This was best possible way for Canada to end the Olympics. Sidney Crosby, shut down most of the tournament, wristed a shot past Ryan Miller 7:40 into overtime after Team USA tied the score with 24.4 seconds left in regulation, and Canada survived a tense, taut game to prevail, 3-2, in the men's hockey final today in Vancouver. It capped Canada's record gold rush and set off a national celebration.
In one of the greatest games in Olympic history, Canada's collection of all-stars held off a young, desperate opponent that had beaten them a week earlier and, after falling behind 2-0 and staging a furious comeback, almost beat them again. With Canada less than a minute away from the gold medal the hockey-crazed nation expected, Zach Parise tied it with Miller off the ice for an extra attacker.
(More 2010 Vancouver Olympics stories.)