Hockey Hall of Famer Ken Dryden Talks "Miracle on Ice" & More - 2/23/17

[@chipgriffiths3655]

To me hearing Al Michaels "Do you believe in miracles" is priceless but to me as a hockey player hearing Dryden saying "unbelievable" was even more amazing and meaningful owing to he he was. A HOF and a lawyer.

[@GrumpyGrobbyGamer]

What a wonderful listen.

[@8fox261]

I was in US Navy Flight School at NAS Pensacola FL. Watching the game in the BOQ (Bachelor Officer Quarters) TV room with a bunch of other sNA's (student Naval Aviators) the atmosphere was absolutely electrifying. [ I'd seen this same team jogging single file in Colorado Springs' Memorial Park back in July 1979 prior to joining the Navy. At that very moment something (the hockey gods?) told me they were destined for great achievement.] When the US Men won 4-3 we ALL WENT CRAZY.. Some months later we graduated with our 'Wings of Gold'.. Their victory taught us to respect our adversaries, not fear or be in awe of them. BRAVO ZULU USA

[@chicken_953]

Ken Dryden is such a brilliant man! I would love to run into him at airport or restaurant and talk his ear off and ask him a thousand questions!

[@jethro1963]

You couldn't get a word in edgewise. Ask Dryden for the time and he'll tell you how to build a watch. He's always been that way.

[@nitemare507]

Ken is one of the most articulate speakers ever!

[@eddiebell9963]

Don't forget; Ken Dryden was on the ice for the Summit Series in 1972 when Canada beat Russia thanks to Paul Henderson's 'shot heard round the world'; so he was eyewitness to TWO miraculous wins against the big, bad Soviet bear that I feel will go down in history as hockey at its finest...

[@terrihenricks4160]

Ken Dryden made a big contribution to the telecast of the "Miracle On Ice" game when he noted that the Soviets had little experience pulling their goaltender. They were virtually never behind late in the third period. They never did get their goalie off the ice in favor of an additional offensive player, and that may have been critical.

[@kevinchapman9801]

That's always been a mystery to me. As you say, I guess they never had to practice pulling their goalie.

[@paulsonj72]

Another reason they didn't pull the goalie was because in those days the medal round was not single elimination and as such goal differential was also a tiebreaker in determining the medals if teams ended up in a tie

[@brentgranger7856]

The Soviets not pulling their goalie was a critical error on Coach Tikhonov's part. However, Soviet players later stated in interviews that they never practiced that situation.

[@billyboblillybob344]

@@paulsonj72 Which is kind of irrelevant since the USSR outscored everyone (even with the loss to the US) by probably 20 goals. They were behind to Finland and Canada during this tournament and still won each game by 2 or more goals I think. Their lack of pulling the goalie was an arrogant oversight by their whole olympic hockey system. It is one more reason they were ripe for the picking having won 4 olympic golds in a row. Herb Brooks saw what no one else did and made it happen.

[@Dr.Frankensteen]

Even bigger was pulling Tretiak after the first. Both decisions sunk the team. And the world is thankful for it.

[@bdadolph]

Reading from Scripps Drydens book he published soon after his retirement The Game, it is still a great read. Although sports has changed immensely he still applies his compact and droll literary style to describe the mindset of being part of sports team and the eccentricities of successful pro athletes. I like his descriptions of his own self doubts he always had and the imposter syndrome caused by playing for by far the best hockey team of his era. There was a difference between being the best goalie or a good bad team goalie, and guys like Dryden, Billy Smith or Jacques Plante, the money goalies meaning one had to make that big save at the right time against the best opposition to win championships

[@ThomasPhelan-kx8ss]

I've said for years that "The Game" is the best sports book I've ever read.

[@toddm9501]

One of my top 5 hockey heroes.

[@tkbuffalogaming]

What a time.

[@bruce8321]

Dryden was the most intelligent Canadian hockey player who ever played and also a great goalie for sure.

[@romanclay1913]

Rookie Ken Dryden came up to fourth place Montreal Canadians for 1971 playoffs, then took them to the Stanley Cup.

[@34Packardphaeton]

.............. Actually, I think that Montreal finished in third place that season.

[@mattygates1]

Ken Dryden damn awesome goalie for the Habs.

[@dustylover100]

Let's not forget about Dryden's groundbreaking book The Game.

[@brucehartley3858]

Surprised they don’t know how to get to and from Lake Placid and Ottawa - if you go through Buffalo it’s a LOT longer than 5 hours - you go through Messena, not Buffalo as Ottawa is east of Lake Ontario, not west. If you go through Messena and Cornwall , it’s 3 hours and in the winter add an hour - call it 4 hours

[@BudSchnelker]

The graphic states that Dryden was a 5 time Vezina winner as the "NHL's Best Goalie", but that's not strictly true. Prior to 1982, the Vezina was awarded to the goalies on the team that surrendered the fewest goals. So, Dryden's Vezina wins were a result of being on the best defensive team in the NHL. Hell, Bunny Larocque has his name on the Vezina trophy 4 times! That's not to say that Dryden wouldn't have won Vezina trophies under the current rules, but we'll never know how many times he'd have won out over Tony O or Bernie Parent.

[@brettfavreify]

Al was the perfect announcer for that game but Dryden - as much as I loved him as a goaltender and a Habs fan - was brutal during that game. He was talking over the play when Eruzione scored the gamewinner.

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

He didn't know Mike Eruzione was going to score. It wasn't like, "I won't talk about how the U.S. is relying on Jim Craig and that Craig is making too many big saves because Eruzione is about to score." Both did great jobs.

[@bobfirment8243]

In the pregame chat Ken Dryden seemed to expect the US team to get wiped out. Not surprising since the soviets did wipe out the US team less than two weeks earlier.

[@thomasryan5736]

The US 1960 Olympic hockey team won the Gold. They did it without Al Michaels and ABC. But they won the gold. Well done 1960 and 1980.

[@34Packardphaeton]

......... I saw that USA - USSR game "live" in 1960 !

[@mikebunting7262]

They also did it without Herb Brooks who was the final cut from the 60 squad

[@kjollahti1863]

I wonder what Ken thought of the Russians pulling one of the best goalkeepers in the world. I wish Rich would have asked Ken what his thoughts were. I was a 14 year old goalie who assumed the goalie had to be injured

[@billyboblillybob344]

According to one of the documentaries about the Miracle on Ice, an interview with Tretiak showed him stating that when the first period ended, their coach Tikanov stated that "Tretiak is not playing well" or something simple like that and that Tretiak should be replaced. So when the second period began, there was Myshkin. I'm not sure Dryden would have had anything more on that other than his personal thoughts which he definitely went into during the broadcast of 1980.

[@kjollahti1863]

Ken's personal thoughts as a former world class goalkeeper upon seeing the keeper change that would have been enlightening!

[@samspade4050]

Asking Dryden winner of 6 Stanley cups being asked where watching the USA beat Russia ranks ? Ken is Canadian not American I’m sure he enjoyed being there but come on what did eisen expect him to say , oh ya much better than Winning the Stanley cup after only playing 10 nhl .

[@billyboblillybob344]

He answered it perfectly. During the telecast of the game, he was clearly struck by the importance of the upset simply as the USSR vs the USA; an upset nobody on the planet felt was at all possible.

[@michaelarquitt2673]

Ken did play IN THE USA IN THE ECAC FOR EITHER CORNELL, I SEE HIS FAMOUS STANCE IN A PICTURE AT ST.LAWRENCE UNIVERSITY IN CANTON,NEW YORK

[@burgcarli929]

Ken didn't just "watch" this game. He and Al, called what is probably the most iconic sports moment of the last century. It may not have been as personally satisfying as six rings, but I would say that most casual sports fans recognize him for the call of this momentous game.

[@claudebrodeur6260]

Ottawa is definitely not 5 hours from Ottawa and you don’t go to Toronto (opposite direction) to get there, someone never studied geography. Ottawa is about 55 miles to Cornwall, you cross the International bridge at CORNWALL/MASSENA NY. Then you drive 1 hr and 37 minutes to Lake Placid a distance of 75 miles.

[@lf2417]

Good to know, I just visited Cornwall the other day

[@BudSchnelker]

I live near Buffalo and know a guy who was at the Miracle on Ice game. Prior to the Olympics he bought a three pack of tickets for hockey, one of which was in the medal round robin, and it was only the hockey gods smiling on him that resulted in that particular game being the legendary USA-USSR game. Anyway, because hotel rooms were completely full around Lake Placid, he and his friends wound up staying outside Montreal.

[@scottstauffer4094]

Fun fact: My wife babysat his kids

[@bruce8321]

Dryden has always been brilliant but never exciting like Al.

[@jamessollazzo2966]

dryden was always a bore!

[@unsexynstupid]

Are you insane? Dryden was the 2nd best goalie ever and an amazing analyst

[@thomasdidymus1393]

Dryen is a very intelligent man.

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

@@unsexynstupid Just curious, who is #1? Terry Sawchuk? Patrick Roy? Martin Brodeur? Jacques Plante? Probably Brodeur, he is #1 in both wins (691) and shutouts (125).

[@unsexynstupid]

@@dallasbrubaker6054 the old Soviet goalie, Vladislav Tretiak, was the best goaltender ever in world history. Amazing goaltender, take away that one game at the 1980 Winter Olympics. Tretiak won multiple gold medals for the Soviet Union during the 1970's - and at one time, because of Tretiak, that Soviet team had won like 80 games in a row. Or some large amount close to 80

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

@@unsexynstupid Oh I thought you meant NHL goalies.