There's a feeling of 1972 in the air, only the stakes here are a little more dire. One game to decide bragging rights in a fun little tournament that literally means everything to an entire nation right now.
After a nail biter against Finland, Canada was able to get a win and get what they wanted: a one game, winner takes all showdown against the Americans. After the loss during the round robin to the US, Canada felt as though they could play better, and while they did play well in that game, they're definitely capable of cranking things up another notch. And with Cale Makar healthy and the team overall in pretty good shape, especially compared to the Americans, the possibility of a Canadian win tonight is there.
Except...
Jordan Binnington.
Once again, late goals allowed by Binnington put a game that was dominated by the Canadians for almost the entire 60 minutes, saw an entire nation hold its collective breath, til Sidney Crosby came out and made a big hit before firing the puck from center ice into the empty Finnish goal to seal the deal in a 5-3 win. And while there's a lot of discussion about Jordan Binnington having come up big in the last winner take all game he played on TD Garden ice, when the Blues beat the Bruins in game 7 to win the 2019 Stanley Cup, and the fate of this Canadian team and pretty much the collective sanity of the nation rides on whether or not we'll get that Binnington or the one we've been dealing with throughout this tournament.
To a man, this team is going to have to play the game of their lives, and I am not trying to be snarky when I tell you that this could very well be the last time we get a team wearing those colours on the ice for us, unless something changes. The US is determined to enact so much of their fascist wish list, and controlling Canada, along with our resources, is high on it. Writing it off as something too crazy to ever happen is something that we have to stop doing. Everything people warned he would do if given the presidency again, he is doing. Preparing for the worst is hardly a bad idea.
I know nationalism can be difficult for some people. Canada is as flawed as any nation. There are things that need fixing. But even as bad as things have been, this is still a place I am proud to call my home. I know that I am fortunate to live in a country where I have never had to deal with things that make mere existence a life or death struggle. And I know it's selfish in a way to not want that to change. But I do not want to be like them. They can keep their death cult. I'm Canadian, and I'd rather die than have their way of life forced upon me.
So it's up to Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and the rest of Team Canada to channel Paul Henderson, Phil Esposito, Yvan Cournoyer and the rest of that 72 Summit Series team. An entire nation is counting on you tonight. No pressure, eh?
As we move forward, do me a favour. Take notes. Anyone who isn't denouncing them with a everything they have, needs to be noted. And for those who have already turned their backs on us, well, this is a fine example of how to deal with traitors.
LINEUPS
From nhl dot com...
4 Nations Face-Off championship, TD Garden, Boston
8 p.m. ET; Disney+, ESPN+, ESPN, SN, TVAS
Canada projected lineup
Brayden Point -- Connor McDavid -- Mark Stone
Sidney Crosby -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Sam Reinhart
Brandon Hagel -- Anthony Cirelli -- Mitch Marner
Brad Marchand -- Sam Bennett -- Seth Jarvis
Devon Toews -- Cale Makar
Josh Morrissey -- Colton Parayko
Travis Sanheim -- Drew Doughty
Jordan Binnington
Adin Hill
Scratched: Sam Montembeault, Thomas Harley, Travis Konecny
Injured: Shea Theodore (upper body)
United States projected lineup
Brady Tkachuk -- Jack Eichel -- Matthew Tkachuk
Jake Guentzel -- Auston Matthews -- Jack Hughes
J.T. Miller -- Dylan Larkin -- Matt Boldy
Brock Nelson -- Vincent Trocheck -- Chris Kreider
Noah Hanifin -- Adam Fox
Jaccob Slavin -- Brock Faber
Zach Werenski -- Jake Sanderson
Connor Hellebuyck
Jake Oettinger
Scratched: Jeremy Swayman, Kyle Connor
Injured: Charlie McAvoy (upper body)
Looks like the only change for Canada is Konecny is out and Seth Jarvis is back in. As far as the US, they're saying there may be last minute changes that we likely won't know til game time. Fortunately, it will not include Quinn Hughes, who has not flown to Boston after not being cleared to travel. And that's good, because my biggest fear was not Hughes leading them to victory, but re-aggravating his injury and missing even more time. My concern is for the Canucks when it comes to Hughes, and I am thankful that he's not able to help them. We do know that Matthew Tkachuk and Auston Matthews are banged up and may not be as effective, so we hope that this is something that can be exploited tonight.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
No more words, just a tune that will get your pulse racing and make you wanna run through a brick wall from one of Canada's finest. Here's VOIVOD with 'We Carry On'.
Go Canada Go! Fuck the USA!
