Minnesotans pack bars before sunrise, celebrate U.S. men’s hockey win

At 7:10 a.m., applause rippled through the Rabbit Hole in the North Loop, where every table was occupied and no screen was spared. Jackets still hung on chairs. Coffee sat beside pints. The early hour didn’t matter.

The matchup did.

Three days after the U.S. women beat Canada 2-1 in overtime to win Olympic gold, the men had a chance to match it. They did — defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime for the program’s first gold medal since the 1980 “Miracle on Ice.” Jack Hughes scored the winner 1:41 into 3-on-3 overtime. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 41 shots to withstand Canada’s offensive pressure.

For many in the bar, the morning was circled on the calendar.

“Olympics are every four years and there are three Wilds guys on the team,” said Tommy Odegard, who joined his friend Evan Brown at the Minneapolis bar. “And with the USA-Canada rivalry, it can’t get much better than this.”

April Granneman said the return of NHL players to the Olympics — and the Minnesota connection — made the early alarm worth it.

“When I was younger and it was the winter Olympics, it was like, you had to watch it crazy hours of the day. I mean, this is a crazy hour today, yeah. It’s the first one that they’ve had NHL players for a long time and there are some of the Wild’s there. How much more Minnesotan can it get?”

“I grew up a big hockey fan… I remember watching the 2010 gold medal game against Canada and being heartbroken,” said Graham Remble. “It’s more fun to watch these events with other people… it’s like a once in a lifetime game, right?”

When Matt Boldy scored the first goal, the Rabbit Hole erupted. Fans jumped from their seats, arms outstretched, smiles plastered across their faces. Drinks sloshed. Tables shook.

But the second period tested the room.

Canada controlled possession and outshot the Americans. The U.S. skated backward under relentless pressure. “We’re in danger,” one fan muttered.

At BLVD Tavern and Grill in West St. Paul, the anxiety sharpened when Canada earned a 5-on-3 power play. Chairs scraped the floor as people stood. The Americans killed it off, but the pressure never eased.

If the U.S. stayed afloat, fans agreed, it was because of Hellebuyck.

“He’s doing God’s work,” one man said after another sprawling save.

Then came overtime.

When Hughes buried the “golden goal,” the Rabbit Hole exploded. Fans shot to their feet as chants of “USA! USA! USA!” ricocheted off the walls and spilled toward the street.

For Jenna Yockim, who had landed from New Zealand just hours earlier, it felt like the perfect homecoming. “I was on an airplane 12 hours ago, coming home from New Zealand, and this is my coming back party,” she said.

Kevin Sjodin, a longtime hockey fan watching from the North Loop bar, called the victory bittersweet, a reference to how Minnesota has been the target of a federal immigration sweep. Thousands of federal agents descended on the state, and the fatal shootings of two Minnesotans prompted widespread protests.

“How do you feel proud about a country that attacked you?” he said. “It’s like, I hear the chanting of ‘USA,’ and that’s nice — but it’s hard after what’s happened in Minneapolis the last few months.”

The gold was historic. The roar was real. And across Minnesota, sunrise felt like prime time.