On Top of The World

In June of 1994, Mike Richter held the Stanley Cup over his head after backstopping the Rangers to 16 victories during an unforgettable two-month playoff run.

Just over two years later, Richter had another memorable experience wearing red, white, and blue colors – this time, however, he was donning a Team USA uniform at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. The legendary goaltender delivered a performance for the ages and helped lead the United States to one of its most thrilling victories in international hockey history.

“It’s a privilege to play in those tournaments,” said Richter, who played in three different Winter Olympics, the 1991 Canada Cup, and several World Championships and World Junior Championships in addition to the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. “It’s the best of the best players and it gets very competitive, very fast. It’s a real All-Star competition with meaning because you are playing for your country.”

The Rangers were well-represented in the tournament, which took place just prior to the start of the 1996-97 season. Nine different Blueshirts who were on the team’s roster to begin that season – nearly half of the roster – played for their respective countries in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. Brian Leetch was not only teammates with Richter on Team USA, but he was also the team’s captain. In addition, Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, and Adam Graves all played for Canada, Alexei Kovalev, Sergei Nemchinov, and Alexander Karpovtsev represented Russia, while Niklas Sundstrom played for Sweden.

“It’s surprisingly easy to adjust once you start playing in that setting,” Richter said about facing his Rangers teammates during international competition. “There is so much competitiveness, and you have bragging rights and your pride on the line. You want to show your capabilities against the best in the world as much as possible, and I love those tournaments for that reason. These are your best friends that you’re playing against, and you have to put that aside because you’re on a mission and realize that they’re now in the way of achieving that goal.”

Wearing jersey No. 35 as he did with the Rangers – along with his iconic Liberty goalie mask that worked just as well for Team USA as it did with the Blueshirts – Richter played in two familiar environments during the preliminary round of the tournament. The first was in Philadelphia – his hometown – as the United States faced Canada. Team USA had never beaten Canada during the Canada Cup tournaments, which included the 1991 Canada Cup Final, when Richter was in goal for Team USA.

In the preliminary round of the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, however, Team USA emerged victorious. Although Richter’s Rangers teammates accounted for all three of Canada’s goals in the game – two from Gretzky and one from Messier – the United States won the game, 5-3.

“That win was important,” Richter recalled. “By winning that game, we knew that we could beat them.”

Team USA’ next two games were at Madison Square Garden – experiences that Richter described as “awesome because of the pride of representing the Rangers and your home country in your home arena” – and the United States won both contests, easily defeating Russia and Slovakia. With a perfect 3-0-0 record and a first-place finish in the preliminary round, the United States earned a bye to the Semifinals.

Behind 23 saves from Richter, Team USA defeated Russia, 5-2, in the Semifinals and advanced to a best-of-three Final. Their opponent in the Final was Canada, as they advanced with a 3-2 win in double overtime against Sweden in their Semifinals contest.

While Team USA had already defeated Canada once in the tournament and was confident that they could do it again in the Final, Canada still boasted a roster that featured several future Hall-of-Fame players, including some of hockey’s greatest legends. In addition to Messier and Gretzky, Canada’s forward group included players such as Steve Yzerman, Joe Sakic, Brendan Shanahan, and Eric Lindros, and their defense was headlined by players such as Paul Coffey, Scott Niedermayer, Rob Blake, and Scott Stevens.

Game 1 of the Final took place in Philadelphia, where Team USA had defeated Canada less than two weeks prior. It was a back-and-forth contest that set the tone for the best-of-three series, featuring the skill of an All-Star Game and the physicality of a Stanley Cup Playoff series. Richter made 31 saves, but even though the United States tied the game with just 6.3 seconds remaining in regulation, Yzerman’s goal just past the midway point of overtime gave Canada a 4-3 victory and the lead in the series.

The next two games (including Game 3 if it would be necessary) were scheduled to take place in Montreal, giving Canada the home-ice advantage in the stands. Although they were now the underdog, Team USA remained resilient, and Richter continued to be superb in goal. He made 35 saves in Game 2 – including 17 in the third period as Canada aimed to tie the game – and led the team to a 5-2 victory, setting up a winner-take-all Game 3.

Team USA held a 1-0 lead after the first period of the deciding game, thanks to 10 saves from Richter and a power play goal from Brett Hull. Richter was brilliant throughout the contest, particularly in the second period when he made 21 saves. One of the 21 saves in the period stood out above the rest.

Early in the period, a turnover by Team USA led to Vincent Damphousse getting a breakaway. Although Damphousse’s career statistics did not reach the level of some of his Canadian teammates, he was one of the best goal scorers in the NHL during the 1995-96 season. And, when the Rangers faced the Montreal Canadiens in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 1996 Stanley Cup Playoffs – five months prior to the best-of-three Final in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey – Damphousse scored four goals in six games, including one on a breakaway against Richter in Game 2 of the series.

When Damphousse scored against Richter in the Rangers-Canadiens series, he skated down the right side and faked as if he was going to take a backhand shot before quickly moving the puck to his forehand and sliding it past Richter.

Now, Damphousse – a Montreal native – had a chance to tie the game for his country while playing in his home NHL arena and in his home city and province. And he tried to beat Richter with the same move as he did in the playoffs; this time, however, Richter was able to reach back and get the paddle of his goalie stick down in time to stop the shot and preserve Team USA’s one-goal lead.

“Damphousse was one of so many weapons that they had,” Richter said. “He was an extraordinary player around that time period. He had beaten many goalies with that move he had, including me.

“But it was kind of like (the save on) Pavel Bure,” Richter explained, eluding to his penalty shot save in Game 4 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Final after Bure tried a similar move months prior during the 1994 NHL All-Star Game. “One move doesn’t necessarily dictate the next move. You really do have to play the shooter honestly, because he has his head up the whole way and he has elite hands, and he is waiting for you to make your move. If you bite on the first move, he’ll make the next one.

“You have to stay with him and have as much patience as possible, and don’t give up on the play. And that is what I was able to do on that play against Damphousse.”

Canada finally broke through on Richter with their 32^nd shot of the game – and 22^nd shot of the second period – as Lindros tied the game with five seconds remaining in the period. And even though Canada took a 2-1 lead in the third period, Team USA rallied for four goals in the final four minutes of the game, stunning Canada with a 5-2 victory to capture the World Cup.

Richter, unsurprisingly, was named the MVP of the tournament.

This February, the NHL season will pause as the 4 Nations Face-Off takes place in Boston and Montreal. And even though the tournament will have a different setup than the World Cup of Hockey did nearly three decades ago, the opportunity for a player to create a legacy in international hockey for his respective country remains the same.

“It was an unbelievable experience to have that responsibility to yourself and your teammates of playing for your country,” Richter said. “I absolutely loved the opportunity of playing in that format where you’re playing for bragging rights against the best players in the world.”