Hearts of gold

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This article was published 06/01/2009 (6467 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — The faces and names have changed over the last five years. But not so much the eyes.

All lit up by gold.

"It’s an unbelievable feeling," beamed 19-year-old Team Canada forward Chris DiDominico. "Words can’t explain what’s going on right now. I can’t really explain how happy I am."

Well, we’ll try. It’s standing arm-in-arm with peers you’ll share fond memories with forever. It’s singing O Canada out of key, standing on the blue-line, just like all those Canadian players they watched, who were fortunate enough to win gold, from the time they could skate.

It’s joining what so many players referred to Monday as a Canadian dynasty: Five consecutive world junior titles, captured from here to Grand Forks, to Vancouver to Pardubice, Czech Republic to Leksand, Sweden. They all ended with a mob of teenage boys in red uniforms piling on each other, goaltender on the bottom. They all ended in jubilation, including Monday night’s 5-1 victory over Sweden, yet another vanquished opponent.

The faces change, not the images.

And many of them have been young lads from Manitoba, too.

"It’s special," began Winnipeg netminder Chet Pickard, who backed up starter Dustin Tokarski after earning two wins in the round-robin. "Obviously, it hasn’t hit anyone yet. I’ve never been so excited, how closely we became a team. It’s an unbelievable experience.

"Oh, yeah, I was singin’ (the national anthem)," he smiled. "I was the first off the bench. I was right under the pile. It’s an awesome feeling."

It doesn’t hurt that it was the largest single-game crowd in WJHC history, over 20,380 rabid patriots who from the opening faceoff were fuelling the Canadians’ fire.

"It’s Canadian hockey," Pickard added. "We owe the fans. Fans were behind us every second of every game out there. It was pretty much playing with another guy on the ice."

Perhaps, but that doesn’t explain Pardubice in 2008 and half-empty rinks filled with 500 Canadians in the crowd. Or Leksand, where there were even fewer in 2007.

The places change, the result does not.

You know, commentators are often mocked for suggesting the Canadians win because they have the most heart. But if that isn’t so, then what is the explanation? Because often they certainly don’t have the most overall talent. The Americans were loaded for this tournament and finished a meek fourth. The speedy and gifted Russians had to settle for bronze.

The Swedes? They had the best goaltender. They had the biggest defenceman. They had speed to burn and displayed an almost arrogant level of confidence.

It’s not heart? What then?

Russian phenom Nikita Filatov had a theory after Canada’s unlikely, unbelievable shootout victory in the semifinal: "God was with Canada."

But let’s leave that to the theologians for now and ponder the immortal question: Is there TSN in heaven?

Still, tell me how two historic goals two generations apart could look so eerily alike. The dying seconds of an almost certain loss. A Canadian player along the boards lobs a desperate, blind, backhand towards the goal. The puck somehow finds itself on the stick of a Canadian forward alone in front of the net.

They both score, just over 36 years apart. Life snatched from certain crushing defeat.

Paul Henderson, a professional in Moscow in 1972. Jordan Eberle, a teenager in Ottawa in 2008.

The kids just shrugged. "Well, a cat has nine lives, right?"

The Canadian juniors may have won five straight, but Monday night was their eighth consecutive gold-medal final appearance.

If that hasn’t been heart, is it want-to? Is it fear of losing? Is it just something in the Canadian DNA that can’t be defined by one specific organ or ingrained characteristic?

No, we don’t win them all.

But we win enough. More than our fair share, in fact.

For the young ones, it’s five in a row and counting now. That’s 15 gold, in all.

It isn’t heart?

Team Canada’s sparkplug defenceman Ryan Ellis thinks otherwise. "I think it is the heart thing," the little blue-liner submitted. "We don’t take losing lightly. Especially when it’s at home in our own country. I think that’s what separates our country from other countries; the heart and the passion. It’s what we play the game for."

Regardless, it must be something that you can’t see. Something from within.

But then maybe it’s best not to know. One of life’s mysteries left unsolved.

Just savoured.

 

 

Gold — Canada

 

Silver — Sweden

 

Bronze — Russia

 

 

 

 

Canada 5 Sweden 1

 

First Period

1. Canada, Subban 3 (Eberle, Hodgson) 0:38 (pp)

Penalties — Backlund Swe (roughing) 0:22, Lasu Swe (elbowing) 11:45, Della Rovere Cda (high-sticking) 14:17.

 

Second Period

2. Canada, Esposito 3 (DiDomenico, Tavares) 4:06

Penalties — Esposito Cda (high-sticking) 9:06, Markstrom Swe (roughing; served by Tedenby), Della Rovere Cda, Cormier Cda (interference) 13:13, Aulie Cda (cross-checking) 15:20, Backlund Swe (interference) 20:00.

 

Third Period

3. Canada, Hodgson 4 (Tavares, Ellis) 0:33 (pp)

4. Sweden, Andersson 2 (Sevensson Paajarvi) 8:30

5. Canada, Eberle 6, 18:07 (en)

6. Canada, Hodgson 5 (Eberle) 19:32 (en)

Penalties — Ullstrum Swe (roughing) 3:10, Eriksson Swe (roughing) Goloubef (intererence) Cda DiDomenico Cda (roughing) 5:54, Kane Cda (hooking) 11:09, Hedman Swe (slashing) 13:34.

 

Shots on goal by

Sweden 12 16 12 40

Canada 13 8 10 31

 

"ö Goal — Sweden: Markstrom (L,4-1); Canada: Tokarski (W,4-0).

"ö Power plays (goals-chances) — Sweden: 0-6; Canada: 2-5.

"ö Attendance — 20,380 (19,153).

 

 

 

Game at a glance

 

"ö The boys in red came out as they always do: hitting anything that moves, a time-tested method for any gold-medal final. It worked. The Swedes responded with Mikael Backlund taking first penalty, throwing Canada’s leading scorer John Tavares to the ice in a scrum. With the man-advantage, three Canadians were left whacking for a rebound in the Swedish crease until finally P.K. Subban jammed the puck under a sprawled Jacob Markstrom for an early 1-0 lead.

 

"ö The Swedes stiffened as the opening period progressed while the Canadian defence was far more diligent in its support of netminder Dustin Tokarski.

 

"ö And the Oscar goes to…..Markstrom, who feigned death after getting run into by Canadian forward Angelo Esposito just three minutes into the seccond. No penalty was called, but there should have been one. To the Swedes, for bad acting. Moments later, Esposito emerges with the puck and roofs a backhand passed Markstrom just 4:06 into the period.

 

"ö The Canadians ice it when Cody Hodgson makes it 3-0 on the power play in the first minute of the third period. It’s Hodgson’s tournament-high 15th point. Fire up the party machine.

 

"ö The Swedes finally score on their 35th shot, Joakim Andersson from a bad angle with 11:30 left to make it 3-1. Too little, too fate. Five straight. Canada’s Jordan Eberle, then Hodgson, make it 5-1 into empty nets and 20 players and 20,380 fans rejoice.