An overtime victory for Team Canada over Team USA in the NHL 4 Nations Face-Off shows it is “still Canada’s world and the US of A is just living in it,” according to Larry Brooks of the N.Y. POST. There “will be another day” for USA Hockey, and the days “will come in another year” when the league returns to the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics. The hurt “will linger” and the “motivation will be enhanced.” Still, there is “another 12 months to go.” And still, the Americans “will have to fight through to get to the gold medal game.” There “was disappointment in the USA room.” There “was pride mixed in.” Brooks: “The Americans knew what they did throughout this tournament. They know they inspired a new generation” (N.Y. POST, 2/21).
WE AIN’T COMING NO MORE, WE HERE: ESPN.com’s Ryan Clark wrote losing the 4 Nations Face-Off to Canada did not “dissuade the United States from delivering a message: Team USA has arrived, and it’s not going anywhere anytime soon. And it’s just as good as Canada.” How the U.S. arrived at that point goes back to USA Hockey’s creation of development arms such as the National Team Development Program, an incubator that “played a role in developing several members” of Team USA’s roster. That, in turn, led to the U.S. “becoming a perennial medal favorite” at the U-20 world junior championship, a tournament that is “viewed as a proving ground for the next wave of talent” (ESPN.com, 2/21).
