It's True that all of Canada shut down to watch the final game of the summit series. Schools gathered their students in the gymnasium and everyone watched. I was 10 at the time and willl never forget that. For Canada, the Olympics are a way of validating our past successes. Maybe that's why the players seem to have an edge. The entire nation lives vicariously through the team. Maybe hard to understand for non-canucks and I can't explain....it just is.
Respect.