CNNSI.com - Statitudes - Statitudes: Team USA's home streak lives

The Streak lives

Team USA makes history with 70-year, 24-game tear

Posted: Friday February 22, 2002 1:23 AM
Updated: Friday February 22, 2002 8:29 PM

Homeboys

Team USA at home:

Year Site W-L Place

1932 Lake Placid 4-1-1 2nd

1960 Squaw Valley 7-0 1st

1980 Lake Placid 6-0-1 1st

2002 Salt Lake City 4-0-1 ????

Totals: 21-1-3; 2 gold, 1 silver

Road Dogs

Team USA on the road:

Year Site W-L Place

1920 Antwerp (Belgium) 3-1 2nd

1924 Chamonix (France) 4-1 2nd

1936 St. Moritz (Switz.) 6-2-1 3rd

1948 St. Moritz 5-3 4th

1952 Oslo (Norway) 6-1-1 2nd

1956 Cortina (Italy) 5-2 2nd

1964 Innsbruck (Austria) 2-5 5th

1968 Grenoble (France) 2-4-1 6th

1972 Sapporo (Japan) 3-2 2nd

1976 Innsbruck 2-3 5th

1984 Sarajevo (Yugo.) 2-2-2 7th

1988 Calgary (Canada) 3-3 7th

1992 Albertville (France) 5-2-1 4th

1994 Lillehammer (Nor.) 1-3-3 8th

1998 Nagano (Japan) 1-3 T5th

Totals: 50-37-9; 5 silver, 1 bronze

By Jacob Luft, CNNSI.com

Home ice brings out the best in the U.S. men's hockey team.

Since losing 2-1 to Canada in the opener of the 1932 Lake Placid Games, Team USA has put together an unbeaten streak of 24 games that spans four Olympiads. The streak has produced two gold medals and a silver, with another gold within reach.

The 21-0-3 record includes two improbable defeats of the mighty Soviet machine that cruised to eight gold medals from 1956-92, with the only exceptions being Team USA's pair of victories in 1960 and '80. The Americans defeated the Russians again 3-2 Friday to advance to the gold-medal game against Cadada.

No other nation has won a gold medal on its own soil. In fact, only one country has earned a medal of any kind at home -- Switzerland with bronze in 1928 and '48. That is mostly because traditional hockey powers have rarely served as hosts.

Canada's only home Olympics was in 1988, when it finished fourth, and the Soviets/Russians have never played host to a Winter Olympics. Neither have Sweden, Czechoslovakia or Finland.

On the road, Team USA has been respectable, though not nearly as successful.

In the 15 Olympiads on foreign lands, the U.S. has compiled five silvers, a bronze and a record of 50-37-9. Since 1972, though, the U.S. has had six lackluster performances on the road.

Gracious Hosts
How other countries have performed at home:
Country	Year	Record	Place	Top Finish
Japan	1998	0-2-1	13th	8th (1960)
Norway	1994	0-5	11th	8th (1972)
France	1992	2-6	8th	8th (1972)
Canada	1988	5-2-1	4th	1st (1920, '24, '28, '32, '48, '52)
Yugoslavia	1984	1-4	10th	T5th (1924, '28)
Austria	1976	3-2	8th	T5th (1928)
Japan	1972	2-1-1	9th	8th (1960)
France	1968	0-5	14th	8th (1972)
Austria	1964	3-3-1	13th	T5th (1928)
Italy	1956	3-1-2	7th	Same
Norway	1952	0-8	9th	8th (1972)
Switzerland	1948	6-2	3rd	3rd (1928, '48)
Germany	1936	3-2-1	T5th	3rd (1932, '76)
Switzerland	1928	2-2-1	3rd	3rd (1928, '48)
France	1924	1-2	T5th	8th (1972)
Belgium	1920	0-1	--	T7th (1924)