To me the best thing about the US winning in 1980 was that it legitimized
the sport of college hockey.  Except for Mike Eruzione and, I believe, Buzz
Schneider, the whole team was comprised of kids who were either still in
college or had been out for may 1 or 2 years.  The average age of the team
was 21 or 22.  It was basically a college all-star team that went up
against the best hockey team in the world.
 
I remember a friend of mine calling me after he had seen the Russians beat
the US in Madison Square Garden 9-0 (I think).  His comment "it's not going
to be pretty" got me hoping for maybe a trip to the medal round at best.
However I had seen almost everyone of these guys play at one time or
another in their college careers and had tremendous respect for their
abilities.  I was just hoping that my devotion to the college game had not
clouded by judgement.
 
When they won the whole thing, it certainly turned the heads of the pro
scouts who now started to flock to college games in droves.  We from the
college hockey dark ages certainly remember the many stars of the mid-70's
who hardly got a sniff of a pro career even though they clearly had talent.
It took that 1980 US team to get the NHL ostrich's head out of the sand.
 
For me personally, it justified my love of the sport over the NHL game. I
could now tell my friends who were NHL devotees, "see, the NHL couldn't
beat the Russians, but the college guys did." My only regret about that
team is that Ralph Cox, UNH '72, didn't make it.  I've never understood how
the guy who was the leading scorer for most of the team's exhibition
schedule could get cut.  I felt then, and still feel now, that Herbie
Brooks had the western bias and Ralph was a victim of it.  But that is a
small potatoes complaint compared to what really counted.
 
One last note, the worst possible casting I have ever seen in a
"historical" movie was Karl Malden playing Herb Brooks in "Miracle on Ice".
Better they should have picked his partner from "Streets of San Francisco",
Michael Douglas.
 
Greg Ambrose
UNH '72
GO UNH BLUE!!!
 
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