I like hockey, though I’m not a die-hard follower of the USA national teams. Yet, I caught how Gabe Perrault and Drew Fortescue, who the New York Rangers drafted 23rd and 90th overall, respectively, last year, were putting on a show in Sweden for the World Junior Championships. In the gold match, Team USA emerged victorious, beating the Swedes 6-2 (via The Guardian):
The United States got the revenge they desperately craved.
Isaac Howard scored twice in the second period and the US beat host Sweden 6-2 on Friday to capture gold at the IIHF world junior hockey championship.
Boston College’s Gabe Perreault, a 2023 first-round pick of the New York Rangers, had a goal and two assists. BC’s Ryan Leonard, the eighth pick of the Washington Capitals, and Zeev Buium, a top 2024 draft prospect who plays at Denver, each scored a goal and captain Rutger McGroarty had an empty netter.
The Americans secured the under-20 tournament for a sixth time after last winning in 2021.
GABE PERRAULT OFF THE SHOT-PASS BY WILL SMITH, AND USA LEADS 1-0 #WorldJuniors
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 5, 2024
(via @TSN_Sports) pic.twitter.com/qDhvaZuRmD
These photos from @usahockey’s #WorldJuniors gold medal win are unbelievable 📸😍 pic.twitter.com/0Ohgmw5Sua
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) January 7, 2024
TEAM USA WINS GOLD AT THE WORLD JUNIORS. 🥇 pic.twitter.com/kVV6k4AHLG
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 5, 2024
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And yes, the Swedes got a little chippy toward the end:
Things are getting heated between USA and Sweden at the end of the Gold Medal game 😳#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/avk1HrOYJ8
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 5, 2024
Former ESPN host Sage Steele also noticed something peculiar that her former employer did at the medal ceremony. The national anthem of the winning nation is played, which the Canadian broadcast showed but was omitted here in the States. It was a great moment: the team bellowed the verses of the Star Spangled Banner, something the women’s soccer team would never do. That got deep-sixed by ESPN.
Steele did not hold back in her post on Twitter.
Crazy that CANADA's top sports network @TSN_Sports chose to show this special moment from AMERICA's junior hockey team after winning gold..but AMERICA's largest sports network @espn chose to completely ignore it on all social media platforms. Also crazy considering ESPN's rights… https://t.co/yV3cXXBNW6
— Sage Steele (@sagesteele) January 6, 2024
“Crazy that Canada's top sports network, TSN Sports, chose to show this special moment from America’s junior hockey team after winning gold, America’s largest sports network, ESPN, chose to completely ignore it on all social media platforms.”
“It's so refreshing to see such pride from these young men,” she added.
You can see why ESPN essentially forced Steele out since she doesn’t toe the line on the woke nonsense that’s permeated most networks over the past ten years.
Hey @mPinoe, take notes https://t.co/bEsMyXeI6z
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) January 7, 2024
No kneeling, no purple hair, no selfish political displays, just world champs honoring their flag 🇺🇸 https://t.co/HwmVodPQRL
— Jake Schneider (@jacobkschneider) January 7, 2024
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