The frustration and anger of twenty years of Cold War suppression pushes the Czechoslovakian team to victory. Shortly after the conclusion of the two victorious play-off games, more than one hundred thousand Czechoslovakian fans invade the downtown streets of Prague. This triggers a brutal police crackdown. Soviet tanks, in close proximity to the city, move back in...

In the months that follow, travel restrictions outside the country intensify. But, several top hockey players still manage to leave. They decide to try their skill in Western Europe and North America. The rest of the nation has to endure another twenty years of waiting for fre- edom.

Not until 1989 does the country finally break free of communist domination.

In April of 1991, the vaults of the Ministry of Justice and the Czech Supreme Court were opened to the public. They revealed confidential materials relating to the 1950 Stalinist trial of the National Hockey Team. A few of the players, whose lifes were effected the most, read quietly through hundreds of pages filled with hatred and false accusations. Their zest for free life; their youthful flamboyance and their desire to make na- mes for themselves and their country were their only crimes.

After the 'Velvet Revolution', much energy was poured back into re-establishing the image and position of Czechoslovakia, the country, now called the Czech Republic. It's rebound has not missed the ice-rink, as we learned to our surprise at the 1998 Olympic Games in Nagano. Now, we must wait and see if success or adversity awaits the big players from the small country.

EPILOGUE

In July of 1999, Czech and Russian teams, featuring some of the greatest hockey legends of the post-war era, met in a charity exhibition in Slovakia. These once former adversaries from earlier Olympic competitions and World Cup clashes, greeted the packed stadium while embracing each other and shaking hands. Their long ago rivalry all but forgotten.

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