Shock. The. World.

You gotta love when your team storms the Bastille like team USA did today against Finland. Six goals in the first period. Count 'em. And just like that Team USA will play for gold fifty years after the red, white, and blue took the top prize in Squaw Valley, and thirty years after blowing minds in Lake Placid. Could it happen again?

Nobody expected the small, young, and "undertalented" Americans to get this far. Nobody.

Here's the thing, the NHL needs a win by the Americans. Hockey needs a win by the Americans. To say the least the NHL in North America has been struggling since a lockout killed the 2004-2005 season.

The fact of the matter is that hockey is mostly supported by a nation that treats it like a red headed stepchild. On most days, most Americans have better things to do then try and follow around a black doughnut on a slick surface. The United States is fickle like that. We are content to watch modern day gladiators bump heads in publicly funded stadiums, rather than watch grown men on skates. Can Canadians live without hockey? No. But can the ignorance of the nation to the south kill the game at a professional level? Most definitely.

Sunday is the biggest of all big games for the sport of hockey in America. Team USA will once again take on a juggernaut, and the betting money will be going in the direction of Canada.

Can team USA supply the kind of jolt that will re-awaken American hockey passion?

Do you believe in miracles?