Best Hockey Movie Ever

Rating: 10/10 (18 February 2005)

This was, without a doubt in my mind, the best hockey film ever produced. This movie automatically attracted my attention being a hockey player. Honestly, I needed a more professional movie about the sport I love than Mighty Ducks. Don't get me wrong, Mighty Ducks are sweet, but we all know they can't play hockey. The movie "Miracle", got off to a good start for two reasons. Reason one: the actual players are still alive, so they can basically write the movie for them. Reason two: they used actual hockey players and made them actors, as opposed to taking actors and making them marginal hockey players at best. The story of the "Miracle on Ice", was both a major sports and political triumph over the beloved Soviet Union (..right, beloved).
This movie is about a group of divided ex-college hockey players in a bitter dispute about the 1976 college national championship in which Rob McClanahan (Nathan West) fouled Jack O'Callahan (Michael Mantenuto), both of whom were on the USA Miracle team. Once their disputes were settled, they faced intense drilling from legendary coach, Herb Brooks (Kurt Russell). Three days before the opening of the 1980 Lake Placid Olympic games, the Soviets beat the United States 10-3, which didn't give Americans much hope for their ice hockey team. The United States came back and played hard in the preliminary games, tieing Sweden 2-2 in a come-from-behind last second effort. Then stomping Czechoslovakia (second best team in the world, only behind USSR), West Germany, Norway, and Romania. The qualifying medal round was then the United States played the Soviet Union. Keep in mind, the Soviet Union won gold in 1964, 1968, 1972, and 1976. After the first period, the US was tied with the Soviets, which was already a shocker. Tikhanov, the Russian coach, pulled Vladamir Tretiak, the best goaltender in the world, and replaced him with Myshkin, an equally capable goaltender. The United States hung in the game, and with exactly 10:00 left in the 3rd period, the goal from Captain Mike Eruzione gave the lead to the USA 4-3. The score stayed that way, and the USA upset the Soviet Union. Don't forget, the US lost to the USSR only two weeks prior 10-3. The Soviet Union had their first loss in nearly 50 games. The USA went on to win gold against Finland, coming from behind, once again. The US took gold, USSR took silver, and Sweden took bronze.
Since this Miracle team of college kids, the American professional players haven't gotten the job done to get a gold. Even under the coaching of Herb Brooks in the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic games, the USA failed to win gold, and took silver instead.
Herb Brooks died in August of 2003.
I rated this movie a 10 out of 10, because it was not only the perfect movie for hockey players, but it was an amazing triumph in American history. The 1970's were not a great period of time for US history, the Watergate Scandal, Vietnam, and the Iran hostage crisis, were the headlines of the 1970's. And in the second month of the new decade, a hockey team defeats the arch enemy of the USA. The American people needed this victory. The American people now need this movie. If you haven't seen it, I suggest you go to the movie store and buy this. I guarantee you, it will give you a sense of pride in your country by the time you finish it.