Not to diminish Finland and Russia, but that was the one we were waiting for, wasn't it?
The superlative talent of North America, now with a clear and defined objective with their 1-1 record, matching up with one of, if not, the strongest defenses assembled, and a unit that not only works in front of the great Henrik Lundqvist, but is the strength of a nation believed to pose the greatest threat to the Canadians at the World Cup.
So what sort of threat would this collection of supreme talent have for Sweden, which boasts organization, structure, and aspiration, and that allowed one goal through its first two tournament games?
United in their desire to continue playing the brand of hockey that only they are programmed to do, North America blitzed Sweden from the drop of the puck. They swarmed and carved up that vaunted defense in a spectacular display of the sport.
It began with Victor Hedman, who just a few hours before the game admitted that he had never seen Connor McDavid in live action, being turnstiled by the Edmonton Oilers phenom. Seconds later, Auston Matthews baffled the big defender with a move from his knees, distributed the puck, and then knocked in the rebound himself. 1-0.
A half shift after that, Johnny Gaudreau won in a footrace with two-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson, and earned a penalty shot in the process. He hit the glass with his attempt, but 34 seconds after that miss, extended furious pressure in the offensive zone gave Shayne Gostisbehere a lane to find a cutting Vincent Trocheck, who shifted the puck onto his backhand and flipped it into the open net. It was 2-0 just 95 seconds into the game, and with Gaudreau's hands, it really should have been three.
“We played right into their trap,” Filip Forsberg told theScore. “Playing too soft with the puck.”
A few whistles, some overzealousness on the part of the North Americans leading to penalties, and a weak shot from Forsberg that snuck under the arm of netminder John Gibson, and the lead was cut to one. And after Gaudreau used his second option to solve Lundqvist on another clear-cut breakaway, a fortunate deflection off the toe of Morgan Reilly saw a wayward attempt from Niklas Backstrom veer into the empty net behind Gibson.
Sweden had crawled back to within one in a game in which it didn't belong, twice, and had a chance to make necessary adjustments.
“We had to watch behind our backs," Forsberg said. "They were flying the zone pretty much all the time. We had to be careful with the puck, and not just throw it in front of the net. Even if it’s in front of their own goalie, they had a guy at the far blue line waiting for the puck."
Sure enough, Sweden began to do what Sweden does. Passes were sent with more caution, defenders initiated their back peddles sooner, and the defensive zone was more and more effectively sealed. Lundqvist recovered from the embarrassment that was getting twisted by Gaudreau, and made it clear that he wasn't going to be beat by anything short of spectacular. North America's chances dwindled, its speed was being nullified, and play evened out. Now, instead of a bunch of kids trying to overwhelm a veteran group, we had two closely matched teams showcasing the sport.
So it was only fitting that with the score tied at three at the end of regulation, we would see what North America-Sweden would look like with three aside. And the results might have been the most exhilarating five minutes ever at the Air Canada Centre.
In the end, Gibson made an outstanding pad save on a Daniel Sedin breakaway, and the puck was pushed back up ice. Gaudreau danced in once more and hit the left shoulder of Lundqvist, but tracked the puck back around the wall, lifted the stick of Henrik Sedin, and swung the puck down low for Nathan MacKinnon, all alone in front of Lundqvist.
With enough time to force the Swede into making the first move, MacKinnon effortlessly dragged the puck around the outstretched stick of Lundqvist, and calmly flipped a backhander into the mesh, putting an end to a game that invoked memories of the very best ever throughout.
MacKinnon's reaction was pure, and in that moment his ignorance beautiful. He celebrated with the belief that he had sent his team into the semifinal, and that this group of kids would have the chance to do it all over again at least one more time.
It wasn't until his postgame interview that MacKinnon realized that the North Americans actually require Finland to upset Russia on Thursday to advance. Two wins and a narrow one-goal defeat may not be enough to move on - you can understand MacKinnon's confusion.
“We did everything we could,” Brandon Saad told theScore. “It stinks to be in this position with the waiting game, but at the same time we know we gave it our all. Now we sit back and wait and hope for the best. We know the situation.
"We’re all rooting for Finland, so we’ll see how it goes. That’s all we can do. It’s a waiting game now.”
There's a good chance that it won't work out for North America, and the final act for the young guns as we know them will be the thrilling win over Sweden, and one of the greatest hockey games in recent memory.
The sense of incompleteness will be shared across the hockey world, but they have made their indelible mark: They made certain this World Cup would be a success, and that we'll likely see this format again.
"I thought we could be dangerous, I thought we could have fun playing as a team. I thought we built the team and played to (our) identity. But I didn’t think we would have as big an impact as we’ve had on the hockey world,” head coach Todd McLellan said.
"It’s exciting to be a a part of."
With respect to Russia once again, here's hoping Finland's able to replenish his excitement and ours.
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