Team USA and Team Russia were ready to play. In their earlier match-up, Russia built on an outstanding performance by goalie Vladimir Katmanchev to come out on top, 2-0.

So for Game 5, forward Josh Sweeney and his teammates knew the Russian goalie would be a big presence in goal. In the second period, after Sweeney grabbed a fast steal from Russian defender Aleksei Lysov, he made a fake-out move, got Katmanchev to commit, and put one past him. It was the only goal scored by either side, as US goalie Steve Cash stopped all six Russian shots. One goal was enough.

Team USA is bringing home the gold, the first sled hockey team ever to win back-to-back gold medals.

After the game, Coach Jeff Sauer talked about the Russian team’s remarkable progress, saluting the Russians for winning silver in their first Paralympic sled hockey contest, and saying this kind of close-fought game was “great for sled hockey, great for Russia, great for the U.S., and great to show what Paralympians can do.” He also made a point of thanking the Russian Paralympic organizers for a Paralympic experience that he called “super.”