from Pat Caputo of the Oakland Press,

It was a seminal hockey moment.

Canadian winger Nicholas Roy moved in on American goalie Tyler Parsons, and attempted a variety of moves. Parsons didn’t budge, standing his ground. The puck eventually just slid off Roy’s stick and meekly into the pads of Parsons, who immediately leapt to his skates, ripped off his mask and raced toward center ice where he was mobbed by teammates.

Didn’t hear about this? Didn’t know Parsons is from Chesterfield Township? Haven’t figured out this was for the gold medal in the World Junior Championships? Ah, don’t really know exactly what the importance of the WJC in the hockey world? You’re not alone. The game was buried on the NHL Network. Hardly anyone, outside of genuinely hardcore fans in this country, noticed.

It’s a big, big deal in Canada, though. The WJC is viewed in Canada similar to the NCAA basketball tournament here, minus the office betting pools.

If the script had been flipped, Parsons, who stoned five straight Canadians in a shootout in Montreal, would have stood as the biggest sports hero in Canada. Yet, even in his home state, Parsons remains relatively unknown.

I’m convinced hockey is the most undervalued and underrated sport in this state, despite Detroit’s nickname, “Hockeytown,’’ and the Red Wings’ recent position among the NHL’s elite.

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