As the Americans celebrated winning their first Olympic gold medal since 1980, there was certainly disappointment on the Canadian side. Among those upset were Tampa Bay Lightning, and Team Canada, head coach Jon Cooper.
The United States defeated Canada 2-1 in the gold medal game, which created a stir both in Milan and across the internet.
Cooper wasn't upset at the loss itself, or what happened in regulation for that matter. He was upset with the overtime format, which was exactly the same in a gold medal game as a preliminary match up.
Like the NHL, the Olympics adopted a 3-on-3 overtime period to resolve a tied game. However, unlike in the NHL, that didn't change in a playoff or championship game.
"You take four players off the ice, now hockey’s not hockey anymore," Cooper stated post game. "There’s a reason overtime and shootouts are in play — it’s all TV-driven to end games, so it’s not a long time. There’s a reason why it's not in the Stanley Cup final or playoffs"
