BEIJING — The pass slid into the empty slot, and suddenly there was Brendan Brisson to pounce. Fresh off the United States bench in the second period at National Indoor Stadium, the 20-year-old winger wasted no time tracking the puck onto his backhand, shoveling it past the glove side of Canadian goalie Edward Pasquale, and kicking up a leg and pumping his arms in celebration as he skated away. “You grow up watching the Olympics,” Brisson said later, “and just imagining scoring a goal and winning games here, it’s just been amazing so far.”
In many ways, Brisson is wholly emblematic of the speedy and skilled American scions who beat their border rivals 4-2 on Saturday afternoon.