Miracle on Ice: How a Stunning Upset United a Country
Eruzione was one of the players who had done well in college setting scoring records at Boston University In the games leading up to the Olympics however he had trouble scoring and at one point Coach Brooks decided to cut him from the team Brooks told his friend Gus Hendrickson another college coach that he planned to dump Eruzione But Eruzione’s your leader Hendrickson said You need a leader The other players were upset when they heard they might lose their captain Everyone knew Eruzione was not the best scorer or skater on the team But they also saw that he was a leader someone who could boost their spirits and encourage them to play harder Brooks finally saw that cutting Eruzione would not be good for the team and so he let him stay The youngest player on the team was defenseman Mike Ramsey He had just turned 19 a few months before the Olympics Despite his youth he was a star for the Americans In 1979 he was the first American college player ever taken in the first round of the NHL draft Several of his teammates had also been drafted but they like Ramsey chose to delay professional careers to play for Team USA
Future four-time NHL All-Star Mike Ramsey top checked a West German player during Team USA’s road to the Olympic medal round One drafted player who decided to play for Brooks instead was defenseman Ken Morrow He was large and strong and his full beard made him stand out among his mostly clean-shaven teammates Morrow held off playing for the New York Islanders so he could go to the Olympics Like Morrow and Ramsey Mark Johnson was talented enough to play in the NHL The center played for his father Bob Johnson at the University of Wisconsin Known as Badger Bob Mark’s father had coached the 1976 Olympic team He had almost chosen Mark to play for him even though his son was then only 17 By 1979 Brooks knew he wanted Mark Johnson as his top center He told Johnson that the team needed him if it was
going to advance through the Olympics The team also needed the gutsy goalie Jim Craig Filled with confidence Craig was known for his quick glove hand and his constant chatter during a game Teammates tried to ignore a lot of what he said especially if he was criticizing their play Craig had allowed an average of only 2 37 goals per game in the 48 games he played for Team USA before the Olympics Craig played well in Team USA’s first game of the 1980 Olympics on February 12 giving up only two goals against Sweden His teammates though struggled offensively and with only a minute to play the Americans were in danger of losing the game 2-1 To add extra offense Coach Brooks pulled Craig from the net and added a sixth attacker As the clock wound down Buzz Schneider the only player returning from the 1976 Olympic team passed to defenseman Bill Baker and his slap shot from just inside Sweden’s blue line found the net Since the teams did not play overtime in the round-robin games Team USA earned a tie and a point in the standings
Buzz Schneider celebrated after scoring a goal against Czechoslovakia one of the world’s best teams After that close call the Americans went on a roll First they beat a well-regarded team from Czechoslovakia 7-3 Ken Morrow called it the best game we played in the tournament It gave the players confidence that they could compete with the world’s best teams Team USA then defeated Norway and Romania Their fifth game was against West Germany which had knocked the Americans out of the medal round in 1976 After falling behind the Germans 2-0 the Americans scored four straight goals including two by left winger Rob McClanahan one of the players from the University of Minnesota With that win Team USA reached the medal round Their next opponent the mighty Red Army team of the Soviet Union Tension had filled the Lake Placid Olympic Arena since the opening face-off Fans sat
