So while Canada found a way again — following the same script as Vancouver 2010 where Team USA won the round-robin matchup between the two countries but Team Canada prevailed when it truly mattered in the end — anyone who knows the game can see the gap has shrunk over the past 15 years.

Thursday night's USA-Canada championship game at the 4 Nations Face-Off showed viewers' appetite for best-on-best international hockey. ESPN said the game, which Canada won 3-2 in overtime on a goal by Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, averaged 9.3 million viewers, its biggest hockey audience ever. It peaked at 10.4 million.

The 4 Nations Face-Off Final between Canada and USA, a thrilling contest won by the Canadians in overtime, was a massive boon for the sport of hockey and its viewership.