some good out of the bad

Hell of a game tonight. That's all I can say. We were the better team, but Miller played out of this world and Brodeur's brain ate some chili last night. That's really it.

Watched the game with a couple friends downtown and went nuts when Canada got it back to 4-3, but then my boy Kesler popped the prettiest empty netter I've ever seen and I sunk back into my chair. I wanted to get angry, but I couldn't -- it was a such a beauty goal, by my favorite NHLer. I wanted to say some nasty things about the US, but I couldn't -- there were two HUGE dudes from the Alouettes cheering for the Americans about 15 feet away from me. So I just sat back and tried to think of the good that could come from this game. When life gives you lemons, try to make them into some lemon-flavoured alcoholic drink, right?

And so here it is:

First off. It was was an amazing 60 minutes of hockey. So much action. Lot's of scoring chances. Some amazing goaltending. Some pretty goals. And really, the last 5 or 6 minutes was quite heavy on the drama, as Canada threw everything at Ryan Miller and he turned them away. It was an awesome game the Americans won tonight, and don't think the result won't generate more interest in this tournament South of the border. Upon getting home, I checked a couple of my favorite sportswriters' Twitter accounts and they were raving about the frenzy and emotion in that game. Bill Simmons called the game the "ceiling for sporting events in 2010" and even wrote about Kesler potentially winning an ESPY with that goal (it was a little surreal to read the football- and basketball-centric Sports Guy writing something about a lowly Vancouver Canuck). Jason Whitlock was also tuned in apparently and he wrote glowingly not only of the game itself, but the game of hockey in general and how no other sport can keep you on your toes like the last few minutes of a high-level hockey game. So that's good news, believe it or not. These guys will surely write columns about this game and that will, in turn, generate more coverage and create more excitement for this tournament -- and the NHL season when it resumes.

Second, as a Canucks fan, I think after tonight's game, we might be getting to see Roberto Luongo for the rest of the tournament. Brodeur looked distracted or retarded or something. He, along with the other old guys on the squad, didn't come through. I was critical of both Pronger's and Neidermeyer's selections to this team and I feel kind of vindicated now. They are both having sub-par seasons and I feel their spots could have gone to younger players. It's not like these guys are the charismatic or transcendent leaders that Mario or Joe Sakic or Yzerman were, so I don't see what they bring to the table. They were outplayed tonight. Big time.

But, on the glass-half-full-side, that meant some of the young guys shone and took their places. Drew Doughty was an absolute beast tonight. He's going to be a multiple Norris winner, easily. Johnny Toews was rock solid too and I feel like he's starting to turn into a big game player. And Rick Nash showed up and played a gutsy 60 minutes. Hopefully these guys get some more ice time as we get further into this tourney, and we see Pronger and Neids less and less.

Lastly, it was nice to see Kesler get some big time, international publicity. First there were his comments, which I completely forgive because this is entertainment and he's playing the villain, and then with that beautiful goal. I felt proud of his development as a hockey player.

And call me crazy, but I realized tonight that I'm a Canucks fan before a Canadian Olympic fan.