Throwback Thursday – Miracle on Ice 1980 [VIDEO]

It's Throwback Thursday! This week, we honor the Olympics by offering one of the greatest sports moments of the 20th century, when the United States men's hockey team beat the Soviets in Lake Placid. It became known as the Miracle on Ice!

The Soviet Union entered the games as heavy favorites, having won the gold at each Olympics since 1964. Many thought the U.S. didn't have a chance with only one player, Buzz Schneider, returning from the 1976 Olympic Team. Surely a team of Olympic rookies couldn't beat the formidable Soviets!

It was an exciting game, with the Soviets leading 3 to 2 at the end of the second period. But the lead shifted as the U.S. took the lead. The score was 4 to 3 with only 10 minutes of play left and the American team shifted too an all-offense strategy, panicking the Soviets who began shooting wildly. It paid off as the Russian team failed to hit the goal again.

In the final seconds of the game, ABC sportscaster Al Michaels began an on-air countdown:

"11 seconds, you've got ten seconds, the countdown going on right now! Morrow, up to Silk. Five seconds left in the game. Do you believe in miracles? YES!"

For me, this game always brings up one of my favorite memories. See, my family was at the old Bangor Auditorium while the game was going on, watching an Eastern Maine Basketball Tournament game. Suddenly, play was halted and over the loudspeaker we heard the announcement that the Americans had just beat the Soviet Union. The cheer was deafening and, as the high school band launched into the Star Spangled Banner, there wasn't a dry eye in the house.