"It won't fully sink in for days or months or perhaps even decades in quiet moments or at a reunion of men forever bonded by one of the greatest afternoons in their sport's and nation's history.

A golden afternoon they created.

Yet even with Team Canada's 3-2 sudden death overtime victory Sunday against the United States in the 2010 Olympic Games gold medal final still only minutes and the nationwide celebration just beginning to pick up steam, Canada forward Corey Perry already sensed that he and his teammates had assured themselves of a place in hockey and Canada's history.

"Just to be a part of it is special and it's a great feeling right now," Perry said, gold medal around the neck.

Perry and his Anaheim teammate Ryan Getzlaf, who will be in Ducks uniforms again on Wednesday night, were more than just a part of Team Canada's dramatic and record-setting victory.

"That was a great hockey game out there," Getzlaf said."