screaming, hugging, high fiveing. It was absolutely electric.
Nobody could have written this scenario better. Sidney Crosby. The leader of the next generation of Canadian hockey superstars who was not included on the roster in Turin, scores the game winning, gold medal clinching, overtime goal for Canada. That goal, that golden goal will go down in Canadian hockey legend. This is our generations Henderson 72 summit series goal. Our generations iconic, Bobby Orr leaping through the air goal. This will go down as one of those, do you remember where you were when that happened moments and I can say I was in Robson Square in the heart of downtown Vancouver when I witnessed it. Absolutely amazing.
There are few moments that stand out as iconic moments in one person's life. Fewer still that are happy iconic moments. The tragedies that befell the games early; Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili's death during his training run and Joannie Rochette's mother suddenly passing away shortly after arriving in Vancouver to watch her daughter compete will be moments that are undoubtedly forever etched in to the fabric of these games but as much as I hate to say it, these tragedies will fade from memory for most. The golden goal for this hockey crazed nation will live forever. It symbolized this nation's triumph and ability to overcome adversity. The 14 gold medals that this country won, more than any host country has ever won as well as every silver and bronze medal we claimed is a testament to the blood, sweat and tears every athlete endured to capture the hearts of a nation.
I am so proud to be Canadian today. As much as I lacked Olympic spirit when I was in Calgary I am so glad I was here to witness and experience this moment. To be a part of this, it was truly an amazing experience. They say there were 150,000 people down on Robson and I feel so lucky and privileged to have been a part of this epic, historic moment. I think we put the world on notice today. Fear the leaf (©Carter Storozynski).
I pushed through the jovial, celebrating crowds down Robson then Granville. Amazingly enough, I bumped into John Chan. Hilarious. we chatted briefly then I continued my way down Granville towards Gastown. So many people, so many flags, so much red, so much pride. It was an amazing experience. Definitely epic.
I spent the rest of the evening at Ian's place watching the closing ceremony and munching on delicious pizza. Boy did the Artistic Director ever pull out every single stereotype possible for the closing ceremonies. Dancing mounties, giant inflatable beavers, flying moose, lumberjacks and canoes. I wasn't sure if I should laugh or be completely embarrassed. Yoikes...
All in all this was a fantastic experience. I feel lucky to have been a part of the experience. To be truthful, I had no intentions of taking part of the Olympic experience when I got here but in retrospect I am sooooo thankful I did.
On with reality..
The American fans were good naturedly booed and as we got closer and closer to the game the excitement grew. There were a tonne of flags out and they even handed out a bunch for those of us who didn't have any. This was going to be a great game. The Americans who had previously beaten us in the round robin and the Canadians who rallied from that loss to shockingly dominate the highly talented Russian side to get to the Gold Medal game. I don't think anyone felt this would be a blowout and I think in the back of everyone's mind they knew there was the possibility we could get beaten in our own backyard. Optimism was high though. The national anthem spontaneously sprang up from the crowd on a couple of occassion leading up to the puck drop.
As everyone was celebrating I checked out the crowd and noticed an absolutely ENORMOUS line leading up to Robson Square. It was probably about ten people wide and a good 100 metres long. So glad I got here early. I was in the epicentre of the viewing public who weren't actually at the game. This was a lot of fun. It was crazy. I felt lucky to be there. This was a special moment.
I mentioned to the fellow next to me how funny it would be if we beat the US 2-0 and the final standings of both the men and women's hockey tournament were identical with even the same final score in the Gold medal game. Well, I must have jinxed it because not a moment later the US ruined Luongo's shutout bid with a tipped point shot that snuck through Luongo and into the net. The crowd murmured but only briefly. We still had a one goal lead and we were playing well. Several individuals rallied the crowd and the crowd came back to life urging Canada on.
The third period proved to be an incredibly tight game with both sides exchanging chances and Canada even hitting two posts in the first two minutes of the third. As time ticked away, the crowd began to anticipate the Canadian win. The last two minutes. The last minute. I think everyone sensed it. We were going to do it. We were going to win it.I think everyone believed it. We were going to win it. Everyone was on their feet jumping up and down, cheering. I turned on my video recorder with about 30 seconds left to capture the final horn and the celebration that would follow. The US had pulled their goalie and there was furious action as the home side clung desperately to their lead and collapsed around our net. And then... it happened.
The lead up to overtime was intense. Collectively, the crowd was concerned. I think there was definitely some doubt, Were we about to choke on the biggest stage of them all? In previous games, Canada endured last minute surges by the opposing teams and we had survived them but this time we had failed. Overtime started and I think everyone held their breath. The stress and the tension was thick in the air. As the two teams battled back and forth there were gasps as each side had chances. Scott Niedermeyer gave away a pass deep in our own end and the US got a dangerous shot on net. The crowd roared in fear then cheered "LOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUU" as Luongo made the save. The action went back the other way as Niedermeyer fed a pass to Sidney Crosby who tried to split the defense and was deftly stopped. The next sequence happened so quickly that it took a moment for everyone to recognize it happened. Sidney Crosby collected the puck, cycled it down to Iginla who fed a pass back out to Crosby who found a bit of open ice. In an instant he had thrown it on net, past Ryan Miller and as Chris Cuthbert shouted "Crosby Scores!!" The entire place exploded.
Nobody could have written this scenario better. Sidney Crosby. The leader of the next generation of Canadian hockey superstars who was not included on the roster in Turin, scores the game winning, gold medal clinching, overtime goal for Canada. That goal, that golden goal will go down in Canadian hockey legend. This is our generations Henderson 72 summit series goal. Our generations iconic, Bobby Orr leaping through the air goal. This will go down as one of those, do you remember where you were when that happened moments and I can say I was in Robson Square in the heart of downtown Vancouver when I witnessed it. Absolutely amazing.
There are few moments that stand out as iconic moments in one person's life. Fewer still that are happy iconic moments. The tragedies that befell the games early; Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili's death during his training run and Joannie Rochette's mother suddenly passing away shortly after arriving in Vancouver to watch her daughter compete will be moments that are undoubtedly forever etched in to the fabric of these games but as much as I hate to say it, these tragedies will fade from memory for most. The golden goal for this hockey crazed nation will live forever. It symbolized this nation's triumph and ability to overcome adversity. The 14 gold medals that this country won, more than any host country has ever won as well as every silver and bronze medal we claimed is a testament to the blood, sweat and tears every athlete endured to capture the hearts of a nation.
I am so proud to be Canadian today. As much as I lacked Olympic spirit when I was in Calgary I am so glad I was here to witness and experience this moment. To be a part of this, it was truly an amazing experience. They say there were 150,000 people down on Robson and I feel so lucky and privileged to have been a part of this epic, historic moment. I think we put the world on notice today. Fear the leaf (©Carter Storozynski).
I spent the rest of the evening at Ian's place watching the closing ceremony and munching on delicious pizza. Boy did the Artistic Director ever pull out every single stereotype possible for the closing ceremonies. Dancing mounties, giant inflatable beavers, flying moose, lumberjacks and canoes. I wasn't sure if I should laugh or be completely embarrassed. Yoikes...
All in all this was a fantastic experience. I feel lucky to have been a part of the experience. To be truthful, I had no intentions of taking part of the Olympic experience when I got here but in retrospect I am sooooo thankful I did.
On with reality..
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