vancouver games

U.S. Hockey Team Advances to Semifinals, Barely

The United States enjoyed a huge advantage in scoring chances throughout its quarterfinal game against Switzerland this afternoon, but until the Swiss pulled their goalie late in the third period, they had just one goal to show for their effort. (Well, just one that counted: One puck entered the net a couple tenths of a second after the second period ended, and another goal was negated by a penalty.) But Ryan Miller stopped all eighteen shots he faced, Zach Parise scored twice (including an empty netter to seal to seal the 2–0 win), and the United States is headed to the semifinals, where they await the victor of tonight’s Czech Republic–Finland game. To quote Al Michaels from NBC’s brief postgame show: “How can you not love hockey?”

U.S. Hockey Team Advances to Semifinals, Barely