Russian Igor Kleynor: "I Was Watching Something I Was Not Expecting to See"

[@hollywoodjoe123]

Hey give the U.S. Men's winter olympics hockey team some credit already - The players had skills - No " miracle " - Both sides had skills -

[@9Ballr]

The greatest upset in sports history.

[@HajiStaxGaming]

This was bigger than Douglas vs Tyson. Although, that fight is definitely top 3.

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

@MadnessMobile This is #1 hands down, no question. Nothing else even comes close. Douglas v Tyson was two professionals. All it takes is one punch perfectly placed. This was a bunch of amateurs against professionals. The Soviet Union destroyed the best of the best, the NHL 10-3 at Madison Square Garden, about a week earlier.

[@kissmy_butt1302]

Especially when you consider the Soviets crushed USA in Madison Square Garden in an exhibition game two weeks before the games started. A brilliant move by Brooks. The Soviets felt they weren't a threat and the USA team got humbled to prove Brooks right. They couldn't win on talent alone.

[@elyenidacevedo1995]

@@kissmy_butt1302 yeah but considering they lost to a college team thats even worse

[@dartmaster501]

@dallasbrubaker6054 You're thinking of a different game. The Soviet Union defeated the NHL All-Stars in the Challenge cup winning 2 games to 1 in a 3 game series. This was on 8-11 February 1979. The Soviets defeated the 1980 Olympic team at Madison Square Garden on 22 February 1980 by a score of 10-3.

[@hawkeyfan1]

Nothing ever comes close to this upset and nothing ever will come close to it either.

[@manz7860]

Argentina beating the US and moving on the win the gold was pretty epic

[@BBQFanNo1]

It was the equivalent in 1980 of a US College Football Team defeating the two year back to back defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers in a Game. As Herb Brooks said you could play the Soviet Union Teams from 1956 to 1991 about 10 Times and even the next Best Hockey Countries in the World would still lose 9 out of those 10 Games. That's how good they were in that period. It truly was a Miracle for US College Amateurs to beat the best Country of Veteran Players in the World who defeated the Best Professional Hockey League Teams of Players in the World. Somehow in the Winter 1979-80 there was something different with the Soviet Teams that I rarely ever saw outside of the 1972 Summit Eight Game Series. Even though Czechoslovakia and Sweden had defeated them in the 1969, 1976 and 1977 Annual World Hockey Championships it was something few and far between against Top Soviet Union Clubs. The Red Army Club's Record against NHL Teams 1976 to 1991 Super Series was virtually almost perfect except some losses against the Philadelphia Flyers 1976, Montreal Canadiens New Year's Eve 1979, Buffalo Sabres 1980, Quebec Nordiques and some others.

[@brianrajala7671]

In the late 1970's, the great Russian coach Tarasov, with Horsky from Czecheslovakia, toured parts of the US. They were giving seminars on their systems and introducing dry land training drills to US amateur hockey coaches.

[@johnbgriffinjr116]

The genuine love he had/has of hockey comes through in this interview and transcends all the socio-political hoopla of the Miracle. Don’t get me wrong, I was 16 and went absolutely batsh*t when we beat them but I appreciate the look in this man’s eyes when he talks of hockey. It’s universal ✌🏼

[@claydouglas2526]

Greatest sports story ever

[@DaveScarcella]

Heart vs. Robots. Heart will win every time.

[@SeverSTL]

Just now hearing that the Soviets had beaten the N.H.L. Allstars 6-0 . earlier.

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

I know they beat them 10-3

[@jimryder3266]

Where have you been? Google those games, google the 1976 games with the soviets... Canada took care of business.......

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

@@jimryder3266 His newspaper carrier was sick for 40 years. LOL

[@joejankord1683]

@@dallasbrubaker6054 No the Soviets beat the American team 10-3. The Soviets beat the NHL all stars 6-0

[@dallasbrubaker6054]

@@joejankord1683 Right, they lost 2 games to 1 in the series. They won Game 1 4-2 and lost Games 2 and 3 5-4 and 6-0

[@bbb462cid]

Soviets had great great teams and great skilled players who were also great team players. I watched this game too, as an eight year old in the USA. I had nothing but a vague idea of the clash of East and West as ideologies, mostly from uncles who said "Russians" and "Commies". But even as an eight year old who had been watching hockey a little more than a year I could see the cool confidence and high skill of the Soviet team and it was a different thing than the US players had; they were so practiced and well-oiled, seemingly flawless and bewildering from an age, skill, and experience standpoint. This game is a great reminder of why the competitions take place- you play the game because really, either team really _can_ win, and it is a great testimony to the US Team to overcome such a polished and talented team as the Soviets regularly put on the ice.

[@tonygambino5905]

Same here. I was 8. How time flies. I went to those Olympics. didn't go to the game. But got my picture taken with Vladislav Tretiak.

[@bbb462cid]

I hope you still have the photo Tony

[@tonygambino5905]

Yes I did and got it on digital now. We drove from Cleveland to Lake Placid and were there for the first week of the Olympics. We were on white-faced mountain watching a ski event and the Soviet team was there watching in their big fur coats. I got my pic taken with the whole team. Awesome.

[@bbb462cid]

Good thinking getting it digitized. Family heirloom for sure.

[@tonygambino5905]

Yeah for sure. I played ice hockey and we had a 2 day tournament in Buffalo on the way up to Lake Placid. I just remember looking up and thinking how fucking huge these guys were. I was standing next to Golikov in the group photo. He's 6'3 so to an 8 year old....

[@RoyalMela]

"Team USA beat the Soviet team in an unexpected upset on February 22, 1980 and went on to win the gold medal game against Finland just two days later." There was no gold medal game, and no semifinals either. It was a round robin tournament and four top teams played a round robin medal round. USA had 2-1-0 record and 5 points and won gold. Soviets had 2-0-1 record and 4 points and won silver. Sweden had 0-2-1 record and 2 points and won bronze. Finland had 0-1-2 record and 1 point and w finished 4th. After preliminary group plays, two top teams from both groups advanced to medal round, but did not play the other team again and that game score carried over to medal round and teams only played two games, against both teams from other group. Soviets beat Finland on pool play and USA and Sweden tied. So Soviets had 2 points coming into medal round, USA and Sweden had 1 point, Finland 0. So even after USA beat Soviets, it was still very wide open going into final day. If Finland beat USA by a large margin, and Soviets tied Sweden, all teams had 3 points and then it was up to goal differentials and USA might finish even 4th. If USA lost to Finland, and Russians beat Sweden, like they did, Soviets would have won the gold, USA or Sweden for silver based on their goal differentials since they tied their game.

[@hotdogwater7037]

The ironic thing is that if the soviets won that game, people wouldnt still be talking about how great that team was

[@HajiStaxGaming]

Louie Salerno That’s why it was the Miracle on Ice. That’s the whole point. The Soviets were SUPPOSED to win...nobody anywhere except Herb Brooks and the team itself gave them a chance...they overcame. That’s what made them great.

[@HajiStaxGaming]

So....it’s actually not ironic at all. I’m pretty sure there was a quote somebody famous said back then that went something like, “The USA has a better chance of the ice melting and turning into gold than winning a gold medal in Olympic Hockey”

[@seanpallison]

Louie, I agree and I appreciate your observation of that irony!

[@claydouglas2526]

That’s the opposite of ironic, dude.

[@claydouglas2526]

“If I had gotten a D on the test, my teacher wouldn’t be talking about how smart I am”

[@marcmenton8063]

Just like the 1980 Olympics, Putin is underestimating what is going to happen. I’m guessing someone is going to take him out

[@publicanimal]

How fascinating is it that he now speaks English with only a very subtle accent?

[@RoyalMela]

Umm... people do speak many languages with ease. So what is do fascinating about this?

[@fye755]

@@RoyalMelaDid you miss the last 6 words he said?

[@hansteeuwen3967]

I have definitive proof that the game was rigged but I will never show it to the world because it will shatter peoples memories

[@samhugh4965]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@steveprestegard5151]

The USSR screwed up by pulling Tretiak.

[@christophertote8912]

This is NOT a put down of USA but the Russians shooting was awful!!! There was room enough for the Romanian Army when Craig was standing there and they shot pucks into him!! Loved how all the work of USA training that they stayed up with the Russians foot speed! Just another note: the preparedness of Team USA to physically be able to match skating in every situation was remarkable! Let's not forget we had international referees which can be unpredictable. The skating left no doubt USA was equal and ready to this challenge. Great Day For HOCKEY!!!!!

[@americangiant1003]

Mr. Tote. That is why I think Brooks did maybe the best coaching job in sports history at least at a major world championship such as the Olympics. That still a major feat to prepare his team to play against arguably the best hockey team the world has or ever will see. Very underrated but one of the main reasons the 1980 US team was in position to pull off the the Miracle on Ice..

[@jamessollazzo2966]

soviets lost the game because they were outplayed in goal. tretiak/mishkin gave up 4 goals on 16 shots, meanwhile craig made 36 saves on 39 shots and that was the difference on that night in lake placid,ny.

[@brianrajala7671]

You play a game to win or lose. The US team had enough grit to win when it counted the most. Brooks had put his team in a position to win, and they did.

[@deanladue3151]

👍👍 I had the opportunity recently to watch the entire game in full. And it was clear from the outset that the Soviets were clearly caught off guard (like the Czech team was) by the great, not good- but great team speed that Brooks team had. And it was very apparent in the 3rd period when the Soviets were being outskated and getting beat to the puck by Brooks team. Herb Brooks assembled and built this particular team for one reason, to beat the Soviet National Team in the Olympics.

[@Grahf0]

People talk about how big of an upset this was. I'd argue that the United States basketball team losing to Puerto Rico in the 2004 Olympics by 19 points is up there.

[@beedub9312]

When you juxtapose the game with the exhibition game 13 days earlier in NYC (Soviets won 10-3), the Cold War, Iranian Hostage Crisis, Soviets in Afghanistan, Carter’s boycott of the Moscow games, and the general malaise hanging over the country coming out of the 70s, losing a basketball game to Puerto Rico pales in comparison.

[@ANTHONY0808able]

That' not even close to this.

[@Grahf0]

@@ANTHONY0808able If you feel that way, you feel that way. However: It was the first loss the Americans had suffered when they had pro NBA players on the Olympic team, and every player in that game was already a pro or went pro that same year. In 16 or so of the 20 or so Olympic basketball competitions, America won the gold. Yet, they were beaten by a team that didn't even get a medal (America eventually rallied took the bronze that year, while Russia still managed to keep the silver after their loss to the United States). Basketball is a sport that the world just assumes Americans are experts at. So, I posit that them losing is to another country is, in fact, an upset of note. So yeah, it was a comprable *upset* in my opinion. Don't care about geopolitical crap, I'm talking solely about the expectation people generally have when considering these two sports (hockey and basketball), and the countries that regularly dominate them. If you disagree, then we will have to agree to disagree. *Tschuss!*

[@thedelightfullytacky]

Mr. NASA engineer should probably visit a dentist one of these days...

[@asap_anus8296]

Why can’t people just watch the video and enjoy the story

[@adamr6794]

Where he is from the dental tools they use are on their flag. So he probably doesn't like to go to the dentist