This is the kind of story that reminds you why we love sports. This is David and Goliath with a Swiss accent and a bronze medal hanging around her neck.
Andrea Brandli. Remember that name.
The Swiss goaltender just put together one of the most dominant goaltending performances in Olympic hockey history, and I'm not using hyperbole here. 114 saves on 117 shots in elimination games. Let me say that again for the people in the back - she stopped 114 of 117 shots. That's a .974 save percentage when one mistake means you're going home.
That's not just good. That's legendary.
Switzerland wasn't supposed to be here. They weren't supposed to medal. They were supposed to be a nice story, maybe play some competitive games, and then watch the big names battle for gold. But Brandli had other ideas. She put the team on her back and said, 'Not today. Not on my watch.'
The bronze medal game went to overtime against Sweden, and Alina Müller scored the game-winner. But make no mistake - Switzerland doesn't get to overtime without Brandli making save after save after save. She was a wall. She was unbeatable. She was the reason her teammates could dare to dream.
Here's what gets me about this story: Brandli's PWHL draft stock is about to go through the roof. Scouts are already scrambling. General managers are already making calls. When you perform like that on the Olympic stage, in elimination games no less, the hockey world takes notice.
But more than that, this is about what sports can be when someone refuses to accept the script. Switzerland winning bronze? That's an upset. That's an underdog story. That's the kind of thing that makes kids back in Switzerland pick up a hockey stick and think, 'Maybe I can do that too.'
I've been doing this for 20 years, and I've seen a lot of great goaltending performances. But 114 saves on 117 shots in elimination games? Brandli didn't just have a great tournament - she had a career-defining tournament.
That's what sports is all about, folks. The moments when someone rises to the occasion and refuses to let their team lose. Andrea Brandli just became a legend.
