Gold rush

SHELTON

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By GARY SHELTON, Times Sports Columnist

SALT LAKE CITY -- To this day, A.J. Mleczko cannot forget that night.

She remembers the noise and the tears and the smiles. She remembers dancing across the ice, and the sticks being thrown into the air and the flags that appeared from nowhere. She remembers the sweetness of the moment.

And, greedy woman that she is, she wants another serving.

Well, hello again. The United States women's hockey team, perhaps the best memory of the '98 Olympics, stepped onto the ice again Tuesday afternoon. The team's goal? To retrace the steps that led the women to glory four years ago, to recapture the gold, to once again feel that wonderful swirl of emotion that made that night such a keeper. To turn a once-in-a-lifetime night into twice-in-a-lifetime.

From the looks of it, the Americans are on their way. The United States overwhelmed Germany, winning 10-0 in a game that made this statement to the rest of the field:

You want the gold?

Come and get it.

This was the most embarrassing thing that Americans have done to Germany since Hogan's Heroes. Consider: The Americans had more shots in the goal than Germany had on the goal. In the end, the United States outshot the Germans 57-8, and none of the eight shots by Germany really threatened to enter the goal. Those were just the eight times that goaltender Sara DeCosta was forced to pay attention.

To sum up, it was a vicious, merciless way to treat a guest.

And a nice way to welcome back this team.

"When I stepped back onto the ice, it felt like I was back in Nagano," Mleczko said. "I got a chill when I saw all the flags and heard the explosion (of applause).

"The thing I remember about that night was the total chaos, in the best sense of the word. Any time I see the tape, I taste it again. I feel the adrenaline all over. I want that back again."

Things have changed in four years. Nagano was the first Olympic competition for women's hockey, and there were some who treated it as little more than a curiosity. A typical interview went this way: "You're a woman? And you play hockey? Wow." Those who did take the sport seriously noticed the superiority that the Canadian team had over the United States to that point.

No more. The gold medal gave credibility to this team. And the years since haven't taken that away. In their exhibition tour leading up to the Olympics, the Americans were 31-0, and they beat the Canadians all eight times the teams played. This time, if the Americans don't win, it will be an upset.

"Whatever." said Courtney Kennedy, shrugging. "Call us favorites. Call us underdogs. Whatever. Just let us play."

"The pressure doesn't scare us," Mleczko said. "We play well under pressure. I don't think it's a bad thing."

So, A.J., do you think the United States is the team to beat?

"Yes," she said.

It appeared that way against Germany. The United States skated around the plodding Germans with ease, getting whatever shots they wished. When they were denied -- and German goaltenders did have 47 saves -- there was this look of utter puzzlement on the faces of the Americans.

Perhaps this is the biggest skill of the U.S. players. They do not slow down. They do not look at the scoreboard. And even the goaltenders manage to stay awake.

Take DeCosta, who admitted that she caught herself looking for her parents. Not that it mattered. Heck, DeCosta could have walked into the stands and eaten a hotdog with her parents. Germany didn't have a shot on goal in the second period.

The thing is, it could have been worse if not, as the cliche goes, for the German goaltenders standing on their heads. No, seriously. For a while, the goaltender (Stephanie Wartosch-Kurten) stood on her head and then walked on her hands. And then she curled her tongue and wiggled her ears. And then she yodeled while hopping on one foot. It didn't matter. The pucks kept flying past her ears.

In some ways, of course, all of this is bad news. Women's hockey will arrive when more than three teams -- the Americans, the Canadians and, every now and then, the Finns -- can skate down the ice without dropping their sticks. German coach Ranier Nittel says it will be 10 years before his team catches up to the Americans. He may be an optimist.

Four years. Has it really been that long since that night?

In the meantime, Mleczko has gotten married. Jenny Potter has had a child. The number of girls and women playing hockey registered with USA Hockey has risen to 39,693. (It was 6,336 at the start of the '90s and 28,346 in '97-98, before the Americans won gold.)

If you want to know the change that best demonstrates how far women's hockey has come, perhaps this is your clue:

They have bobbleheads.

No, really. Cammi Granato and Karen Bye and Mleczko all have bobbleheads, though not particularly good ones. When a teammate saw Granato's, in fact, the comment was: "Hey, they have a bobblehead of your brother."

Mleczko, too, seems a little sensitive. "Yeah, I have a bobblehead," she said. "And if you say it looks like me, I'm going to hurt you."

No, you assure her. You're sure it's nowhere as lovely as she.

After all, you've just seen what she and her teammates did to Germany. Why take any chances?