Reliving US national hockey team’s legendary triumph over Russia 45 years later: Where to stream ‘Miracle’

After 45 years, the iconic ‘Miracle on Ice’ remains an important touchstone for sports fans in the United States and around the world.

The 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York took place during the Cold War, while the US and the Soviet Union were in a state of constant competition. The Olympics was to become another vessel for that rivalry and the Americans staged a stunning upset in the ice hockey.

The Miracle on Ice was a game in the medal round of the men’s ice hockey competition from that year’s Winter Olympics. The USSR were four-time gold medallists heading into the competition and had cruised through the competition until they met the US.

The American team had already managed a 2-2 draw with Sweden and a shock win against Czechoslovakia before meeting the Soviets. The US were trailing at the end of the second period but turned it around with two goals in the final period to clinch a famous 4-3 win.

Why is it called the ‘Miracle on Ice’?

After four consecutive gold medals the USSR team was the heavy favourite heading into the Games. After a bronze medal finish at the 1960 Games the Soviet team had gone 27-1-1 in Winter Olympics.

The US went for a inexperienced team for the 1980, with only one member of the 1976 squad returning. The average age of the team was just 21 years old, both the youngest team at that Games and the youngest US ice hockey team in history.

The US were the undoubted underdogs but the ‘miraculous’ nickname actually came from an iconic piece of commentary from ABC’s Al Michaels. In the final seconds of the game, with the US clinging to a one-goal lead, Michael declared: “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!”

The ‘Miracle on Ice’ was named the top sports moment of the 20th century by Sports Illustrated in 1999 and the International Ice Hockey Federation later called it the No. 1 international ice hockey story of the past century.

You can relive the magic of that iconic game with the film ‘Miracle’ (2004) which follows the action from the perspective of Herb Brooks, the US head coach. Brooks is played by Kurt Russell, with Patricia Clarkson and Noah Emmerich in supporting roles.

‘Miracle’ is available to stream on Disney+ and can be bought or rented from Apple TV. It’s far from the only movie about that iconic game, the 1981 docudrama ‘Miracle on Ice’ focuses more on the players' experiences of the game but is not as well reviewed as the 2004 movie.

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