1980 'Miracle on Ice' Hero Still Moved by Olympic Memory

Forty-five years later, the captain of America's "Miracle on Ice" hockey team still chokes up thinking about how he got there.

Mike Eruzione appeared on a podcast this week to discuss the legendary 1980 Winter Olympics victory over the Soviet Union. When asked if he still gets emotional watching the game, the now 71-year-old had to pause mid-sentence, fighting back tears.

"My dad worked three jobs," Eruzione said before stopping to compose himself. "My mother took care of six kids, not knowing I was going to be a successful hockey player or an Olympian."

The Winthrop, Massachusetts native went on to Berwick Academy in Maine to sharpen his hockey skills. At Boston University, he averaged more than 20 goals per season, earning the nickname "Pete Rose on skates" from his coach.

But it was February 22, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, that changed everything. Eruzione scored the game-winning goal against the heavily-favored Soviet team, helping Team USA advance to beat Finland for the gold medal.

Sports Illustrated named it the greatest American sports moment of the twentieth century in 1999. ESPN viewers voted it the greatest highlight of all time in 2008.

Despite contract offers from the New York Rangers, Eruzione retired immediately after the Olympics. He'd already reached the peak, he said.

Why This Inspires

Eruzione's tears weren't about glory or fame. They were about gratitude for parents who worked themselves to the bone without any guarantee their son would make it.

His dad juggling three jobs and his mom raising six kids represent countless families who sacrifice everything for their children's dreams. They show up at 6 a.m. practices, pack lunches between shifts, and somehow find money for equipment and travel.

The "Miracle on Ice" happened because one young man refused to forget where he came from. Now the U.S. men's hockey team prepares to end a 46-year gold drought at next month's Milan games, carrying forward that same spirit of hard work and humility.

Some miracles take more than talent; they take a family's love and a captain who never stops saying thank you.