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Goal-d!: Team USA wins 1st medal
By Dennis Romboy
Deseret News Paralympic specialist
WEST VALLEY CITY — The once hapless U.S. sled hockey team waited until the last shot to claim its first Paralympic medal — a gold one.
With veteran Manuel Guerra Jr. in goal, Atle Haglund of Norway barely missed on the final shot of a shootout, giving the United States a 4-3 victory in the gold medal game Friday at the E Center.
American skaters connected on three of five shots in the shootout, while Norway only made two.
"I think that was pay back for starting out a little bit shaky in the first and second (periods)," said Guerra, who allowed goals on two of Norway's first three shots. "I didn't really settle in until the third period."
Coach Rick Middleton joked about a shootout before the game telling Guerra, "This (game) better not come to this."
It did. And Guerra was there.
Veteran Kip St. Germaine said the team had confidence in its goalie despite his awful start.
The teams battled back and forth to a tie after three periods that held through a 10-minute overtime.
Both teams had great chances to score in the extra session but shooter after shooter blew near-perfect set-up passes.
The shootout round looked to spell disaster for the United States.
Norway's Helge Bjoernstad, the tournament most valuable forward, and Rolf Einer Pedersen easily put the first two shots passed Guerra. But the veteran held his ground for the next three, deflecting one and forcing wide shots on the others.
Team USA couldn't hold a one-goal lead entering the third period. Sloppy passing produced only one shot on goal, that coming with less than a minute left.
Stig Tore Svee tied the game three minutes into the final stanza.
Meantime, the U.S. offense disappeared. The Americans managed only one shot for the period.
Norway scored just less than three minutes into the game when Pedersen stripped the puck from St. Germaine in front of the net. His flip shot put the United States behind for the first time in the tournament.
"When they jumped up one-nothing, we knew we had to come together as team like we had all week," said forward Joe Howard.
Team USA responded with three straight goals, two by Howard near the end of the first period and one off the opening face-off in the second. Sylvester Flis, the tournament's most valuable defenseman, threaded a crossing pass through two defenders that Matt Coppens drilled into the net.
Flis, the leading goal scorer among all teams, knew he wouldn't be a scorer this night. Norway sent two or three defenders at him throughout the game.
"The only thing I could do was give up the puck to my teammates," he said. "I know I can pass well . . . It was pure teamwork today."
E-MAIL: romboy@desnews.com
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March 16, 2002
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