Gut Check at the Garden
Think of the most pressure-packed moments in sports history. Multiply them by the lofty expectations of 40 million people.
Throw in several million doubters, critics and naysayers. And now you can begin to feel what Jordan was going through at the first-ever 4 Nations Faceoff.
Statues will be built in his honour. Movies will be made about his life story.
Stuck in hockey’s minor leagues. Never a top prospect. 25-year-old Jordan catches a break on January 7, 2019. One night. One chance. If he blows it, he might never guard an NHL net again. Jordan not only shutout the Philadelphia Flyers 3-0, but launched an improbable run that saw his St. Louis Blues hoist their first-ever Stanley Cup. Already the Blues leader in all-time wins, Jordan cemented his legacy with a show-stopping performance at Boston’s TD Garden that made the entire world sit up, take notice and re-examine the definition of the word C-L-U-T-C-H.
With the so-called hockey experts doubting him, with many in his own country waiting for him to fail, Jordan delivered one of sports all-time performances on one of its biggest stages. More than the most-watched hockey game in decades, it was a defining moment in Canadian history. In this most massive of moments, amplified by political tension and threats to national sovereignty, Jordan committed grand larceny in acrobatic, electric fashion and stole the show. Under the brightest of lights, #50, also revealed something universal about what it takes to be a true champion; one who confronts hardships head-on and puts everything on the line.
One night. One performance. Best-on-best in a winner-take-all, Jordan vividly demonstrated how anyone of us may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated. Before Connor McDavid’s winning goal, Jordan Binnington made six sparkling saves in overtime to keep Canada alive. Discover what facing adversity really looks like with Gut Check At The Garden on Leaders & Legends.
“How would you like a job where when you made a mistake, a big red light goes on and 18,000 people boo?”
JACQUES PLANTE
p.s…Once again, the 4 Nations Faceoff illustrates why sport possesses powerful symbolism that has immeasurable impact on establishing a coherent national identity. How a person or an entire nation sees itself in relation to others can be reinforced or altered through victory or defeat in the athletic arena. After weeks of being mocked, bullied and threatened on the political front by our closest neighbour, Canada was in dire need of a unifying moment. Binnington, McDavid and company delivered national pride that exploded from coast to coast, cementing Canada’s legacy as the most clutch hockey nation in the world. In historical context, the words of Martin Luther King Jr. seem to fit the occasion, “the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy”.
Jordan Binnington’s one-game performance has entered an exclusive pantheon. Now part of a conversation about the Top Ten Clutch Moments in Sports History. Where would Jordan rank among these greats?
10. Tom Brady's 25-point comeback in 2017, as the New England Patriots made Super Bowl history and rallied to beat the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime.
9. 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, Tiger Woods battles through the pain of a torn ACL, birdies the final hole to force a playoff and eventually prevails through 91 agonizing holes to defeat Rocco Mediate in sudden-death.
8. Michael Jordan drains a 20-foot jumper in the 1998 Finals, with just 5.2 seconds left to beat the Utah Jazz and give the Chicago Bulls a 6th NBA crown.
7. In 1981 Joe Montana found Dwight Clark at the back of the end zone for ‘The Catch’ to beat the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC title game. Montana did it again at Super Bowl XXIII, finding John Taylor with 34 seconds left to beat the Cincinnati Bengals.
6. The 1980 ‘Miracle On Ice’ when Mike Eruzione potted the game-winner and the U.S. Olympic hockey team under college coach Herb Brooks defeated the heavily-favoured Russian Red Army.
5. In 1972, Franco Harris scored on a 4th and 10 Hail Mary pass from Terry Bradshaw and ‘The Immaculate Reception’ ushers in a dynasty in Pittsburgh.
4. Paul Henderson scores with 34 seconds left on the clock to lift Canada over the Soviet Union at the ‘72 Summit Series in Moscow.
3. When Jesse Owens crashed a party for the master race, won 4 gold medals and stuck it to the Nazis at Adolf Hitler's 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.
2. The 1932 World Series in Chicago, when Babe Ruth pointed to the ivy-covered brick wall at Wrigley Field and called his home run shot as the Yankees beat the Cubs.
1. In 490 BC, Pheidippides runs 25 miles from the battlefield near Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over Persia, exclaiming, "We have won," before collapsing and dying on the spot from exhaustion. Truly a great moment in the history of athletic achievement. Clearly clutch.
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