Looking Back:
A Lucky Miracle?
I wrote the following article after reading a book about hockey and after Irene and I saw a minor league hockey game in Indianapolis (the Fuel) while visiting our daughter. I know we are in the Chiefs Kingdom, but for many the NHL is big, and we do have the KC Mavericks, an NHL affiliate. (Also the 2023 NHL playoffs begin April 17.)
(Three inches to the left.): His life would have been so very different if that puck would have been three inches to the left. But luckily it wasn’t. Mike Eruzione made the winning goal in the 1980 Olympic hockey game when the USA beat the Soviet Union. Mike explained in his book “The Making of the Miracle” how Sports history and his life changed amazingly. This was the ‘Miracle on Ice’ game that many remember because this game was far more than a hockey game; It was the Cold War on ice, it was East vs West, it was our values vs theirs. Even if it was just a hockey game it was a shocker. The Russian team had won four straight Olympics, and had recently beaten an NHL All-Star team. So, this very young college team had no chance unless you do believe in miracles, the value of hard work, and how sometimes “Destiny trumps talent.” Mike explained he believes in talent, and hard work, but he also believes that luck, at times, plays a role. Mike, a North Boston kid, grew up in a three-story home with 30 members of his extended Italian family. His family was everything to him. He was lucky to have so many built-in playmates. Hockey was big, but he also loved baseball and later football. In high school, he excelled in hockey and thought he could get a big college scholarship, but he didn’t. After graduation, trying to get over the disappointment, he was playing in a local league and had a great game. Lucky for Mike, one of the officials was a scout for Boston University (BU). Luckily this scout (Jack Parker) had two big recruits who surprisingly rejected his offer. Parker quickly recruited Mike. Mike went on to have a great college career, but was never the top dog. He was a low pick in the NHL draft, and went to a low minor-league team. He played nine games, but had doubts about his hockey future. Also, at times, he was homesick for his girlfriend and family back home.
Now on to the Miracle: A Minnesota coach, named Herb Brooks, was asked to put together the 1980 Olympic team. Brooks was famous for saying, “I am your coach, but I won’t be your friend.” He called 68 of the most talented college players, but he only needed 22. Luckily Brooks was given Mike’s name when he called the BU coach. To be an amateur you could not have played more than nine pro games. Luckily Mike was one day away from being labeled a pro. The tryouts with Coach Brooks were brutal. Mike made the first cut, second cut and luckily made the team. Mike thought he had enough talent, but with Brooks being from Minnesota, a big rival of BU, most of the players were from the Minnesota area. The team played many “prep” games. Mike thought it was lucky that the US team played the Russian team in a ‘friendly’ right before the Olympics. The US lost 10-3. How was this lucky? The US players got a good look at how the Soviets played and knew they would need a better strategy next time. The very tough, very smart coach, Herb Brooks, scheduled that game so his young college players could get over their fear of the older Russian players. Mike, looking back on the whole experience, knew they were lucky to have such an intense smart coach, even though they often hated him and his ‘mind games’. The US college kids won five games in order to get to the Russians in the Olympic semi-finals. They now had the ‘impossible’ task of beating the unbeatable Soviets. (The Soviets had not lost a game in forever.) There was no live TV coverage, because the networks thought it was going to be a blowout. It was on the radio. So, if you are like me, the Miracle Game we watched was really a tape-delayed broadcast. Al Michaels’s broadcasting “Do You Believe in Miracles?” is now iconic. Heck, even Walter Cronkite put it on the news. Now that is big.
How did this ‘lucky’ miracle happen?: The Soviets may have taken the US game for granted. Maybe the Soviet team had nothing to prove. No doubt, this young college team, which had several future NHL players, came together at the right time. The US team was also ‘lucky’ enough to have a great goalie in Jim Craig. The US team was ‘lucky’ when the Soviets pulled their starting goalie. Another ‘luck’ was when the Soviets were surprisingly called for ‘high sticking’ in the third period. The US team tied the score on that power play. Later in the period, with the game tied, Mike’s ‘third line’, as they say in hockey, rushed onto the ice. The US team was playing with four lines. Several crisp passes and Mike got the puck with two teammates on the wings, and a defender in front of him. The defender decided to stay with Mike. It ended up being a lucky thing because Mike used him to block the goalie’s view of his shot. With talent and hard work, and a bit of luck, the puck was NOT three inches too far to the left. History and Mike’s life was changed. The team and all the players became ‘rock stars’, with visits to the White House and numerous TV appearances. Mike turned down an NHL contract and started a career giving speeches, doing TV broadcasts, and coaching hockey. Yet, to this day Mike says his best luck was not the winning shot in the Olympics, but when his future wife, Donna, finally let him walk her home when they were both teenagers. Very sweet. Mike’s family still lives in North Boston.
Historical note: Many forget the US team had to come back to beat the Finland team in order to capture the Gold. The score was 4-2. You can say luck was involved in the 1980 Olympics, but that group of college kids was also very, very good. “Do You Believe in Miracles?”
Until next time.
