Life imitating art took form after Team USA’s 3-1 victory over Canada in a – literally – hard-fought game that saw three fights in the first nine seconds and hard-hitting throughout.
The night began as many NHL games have begun in recent weeks, with the Canadia crowd booing the U.S. anthem. However, the insult would not go unanswered, as American players Matthew Tkachuk, Brady Tkachuk, and J.T. Miller decided to settle the insult with their fists.
BAM!!: This was beautiful. Canada booed out national anthem and then got their asses handed to them on a platter.
— Juanita Broaddrick (@atensnut) February 16, 2025
Fck Around and Find Out. pic.twitter.com/8ngekcuUKC
Not only did fights abound, but the hitting in the game was top-notch. Team USA repeatedly punished Canada’s best player, Connor McDavid.
I’m serious when I say that this hit by Charlie McAvoy on Connor McDavid is a perfect hockey hit. Like there’s nothing about it that you could do better pic.twitter.com/GzsELmnWva
— Boston Bruins Watcher (@WatcherBruins) February 16, 2025
The victory, extra sweet for the Americans considering it happened in the 4 Nations Face-Off in front of a Canadian crowd at Montreal’s Bell Centre and snapped Team USA’s listing streak to their northern neighbor, justified a significant post-game celebration, and the Americans did not disappoint in that regard either.
The U.S. locker room blared Aerosmith’s Dream On as players embraced and celebrated the historic win.
Vibes for daysss 🇺🇸
— USA Hockey (@usahockey) February 16, 2025
See ya in Boston! #4Nations pic.twitter.com/spbt84Oxvk
Why is this song selection significant? First, the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament now shifts from Montreal to Boston, where the Americans will play for the 4 Nations championship. Aerosmith is from Boston. Even more importantly, the song Dream On was played in the movie Miracle, which told the tale of Team USA’s shocking defeat of the Soviet Union and eventual gold-medal victory in the 1980 Winter Olympics.
This channeling of the “Miracle on Ice” team did not go unnoticed on social media.
https://t.co/JtgAoFGfQp pic.twitter.com/awDJ9RmPcx
— Phantom Specialist (@ericovalle) February 16, 2025
As someone who has watched 'Miracle' more times than I should admit, the fact that Team 🇺🇸 plays this in the dressing room is AMAZING. "The legs feed the wolf, gentlemen." https://t.co/YDzk5LkuW0
— Brent Axe (@BrentAxeMedia) February 16, 2025
We are so back https://t.co/iQkjK5m9YZ
— Patricia Burkell (@burkell69168) February 16, 2025
The vibe is infectious! 🇺🇸 https://t.co/0UU9bRNfzb
— Good Gorilla (@agoodgorilla) February 16, 2025
The game marked the first time the U.S. and Canada met with their top teams on the ice since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
The Americans play Sweden on Monday, which has become far less critical now that the U.S. has already secured a championship game appearance. There is still a chance the Americans could rematch Canada in the championship game.