15 Years Later, The Best Hockey Player In The World Beats Team USA In Overtime With Connor McDavid Delivering The 4 Nations Dagger
February 28th, 2010. The best hockey player on the planet was fresh off of taking his team to the Stanley Cup Final. USA and Canada were tied at 2 in overtime playing for the gold medal at the Vancouver Olympics. You just had a sneaking suspicion that the final shot in the game was going to be coming off of his stick. And from a now infamous angle, Sidney Crosby delivered the golden goal for Canada.
15 years later. The best hockey player on the planet was fresh off of taking his team to the Stanley Cup Final. USA and Canada were tied at 2 in overtime playing in the final of the 4 Nations Faceoff. You just had a sneaking suspicion that the final shot in the game was going to be coming off of his stick. And after somehow being left wide the frick open in the slot, Connor McDavid delivered the dagger for Canada.
Holy snipe. Stapled that thing in the top corner, but that's going to happen 11 times out of 10 whenever the best player on the planet is left wide open. I don't know who gets the blame for this one. Adam Fox took the long road to get to Mitch Marner, which forced Auston Matthews to leave the slot and chase him down. Jack Hughes is in no man's land. Brock Nelson couldn't help back down in time. But at the end of the day, 97 was always going to get his moment.
People want to say that he disappears when his team needs him the most. I couldn't possibly disagree more, even if he didn't get on the scoresheet to end the Cup Final last year. Guys like McDavid just always seem to find a way to rise to the occasion and deliver in massive moments like this. Superstar in every sense of the word, and now he has his signature moment for Hockey Canada.
By the way--what a ridiculous game of hockey that was. I know it didn't have the fireworks and fisticuffs like the first meeting between these two teams. But that game was insane. The pace was off the charts. The defense was lights out. Jordan Binnington and Connor Hellebuyck both made so many saves that made your head spin. Just an incredible game of hockey, and it sucks so much ass that the best player in the world was wearing a Canadian sweater.