When the puck dropped at 8:10 a.m. EST in the gold medal Olympic men’s hockey final between the U.S. and Canada, Sunday morning looked more like a Saturday night in the confines of Primanti Bros. in Harmar.
It was among the many places that opened bright and early Sunday morning for hockey fans to watch the game live from Italy, which is six hours ahead. They weathered some nail-biting moments to see Team USA prevail 2-1 over Canada in overtime, capturing its first gold medal since the “Miracle On Ice” Olympics in 1980.
“I watched Sidney Crosby get the golden goal for Canada against us in 2010,” said Dominic Caputo of Cheswick, who was among the throng at Primanti’s. “It’s awesome to see us get the golden goal this time.”
Melissa Mitchell of Cheswick didn’t miss a single USA men’s hockey match during these Winter Olympics, even if that meant catching some games on the sly while working. She and her sister Bebe Andrews weren’t about to miss Sunday’s gold medal final.
“About six or eight people from our family came to watch with us,” Mitchell said as she and Andrews found a seat at Primanti Brothers in Harmar. “We spent the day Saturday figuring out where we were going to meet up.”
Mitchell, Andrews and a restaurant full of fans got a chance their celebrate as the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team came out firing in the overtime period, scoring the winning goal after only a minute and 41 seconds had elapsed in 3-on-3-play.
Karen Struzzi of New Kensington and Joe Fabian of Oakmont were looking for a change of scenery to watch the final.
“It’s something different,” Struzzi said. “Watching someplace like this creates a different atmosphere, and honestly, we need more of this today — getting together with community.”
That community was on full display just over six minutes into the first period, rising as one and cheering when Matt Boldy put the U.S. out in front with a goal.
A communal space filled with people watching the same high-stakes sporting event begins to take on a life of its own. In tense moments where players were crammed in front of the USA net, gasps and the collective deep sucking of breath could be heard across Primanti’s. A quick slapshot in the second period that glanced wide was met with the deep, resonating groan of more than a hundred disappointed fans.
Kristen Altman, manager at the Harmar Primanti’s, said opening early for special sporting events gives them a chance to vary their menu slightly.
“We have a breakfast pizza that’s got a scrambled egg base instead of pizza sauce,” Altman said. “And we give everyone the option to add bacon and egg to their sandwiches.”
Sunday’s final coincided with the 46th anniversary of USA Hockey’s “Miracle On Ice,” where the men’s team beat the massively-favored Soviet Union in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, N.Y., going on to win its second-ever gold medal.
Pittsburgh hockey fans got a blessing and a curse in the absence of Penguins star Sidney Crosby, whose injury in the quarter-final game Feb. 18 kept him out of the gold-medal lineup for Canada.
Fans were split on how they felt about Crosby being out.
“This may be his last Olympics, so I’d really like to see him play,” Mitchell said.
Andrews agreed.
“I want them to beat Canada with Sid playing,” she said.
Andrews would get part of her wish — the win— but Crosby’s absence hung heavy over the game.
“I think it’s definitely an advantage for Team USA,” said Shades Polens of Oakmont, who joined several friends that regularly gather at the Harmar Primanti’s. “I’m torn, though, because it’s going to be a disadvantage for the Penguins when the NHL starts back up.”
For Paul Vidic of West Mifflin, Crosby’s absence made “it easier to root against Team Canada, that’s for sure. There’s no vested interest in anything other than the U.S. winning.”
The mood soured briefly toward the end of the second period, as Canada tied the game, 1-1, with just a couple minutes remaining. A subsequent USA shot dinged off not one, but two goal posts before bouncing back into play.
That mood swung up and down throughout the final 10 minutes of regulation time, as Team USA squandered a 4-minute power play but held on for a strong penalty kill as the third period came to a close and overtime kicked off.
A bar full of tension exploded into cheers when Jack Hughes put a puck in the net less than 2 minutes into overtime to give the U.S. the gold medal win.
Caputo was joined by family, including his newest nephew, as they celebrated the win.
“It was a really tightly played game,” Caputo said. “I think the ghost of Johnny Gaudreau was really on the ice with the team today.”
Gaudreau, a star player for 11 seasons in the NHL, was killed along with his brother in 2024, when a drunken driver struck the pair as they were cycling in New Jersey. Team USA players honored Gaudreau by hanging his No. 13 jersey in their locker room at every game during the Olympics.
“To be able to celebrate this with my cousin, my nephew and everyone, it’s really great,” Caputo said
And while Mitchell may not have missed a game these Olympics, she did miss the golden goal thanks to an ill-timed trip to the restroom.
“USA! USA!” she yelled as she made it back to her table and began high-fiving family, friends and strangers.
