HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA CANADIANS ENDS 50-YEAR WAIT BY DEFEATING UNITED STATES CANADA 5, U.S. 2.

Byline: Matt McHale Staff Writer

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah - In the final minute of the final game, a tiny pocket in the sellout crowd began to sing.

Their pitch was off, but their hearts were full. After waiting 50 years for an Olympic gold medal, ``O Canada'' never sounded so good.

The dreams of an entire hockey-mad nation were realized Sunday afternoon when Canada overcame harsh criticism and its own crushing expectations to defeat the United States 5-2 in front of a crowd of 8,599 at the E Center and tens of millions watching back home.

``It is a great joy and a great relief,'' Canadian general manager Wayne Gretzky said. ``This is our sport. We realized the pressure and got it done.''

Canada won the gold by beating the last undefeated team in the tournament and handing U.S. coach Herb Brooks (10-1-2) his first loss in Olympic competition.

The Canadians received strong goaltending from Martin Brodeur, who stopped 31 shots, and stingy defense that limited the top American line of Mike Modano, Brett Hull and John LeClair to just two assists.

But most of all, they did it as a team, a sometimes-awkward notion for a collection of NHL All-Stars who found their stride in this tournament after a loss and a tie in the first two games.

Now they are the champions in an international sport they ignored for years because of their dominance in professional hockey.

``We took a lot of grief,'' said MVP Joe Sakic, who scored two goals. ``But the adversity brought us together. The sense of team is the greatest thing about hockey. We had some rough spots early but we took off from there.''

For the U.S., it wasn't gold, but it was the first medal in Olympic hockey since Brooks' 1980 ``Miracle on Ice.'' But it also was the first Olympic loss on American soil since 1932.

Although the U.S. team also consisted of NHL players, the Americans didn't have the depth or the sense of urgency to beat Canada.

Sure, they wanted to win, and their victory and tie against the Russians with Mike Richter in net were epic confrontations. But sometime after Tony Amonte gave them a 1-0 lead at 8 minutes, 49 seconds of the first period, the U.S. lost its magic.

``In the end I think we were a little tired,'' said Richter, who stopped 34 of 39 shots. ``We said the right things and had the right attitude going into the game, but this is a tournament with the best teams in the world and the little things are going to make a difference.''

There were several points where the game turned for the Canadians, the first involving Philadelphia's Jeremy Roenick. Shortly after Amonte's goal, Roenick had a three-on-one break but couldn't score against Brodeur.

Instead of leading 2-0, the U.S. had a one-goal lead. Paul Kariya of the Mighty Ducks, quickly tied the game with a goal at 14:50 of the first.

The second came midway through the second when U.S. defenseman Brian Leetch took a shot from the slot at Brodeur. The rebound went to the Kings' Adam Dearmarsh, who briefly had an open look at the net but couldn't score. Although Brian Rafalski tied the game 2-2 in the final two minutes, Deadmarsh's lost opportunity came back to haunt the Americans.

But the biggest turning point came with just more than five minutes remaining in the game. The U.S. was on the power play after Steve Yzerman went off for tripping Gary Suter.

Hull had a shot in front of the Canadian net, but Brodeur made the stop as the penalty expired. Sakic immediately got the puck and fed Yzerman, who passed to Jarome Iginla for the second of his two goals.

In the span of 15 seconds, a possible tie game became a 4-2 Canada lead.

``To me that was the backbreaker,'' Canada coach Pat Quinn said. ``This game was only 3-2 with five minutes left and anything could have happened.''

Bolstered by chants of ``U-S-A, U-S-A'' the Americans mounted one last charge in the final minutes. But with 1:20 left in the game, Sakic picked up a pass from Iginla at center-ice, skated in on Richter and scored.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY

Canada ends 50 years of frustration with a 5-2 victory over the U.S. to win the Olympic gold medal in its national obsession

Associated Press

(2) Canada goalie Martin Brodeur and teammate Simon Gagne celebrate after beating the U.S. 5-2 for the gold medal.

Joe Bryksa/Associated Press

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GAME RECAP