Matt Boldy’s Olympic heroics in Italy sent waves of pride through his hometown.
The Catman Cafe in Mansfield, Mass., where Boldy’s mom Jen works as a bartender, nearly blew the roof off the place after watching her son score the opening goal for Team USA in Sunday’s Olympic men’s hockey gold medal match against Canada.
Local Boston news outlet WBZ captured footage of a packed house — up bright and early for the 8:10 a.m. ET puck drop in Milan — erupt in applause as the Minnesota Wild wing carved through a pair of defenders to get the States on the board in the opening period.
It didn’t take long for chants of “U–S–A!” to swell through the lively, balloon-filled establishment.
Boldy, 24, drained Team USA’s first shot on goal in highlight fashion, juggling the puck between a pair of Canadian defenders before sneaking it past goaltender Jordan Binnington to give the States an early 1-0 advantage.
NBC commentator Eddie Olczyk declared the goal “magical.”
Speaking of magic, the Olympic hockey final marks 46 years to the day since the iconic “Miracle on Ice” game, which saw the U.S. conquer the Soviet Union, 4-3, in one of the most stunning upsets in sports history at the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid.
Team USA is playing for its first Olympic gold in men’s hockey since; it has competed in two gold-medal matches in the following years to no avail, falling to Canada at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City and again at the 2010 Games in Vancouver.
Canada is gunning for a record 10th gold medal, which would be its first since the 2014 Games in Sochi, the last event to feature participation from the NHL.
The Canadians are also looking to best their North American rival for the second year in a row, coming out on top after an overtime thriller in last February’s 4 Nations Face-Off.
Sunday’s gold-medal match was headed for overtime tied 1-1.