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| Source:Nation Tricolore- NHL player Phil Esposito, playing for the Canadian national team against Russia, in 1972. |
"More than 15,000 heckling Canadian fans boo their team while watching game 4 at Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum. Canada plays poorly for most of the game, with 38 of 41 shots on goal stopped by Soviet goalie sensation Vladislav Tretiak. The game ends with a score of 5-3 for the Soviets and home-team fans boo Canada right off the ice. Assistant captain Phil Esposito is not taking this lightly. He skates back onto the rink, sopping with sweat, and scolds Canada.
"I'm really disappointed [with the fans]. I am completely disappointed. I cannot believe it," he says with a hangdog face. "Some of our guys are really, really down in the dumps. We know, we're trying, I mean, hell, we're doing the best we can."
1972 wasn't the heart of the Cold War between America and Russia, with President Richard Nixon working to normalize relations between the United States and Soviet Union, but there was still that national and military rivalry between the Super Powers to the point that every time both countries got a chance to compete against each other, it was a big deal.
Canada, wasn't a superpower, but they were on our side along with the European Union and wanted to show that they could not only compete with Russia, but beat them as well.
