1980 USA Hockey Team Members' Biographies

USA's hockey team, 1980

Members of 1980 USA Hockey Team :

• Herb Brooks (coach)
• Mike Eruzione (captain)
• Neal Broten
• Ken Morrow
• Mike Ramsey
• Dave Christian
• Mark Johnson
• Jim Craig

Here are their biographies. Check it out!

- Herb Brooks :

Herbert Paul Brooks, Jr. (August 5, 1937 – August 11, 2003) was an American ice hockey coach, best known for coaching the U.S. national team to a gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in an event known as the "Miracle on Ice". As a player, Brooks was a member of the U.S. team in the 1964 and 1968 Olympic Games. As a coach, he coached at the college, national, European professional, and National Hockey League (NHL) levels. Among other coaching achievements, Brooks won three collegiate championships at the University of Minnesota, turning around a program which finished last before his arrival. Later in his career he worked as a motivational speaker, TV analyst and NHL scout. Brooks was an innovator in American hockey, creating what became known as the "hybrid" style. Mixing a European puck possession style of play with the North American dump-and-chase style of play, he created a fast-paced and creative style which became the cornerstone of his 1980 gold medal team. Part of what made Brooks so successful was his uncanny way of motivating players and getting the most out of them. In 1980, Sports Illustrated named Brooks and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team the Sportsman of the Year and called Team USA's Olympic performance the "Greatest Sports Moment of the Century". On November 13, 2006, Brooks was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Herb Brooks was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He also played baseball during the summer. The 1958–59 Gopher Hockey Team with dignitaries Lou Nanne and Larry Smith. Brooks played hockey at the University of Minnesota from 1955-1959.[6] He almost made the 1960 Olympic team, only to be cut the week before the Games started. Three weeks later, Brooks sat at home with his father and watched the team he almost made win gold. That night Herb Sr. told his son, "looks like Coach Riley cut the right guy"; this humbling moment served as motivation for an already self-driven person. From 1960-1970, Brooks set a record by playing on a total of eight U.S National and Olympic teams, including the 1964 and 1968 Olympic squads.[7] Later, he coached the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers hockey team to three NCAA championships (1974, 1976, and 1979). After being approached by Michigan Tech after head coach John MacInnes died in 1983, Brooks turned their offer down to coach St. Cloud State University instead, and led SCSU to become a Division I hockey school. Brooks finished his collegiate coaching with a record of 175 wins, 101 losses and 20 ties. In 1980, he became the first coach of the United States to lead his hand-picked team to victory against the USSR in 20 years. The "miracle" team mostly consisted of University of Minnesota players and their rival Boston University players.

- Mike Eruzione :

Michael "Ritz" Eruzione (born October 25, 1954) is an American former ice hockey player who was the captain of the 1980 Winter Olympics United States national team that defeated the Soviet Union in the famous Miracle on Ice game.

Eruzione was born in Winthrop, Massachusetts. He learned hockey playing for Youth Hockey of Winthrop as part of the GBYHL (Greater Boston Youth Hockey League). He graduated from Winthrop Senior High School in 1972, where he was captain of the varsity hockey team during his senior year. He then spent a year at Berwick Academy to fine tune his hockey skills in a New England Prep environment. After attending Berwick, Eruzione starred for Boston University, averaging over twenty goals a season for four years. Eruzione also played for Team USA at the 1975 and 1976 Ice Hockey World Championship tournaments. He then moved on to the Toledo Goaldiggers of the International Hockey League, winning the rookie of the year award in 1978 and leading the team to the Turner Cup championship in that year. After his second year in Toledo, Eruzione, who played forward, was named the captain of the 1980 Olympic hockey team, scoring the winning goal against the Soviets and helping the Americans win the gold medal against Finland. Eruzione's winning goal against the Soviet Union has become one of the most played highlights in American sports, and was voted the greatest highlight of all time by ESPN viewers in March 2008.

- Neal Broten :

Neal LaMoy Broten (born November 29, 1959) is a retired American professional ice hockey player who played on the gold medal-winning "Miracle on Ice" hockey team in 1980, and in 1,099 NHL regular season games from 1981 – 1997 with the Minnesota North Stars, Dallas Stars, New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings. His younger brothers Aaron and Paul Broten are also former NHL players. Broten was member of the United States Olympic team that won a gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics in an event known as the Miracle on Ice. He was also a member of Team USA at the 1981 Canada Cup and 1984 Canada Cup tournaments as well as the 1990 Ice Hockey World Championship.

He played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League. Highlights of his long NHL career include the first American to score more than 100 points in a single season (1985–86) as well as two NHL All-Star Game appearances in 1983 and 1986. He won a Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils in 1995, where he scored the game-winning goal in Game Four against the Detroit Red Wings which clinched the title. Of note, his 1980 Soviet counterpart Viacheslav Fetisov was on the ice (literally, he had fallen down on the play while guarding Bill Guerin) for the Red Wings when Broten scored.

Broten served as the captain of the Dallas Stars for 2 months during the lockout-shortened 1994–95 NHL season. He had previously served as an alternate captain on a number of occasions. During the 1982–83 NHL season, Broten participated in a rare fight against Wayne Gretzky. It was one of only a handful of fights during both his and Gretzky's careers. Broten later recalled how he and his teammates would later have to deal with Gretzky's enforcers, Marty McSorley and Dave Semenko. Broten initially refused to play for the North Stars in 1991–92 due to a contract dispute, instead playing in Germany for BSC Preussen Berlin where he filled former U.S. Olympic teammate Dave Silk's roster spot (Silk was on temporary leave in the U.S. with his pregnant wife).

- Ken Morrow :

Kenneth Arlington Morrow (born October 17, 1956 in Flint, Michigan) is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman and currently serves as the New York Islanders' director of pro scouting. A member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame, he played 550 regular season games in the National Hockey League between 1980 and 1989. Ken Morrow was born in Flint and grew up in the nearby town of Davison, Michigan. He is a graduate of Davison High School. Morrow attended Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio where he was a star defenseman and also represented Team USA at the 1978 Ice Hockey World Championship. His best year as a college player was in 1979 when he was named Central Collegiate Hockey Association player of the year.

The following season, Morrow played for the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that won the gold medal in an event known as the Miracle on Ice during the 1980 Winter Olympics. Selected 68th overall in the 1976 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Islanders, Morrow joined the Islanders immediately after the Olympics. He helped them win their first Stanley Cup in 1980, making him the first player to win the Olympic Gold and an NHL championship in one season. He was an integral member of all four Islanders Stanley Cup teams in 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983; furthermore, although Morrow was never a goal-scorer, during the playoffs the Isles often benefited from his clutch goal scoring at key times. Morrow also returned to the United States national team for the 1981 Canada Cup tournament.

During the 1980 and 1983 playoffs, Morrow had arthroscopic surgeries performed to his knees, and played only days afterward in order to contribute to the Islanders championships, often having fluid drained from his knees between games. He was eventually forced to retire prematurely from the game in 1988–89 due to constant knee problems.

- Mike Ramsey :

Michael Allen Ramsey (born December 3, 1960 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is a retired American professional ice hockey defenseman who played 1070 regular season games in the NHL for the Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings between 1980 and 1997, after helping the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team win the gold medal in the Miracle On Ice.Mike Ramsey attended Theodore Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis before entering the University of Minnesota. He was considered the top high school defenseman in Minnesota as a senior in 1977–78. He also attended the U.S. National Junior training camp in summer of 1978 and participated in the 1979 world junior championship.Ramsey was the youngest member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team in Lake Placid, New York, that defeated the Soviet team and went on to win the gold medal in a victory known as the Miracle On Ice.

Drafted 11th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, Ramsey would go on to play in the National Hockey League immediately after the Olympics. He had one of the most successful NHL careers of the 1980 U.S. Olympians. Primarily known as an offensive defenseman as an amateur, he successfully adapted to the bigger and tougher NHL by becoming a "stay at home" defensive specialist for the Sabres. Highlights of his career with the Sabres include playing in the NHL All-Star Game four times (1982, 1983, 1985, 1986) as well as being a member of the NHL All-Star team that played the Soviet national hockey team in Rendez-Vous '87. Ramsey also served as the Sabres team captain during his 14 seasons with club. He continued to play for Team USA, participating in the 1984 Canada Cup, 1982 Ice Hockey World Championship and 1987 Canada Cup tournaments.

Ramsey was brought to the Pittsburgh Penguins by his old Buffalo coach Scotty Bowman in 1992–93 to shore up the Pens' defensive corps while making a run for a third-straight Stanley Cup victory. As the Penguins fell short of that goal, Ramsey was offloaded to the Detroit Red Wings in 1994. He played one more complete season plus an extra two games in 1996 (in the process losing to a team having Neal Broten, a Miracle on Ice teammate, on its squad) before finally retiring from the game.

- Dave Christian :

David William Christian (born May 12, 1959 in Warroad, Minnesota) is a retired American professional ice hockey forward, who comes from a family of hockey players. His father Bill and uncle Roger were members of the 1960 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team that won the gold medal. Another uncle, Gordon, was a member of the 1956 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team that won the silver medal. Bill and Roger also were the founders, with Hal Bakke, of the Christian Brothers Hockey Company based in Warroad, which makes hockey sticks. Christian grew up playing hockey, gridiron football, and baseball, as well as competing on the track and field team, at Warroad High School. He later attended the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, where he played for the North Dakota Fighting Sioux hockey team and played in the 1979 national championship, as North Dakota lost the championship game to the University of Minnesota and Christian's future Olympic teammate, Neal Broten.

Christian is best known for being a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that won the gold medal in an event known as the Miracle on Ice during the 1980 Winter Olympics. He also played for the U.S. national team at the 1981 Canada Cup as well as the 1981 Ice Hockey World Championship tournaments as an NHL rookie. His international career continued in the 1984 Canada Cup, 1989 Ice Hockey World Championship and 1991 Canada Cup tournaments.

Christian's professional hockey career started one week after the Miracle on Ice when he joined the Winnipeg Jets, who drafted him 40th overall in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft. Christian set and still holds the record for the fastest goal by a player in his first NHL game, scoring just 7 seconds into his first shift, electrifying the crowd. After a roller-coaster career in Winnipeg, he went on to play in the NHL with the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins and St. Louis Blues. Between 1980 and 1993, he scored 340 goals and 433 assists in 1,009 NHL regular season games.

- Mark Johnson :

Mark "Magic" Johnson (born September 22, 1957 in Minneapolis, Minnesota and raised in Madison, Wisconsin) is a current ice hockey coach and former United States ice hockey player who appeared in 669 NHL regular season games between 1980 and 1990 after playing for the Gold medal winning 1980 US Olympic Hockey team. Johnson's son, Patrick Johnson, currently plays for the men's hockey team at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Johnson played for the University of Wisconsin–Madison ice hockey team for three years under his father, legendary coach Bob Johnson. As a teenager he went to James Madison Memorial High School and was on the hockey team. In 1977, during his first year at the university, he helped the Badgers win the NCAA national championship. He was the first Badger ever to win WCHA Rookie of the year. He went on to become the school's second all-time scorer. Johnson was also a two time All-American. His brother, Peter, would also play at the university.

Johnson made his international debut with the United States national team as an 18-year-old in 1976, when he played in 11 training games for the 1976 US Olympic ice hockey team coached by his father. He would represent the United States in 13 international tournaments (including the 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990 Ice Hockey World Championship tournaments as well as the 1981, 1984 and 1987 Canada Cup). He is most famous for being a star player on the US Olympic Hockey team at the 1980 Lake Placid winter games. Playing for the United States Of America against the Soviet Union, Johnson scored two of the four goals in the Team USA 4-3 victory. He scored in the first period of the game, which directly led to the Soviet coach taking out his goalie Vladislav Tretiak, a questionable move because Tretiak was considered the best goalie in the world at the time. He also scored in the third period to tie the game at 3–3. The team would then go on to defeat Finland to capture the gold medal.

Johnson went on to play professional hockey in the NHL for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota North Stars, Hartford Whalers, St. Louis Blues, and New Jersey Devils. His NHL accomplishments include playing in the 1984 NHL All Star game as the Whalers representative as well as serving as the Whalers team captain in 1983–85. He also played two seasons with Milan Saima SG in Italy and a final season in Austria before retiring from the game in 1992. He briefly came out of retirement to play two games for Team USA in the 1998 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships qualifying tournament at the age of 41, where he helped Team USA retain its position in the World Championships' Pool A. In 2010, Johnson led the USA Women's Hockey team to win a silver medal in the Vancouver games.

- Jim Craig :

James Downey Craig (born May 31, 1957 in Easton, Massachusetts) is a former American ice hockey goaltender who is most notable for being the goaltender for the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that won the Olympic gold medal at the Lake Placid Winter Games. Craig had a standout Olympic tournament. In the Olympic semifinal game against the heavily favored Soviet Union, Craig stopped 36 of 39 shots on goal as the U.S. beat the Soviets, 4-3, in what is widely considered one of the greatest upsets in sports history. Two days later, the U.S. defeated Finland, 4-2, in the Olympic final and captured Olympic gold. Craig went on to play professionally in the National Hockey League, where he started for the Atlanta Flames, Boston Bruins, and Minnesota North Stars between 1980 and 1983.

Craig attended and played hockey at Boston University, then one year at Massasoit Community College. He led BU to the NCAA Division I championship in 1978 and was an NCAA All-Star in 1979. He was inducted into the BU Hall of Fame in 1989. He is best known as the goalie for the United States in the Miracle on Ice, when the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team defeated the favoured Soviet Olympic hockey team. Craig played a key role in one of the landmark moments in United States sports history. In the game against the Soviet Union in the 1980 Winter Olympics, Craig deflected 36 of 39 shots from an attacking unit led by the great Boris Mikhailov. Craig's skill was the most helpful in the final moments of the game and allowed the underdog U.S team to retain their one goal lead and eventually win 4-3. The flag that Craig wore after the upset is now displayed at the Sports Museum of America in New York City. Two days later, he again would lead the way to a 4-2 victory over Finland, clinching the gold medal.

Originally drafted by the Atlanta Flames with the 72nd pick in the 1977 NHL Entry Draft, Craig joined the Flames shortly after the Olympics and won his first game as an NHL professional. However, he found it difficult to duplicate his magic in the NHL. The following season, the Boston Bruins brought him home to Massachusetts in a trade with Atlanta. He served as the Bruins' backup goaltender during the 1980-81 regular season but again failed to make an impression and he did not participate in the 1981 NHL Playoffs. Craig returned to the US national team for the 1981 Canada Cup but missed the tournament due to injury and the following season was spent in the minor leagues with the Erie Blades. Craig's final moment of glory was in 1983 when he again played very well for the United States in the 1983 IIHF Pool B tournament. Craig was named goaltender of the tournament and the Minnesota North Stars promptly signed him to a free agent contract. He would make a final three NHL appearances for the North Stars in 1984 before retiring from hockey.

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