Here's a look around the hockey scene, starting right here in the B-lo with comments on Ryan Miller leading the United States into today's gold-medal game against Canada:
*"Win or lose," Jerry Sullivan writes of Miller, "he has carved out a permanent spot in the hearts of Buffalo fans. Everyone wants to see Miller, to embrace him, to be part of his orbit. Anybody up for a parade through the snow-filled downtown streets if the Americans win it all?"
*From the Vancouver Province: "With the weight of sudden expectation riding on his slender shoulders in a gold-medal showdown with Team Canada, the gangly goaltender sounded like he was preparing for war.
"I'm not worried about being skinny," the 170-pound Miller said Saturday. "If I get pushed around, I can do my job. If anybody is coming at me or is hitting me, I know how to survive out there."
*From the tag-team duo of Scott Burnside and Pierre LeBrun of ESPN.com: "The fact anyone can speak of this current U.S. team in the same sentence as the "Miracle" speaks volumes about what is at stake in Vancouver. Sunday's gold-medal game may be the most-watched hockey game ever in the United States. Never mind Stanley Cup finals, Winter Classics, even the 2002 Olympic final in Salt Lake City -- Sunday's game has caught the imagination of a nation that rarely notices, let alone becomes mesmerized, by the sport.
"While a win for Team USA would also be gigantic, both in terms of the growth of the sport in that country and its impact on American kids everywhere, it doesn't fully compare to what it would mean in Canada. We're talking monuments and stamps and, yes, more songs."
*Tyler Ennis scored in overtime Saturday night to give the Portland Pirates a victory.
*A reminder that following today's gold-medal game, we'll have a Live Chat on the Sabres' Edge. Join us shortly after they hand out the Olympics' top prize to either Ryan Miller or Lindy Ruff. We'll talk about the game, the Sabres' return to the ice and Wednesday's trade deadline.
---John Vogl
