Running off at the typewriter. \u2026<\/p>\n
As we all know, Orlando is the birthplace of humidity; a place where hot, sticky air doesn\u2019t just reside here; it has filed for homestead exemption. Which is why it felt so especially refreshing to claim a cool little slice of ice hockey glory earlier this week.<\/p>\n
The United States won its first Olympic gold medal in men\u2019s hockey since the \u201cMiracle on Ice\u201d in 1980, stunning Canada 2-1 in overtime. And the hero? Orlando-born Jack Hughes.<\/p>\n
Yes, that Jack Hughes.<\/p>\n
Less than two minutes into overtime, Hughes buried the game-winner against mighty Canada. This came after he had taken a high stick to the face earlier in the game, lost teeth, bled on the ice and returned like nothing more than a jersey adjustment was required.<\/p>\n
Hughes was born in Orlando when his father, Jim Hughes, was an assistant coach for the Orlando Solar Bears. True, he only lived here as an infant. But details are irrelevant in moments like this. We\u2019re claiming him. Proudly. Aggressively. Possessively.<\/p>\n
Because he was ours before he was anyone else\u2019s.<\/p>\n
And because moments like these belong to the entire country.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the game, Hughes was sprawled on the ice after the high stick, teeth knocked out, trainers hovering. In the NBA, that\u2019s two months on the injured list and two more months of dental surgery maintenance rehab. In hockey, it\u2019s a quick repair, a rinse \u2014 and back into the fray.<\/p>\n
And afterward, Hughes didn\u2019t sound like a conquering hero. He sounded like a kid trying to process a dream. Humble. Grateful. Patriotic. Tough.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is all about our country,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cI love the USA. I love my teammates. It\u2019s unbelievable. The USA Hockey brotherhood is so strong.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s no wonder America fell head over heels in love with Jack Hughes on the spot. It\u2019s no wonder why this team struck such a chord with our country\u2019s sports fans. In a divided era, we saw something simple and powerful. We saw unity, resilience and sacrifice. We saw players bleeding and blocking shots. We saw them honor fallen teammate Johnny Gaudreau. We saw a group playing for something bigger than contracts or endorsements.<\/p>\n
For one rare, beautiful day, Americans rallied around sticks and skates.<\/p>\n
And for once, Orlando wasn\u2019t just the birthplace of humidity.<\/p>\n
It was the birthplace of ice-cold, pure-gold Olympic glory. \u2026<\/p>\n
SHORT STUFF: Speaking of the U.S. Men\u2019s Hockey Team, President Trump announced at Tuesday\u2019s State of the Union address that Connor Hellebuyck, the team\u2019s goaltender, will be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. That\u2019s all well and good, but I thought the Presidential Medal of Freedom was meant to honor a lifetime of civic impact; not just a hot streak in net. \u2026 The Tampa Bay Buccaneers absolutely cannot let franchise legend Mike Evans sign a contract elsewhere. The Buccaneers without Mike Evans is like their pirate ship without its cannons. \u2026\u00a0 Obviously, mental health is a serious problem in this country, but it sure seems to trivialize the issue when Virginia quarterback Chandler Morris is using it to sue the NCAA seeking a SEVENTH year of eligibility. Chandler\u2019s lawyers are claiming Morris deserves an extra redshirt year because the 26 snaps he played in three games in 2022 were part of a medically prescribed mental health treatment plan. Puh-leeze. If 26 snaps count as therapy then mental health is being treated not as a health concern, but as a loophole. \u2026 Memo to those members of the UCF Twitter Mafia who wanted basketball coach Johnny Dawkins fired last season: How do you like him now? \u2026<\/p>\n
After I had a colonoscopy earlier this week, the scouting report on me came out: Turns out I don\u2019t handle pressure up the middle very well. \u2026 Kirk Cousins, who is about to be cut by the Atlanta Falcons, has earned about $330 million in his career as a pretty good NFL quarterback. Cousins certainly won\u2019t be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but he will be a first-ballot member of the Negotiating Table Hall of Fame. \u2026 Hopefully, the WNBA and the WNBA Players Association aren\u2019t stupid enough to let their current CBA negotiations interrupt the regular season, which would result not in outrage from American sports fans but in a colossal collective yawn and a massive changing of the channel. If I\u2019ve written this once, I\u2019ve written it a million times: sports leagues (other than the NFL) are sadly mistaken if they think they matter to us in some substantive way. If they\u2019re gone, we always find something else to do. \u2026 Did you see where 49-year-old Floyd Mayweather Jr. and 47-year-old Manny Pacquiao will meet again in a fight Sept. 19 at the Sphere in Las Vegas? It\u2019s fitting it\u2019s happening in Vegas. Maybe they can fit in this fight between two over-the-hill boxers right between the Wayne Newton matinee and the Donny & Marie dinner show.<\/p>\n
LAST WORD: \u201cDon\u2019t quit when you\u2019re tired. Quit when you\u2019re done.\u201d\u00a0 \u2014 David Goggins<\/p>\n
Email me at mbianchi@orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on social media @BianchiWrites and listen to my new radio show \u201cGame On\u201d every weekday from 3 to 6 p.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and 969TheGame.com\/listen<\/p>\n
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