U.S. head coach Mike Sullivan told the men’s hockey team prior to the quarterfinal matchup with Sweden to consider it a “Game 7.”
However, the showdown ended up being even better than playoff hockey
Dylan Larkin scored the only goal in regulation in the second period to give the U.S. a 1-0 lead over Sweden for the game.
It looked as if the United States would hold on to move on to the final four, but Sweden’s Mika Zibanejad wasn’t much for that plan.
Zibanejad scored with just over a minute and a half to go to send the game to overtime, tied up 1-1.
“That is as nervous as I have ever been in a hockey game,” Larkin said. The way 3-on-3 goes (in overtime), it is about being opportunistic. Someone could fall, the puck could bounce, anything can happen, especially with the ice out there, he added.
The three-on-three overtime period lasted under four minutes.
“I calmed down a lot when I saw Quinn (HUGHES) with it and was glad we got that guy,” Larkin said.
It was Quinn Hughes who found the back of the net to keep Team USA’s medal hopes alive with a win 2-1 over Sweden. He admitted the game could have gone either way in the end.
“Got lucky. Kind of got the defenders in the position that I wanted and was able to get the shot off,” Hughes said after the win. “That’s (Sweden) one of the best countries in the world. They’ve got superstars everywhere,” he added.
The United States advances to the semifinal on Feb. 20 against Slovakia.
