Sweet, sweet victory

Today was a great day. A fantastic day even. But before I get to the climax of the night, i'll review the entire day.

We started our day later than usual, not waking up until 11. After a breakfast wrap, Brendan suggested Wendy's, and of course I obliged. So Vic, Brendan and I drove a few blocks to the nearest Wendy's for some brunch while Terry took care of the three S'. After our meal, we came back to the apartment for a short while before making our way out to the civic centre for (what we thought would be) the first of two great games: Russia v. Sweden. We decided to drive instead of taking a taxi today, and after parking about six miles from the arena, we were ready for the game.

At this time i'd like to give honourable mention to faithful follower Rich White, and the good luck he gave us. He threw Victor a call as we were walking into the Civic centre, freezing his fingertips, but giving us good luck for the game later on in the night. (Thanks Rich, we now expect a call the afternoon of every Canada game.)

The Civic centre was overrun with Swedes today, and the scoreboard seemed to favour them as well. They dominated the Russians in every facet of the game, cruising to a 5 - 0 victory, ensuring them a berth in the semifinals. The first period was exciting, but it slowed down significantly into the second and third, so we ducked out early to beat the rush.
After the battle of Europe, the crew moved to Heroes of the Game, a very popular spot in Kanata with great food and great-looking waitresses. Our new best friend Trevor, whom we gave a few unusable tickets, paid for our food and drinks (for a second time), and still had time to grab a picture with us. Our thanks go out to Trevor for the food and the hospitality.
After our pit stop at HotG, we made our way to Scotiabank Place for the main event: USA v. Canada; the battle of North America. This game was for all the marbles. Though the loser still had a chance to win the gold, they may not recover from the blow to their morale if they lost this rivalry game. The house was packed to the brim with Canadian fans, and they were INTO it. The rink was rocking, and the crowd was ready for a big can of whoop-ass to be opened on the Americans. This however, would be delayed.

After the Americans sniped three quick goals on nine shots, hope looked bleak for the Canadians: the crowd was losing interest, the team was looking uninspired, and Canadas goaltending was looking shaky. Then, there was Tavares. John Tavares (soon to be Spitfire) took the team on his back, scoring two goals in under a minute to get his team back into the game. When the Canadians tied it a few minutes later, they never looked back. They would not trail again after the first period, and though it was tight, they came out with a 7 - 3 victory over their southern rivals. Did I mention that Tavares had a game? Well he had a GAME. He scored a hat trick and was named the Canadian player of the game, and could be considered the catalyst for Canadas comeback.

Victory tastes as sweet as I imagined it would, and it will only get sweeter. We have the day off to skate on the Rideau Canal tomorrow, and we will watch some quarterfinal action before going to Montreal to see the Habs take on Florida.

Everyone have a safe and happy New Year, don't overconsume (ha ha ha), and may your next year be the best one yet!