Vancouver 2010: Hockey- Canada Wins Gold

Latest News Form Vancouver Olympic 2010 - Sidney Crosby scored the winner in overtime as Canada won the Olympic title Sunday, beating the United States 3-2 to become the first host nation to capture men's hockey gold in 30 years.

Crosby got the winning goal 7:40 into the overtime period, taking a pass from Jarome Iginla and sliding a shot under the pads of US goaltender Ryan Miller.

"It doesn't even feel real. It feels like a dream," said Crosby as Canada clinched a record eighth Olympic men's hockey gold. "Our team worked really hard in regulation time and they got that one by us in the end. But we came out in overtime and this is just an unbelievable feeling."

Canadian forward Patrick Marleau added: "It is unbelievable. I have never felt something like this before. As far as hockey goes it is the best moment I have ever had." Crosby was held off the scoresheet for most of the tournament but he has a knack for scoring dramatic goals. Earlier in the tournament he scored the game winner in a shootout as Canada beat Switzerland 3-2 in the preliminary round.

Jonathan Toews and Corey Perry had earlier given Canada a 2-0 lead before the US fought back, equalising with just 24 seconds left in regulation time. Roberto Luongo was superb in goal, making 34 stops for Canada who became the first host to win an Olympic final since the US triumphed at Lake Placid in 1980.

Ryan Kesler and Zac Parise scored for the US who suffered their first loss of the tournament after five straight wins. "It is devastating," said US defenceman Jack Johnson. "We were one goal shy of a gold medal. It is the biggest game any of us have ever played in. Nothing we did before compares to this. You lose the silver you don't win it."

Canada had a 2-1 lead in the third and looked headed for victory but the US clawed back with Parise scoring his dramatic late leveller to send the final into sudden-death overtime. Over 10 million Canadians were expected to watch the game on TV while, inside the arena, Prime Minister Stephen Harper was joined by Hollywood actors Vince Vaughn, Michael J. Fox and William Shatner as well as singers Michael Buble and Neil Young.

Crowds began forming outside the Canada Hockey Place arena four hours before the highly-anticiplated showdown between the two best teams in the tournament.The game lived up to its billing as the teams traded chances throughout, and both goalies Luongo and Miller had to be at the top of their games.

It was a battle between Canada's potent scoring attack and the American defence anchored by Miller. Forward Toews opened the scoring with just over seven minutes left in the first period beating Miller after picking up a rebound.

Mike Richards stole the puck from defenceman Brian Rafalski at the side of the US goal and took the first shot but it bounced right to Toews. It was the first goal of the tournament for Toews to go with seven assists.

Forward Perry picked up a loose puck and wristed it past Miller in the second period to make it 2-0 for Canada. Ryan Getzlaf started the play by carrying the puck into the US zone. He tried to backhand a pass to Patrick Marleau but it hit a skate and Perry picked it up and easily beat Miller.

Kessler scored on a tip in just over four minutes later to cut the Canadians lead to one goal. Luongo got a piece of it but not enough as it trickled in to make it 2-1, setting the stage for Parise's game tieing goal.

White House New Social Secretary

Juliana Smoot

News from CNN in Washington - The White House announced a new social secretary Saturday, a day after confirming that Desiree Rogers planned to step down from the position. Julianna Smoot, who is chief of staff for the office of U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, will replace Rogers.

"Julianna shares our commitment to creating an inclusive, dynamic and culturally vibrant White House, and Michelle and I are pleased to have her join our team," President Barack Obama said in a statement.

Rogers' office came under scrutiny in recent months after a couple who lacked an invitation were allowed into Obama's first state dinner. In an interview with CNN on Friday, Rogers said she was leaving voluntarily and that her decision was unrelated to the fallout over the security breach."It has nothing to do with that," she said. "It's Secret Service's job to handle security. Not the Social Secretary's office."

The president and first lady acknowledged Rogers' exit in a statement Friday that did not mention last November's party-crashing incident. "When she took this position, we asked Desiree to help make sure that the White House truly is the People's House," they said, "and she did that by welcoming scores of everyday Americans through its doors, from wounded warriors to local schoolchildren to NASCAR drivers.

"She organized hundreds of fun and creative events during her time here, and we will miss her. We thank her again for her service and wish her all the best in her future endeavors." In an e-mail to CNN earlier on Friday, Rogers said, "It has been incredible setting the foundation for the [White House] for this historical presidency. Headed back to private sector."

"I accomplished initially what I came to do," Rogers told CNN later. "I like strategy. I like building something. It's built... the foundation of the [social secretary's ]office is good and solid."

Rogers did not say where she'll be working. She said she'll be "around to work on the transition" to a new social secretary at the White House.

She summed up her experiences at the White House in another note: "330 events. Halloween for 3,000. Easter egg roll for 30,000. Music series with performances and the performers teaching the students during the day. Latin, jazz, country, civil rights. "

In December, the White House was accused of stonewalling as Congress investigated the party-crasher security breach at Obama's first state dinner. At issue was whether the White House was protecting Rogers from testifying about how Tareq and Michaele Salahi were able to crash the first White House state dinner. The couple did not have an invite but were allowed in. Rogers' office planned the dinner. At the time, Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan said his agency would take the heat for the incident.

TSUNAMI IN NEW ZEALAND?

An alert had been alarmed at Wellington. Waves up to 1.5 meters hit parts of New Zealand Sunday and a general tsunami alert for the entire coastline remains in place, the country’s Civil Defense service said. The tsunamis and warning follows a massive earthquake, registering 8.8 in magnitude, that struck Chile late Saturday, killing at least 214 people, according to official reports.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center Saturday had warned of possible “widespread damage” from waves generated by Chile’s killer quake. New Zealand emergency services and disaster relief forces were scrambled and people in some coastal areas were evacuated although toward midday officials were downplaying initial fears.

“We can say it’s unlikely to be very destructive,” Ken Gledhill of the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Science (GNS) told Television New Zealand. “It is expected that the greatest wave heights will occur between six and 12 hours after the initial arrivals,” the Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergency Management said in a statement.

The first tsunami hit New Zealand in the Chatham Islands group, around 500 miles east of the South Island, at around 7:30 a.m. local time. Civil Defense said the first wave was only around 30 centimeters high, but the officials said waves as high as 1.5 meters struck in the next few hours.

Son of Marie Osmond Died

The son of famous celebrity ,Marie Osmond's 18-year-old son Michael Blosil has died, a family spokesman said Saturday. "My family and I are devastated and in deep shock by the tragic loss of our dear Michael and ask that everyone respect our privacy during this difficult time," the entertainer said in a statement through spokesman Alan Nierob.

Brian Elias of the Los Angeles Coroner's Office said the death is under investigation.Her Web site, written last September, describes her as "the proud mother of eight beautiful children who are always her greatest treasures."

Marie Osmond and her brother Donny hosted the national television variety show "The Donny & Marie Show" from 1976 to 1981. Afterward, she had acting and singing careers. She recently competed in a season of "Dancing With the Stars."

In 2001, she wrote "Behind the Smile," about her experience with postpartum depression.

Vancouver 2010: Hockey Final- USA vs CANADA

Latest Update from Vancouver 2010: Canada men's hockey coach Mike Babcock jokingly says he knows of the movie Miracle, about the USA's 1980 gold-medal performance.

"My kids watch it and think it's great and I don't think it's that great," he said. Babcock's quip about the USA-Canada rivalry is an insightful glimpse at why Sunday's gold-medal game (3:15 p.m., ET, NBC) between those countries has the potential to be one of the memorable games in international hockey history.

"Hockey is not a sport in Canada — it's a cult. It's a religion," said U.S. general manager Brian Burke. "The Canadians view this as their game and they view this game as planting the flag on the peak."The fact that the Americans beat Canada 5-3 in the preliminary round adds revenge into the mix.

In the third period of Canada's 3-2 win against Slovakia in the semifinals, fans were chanting, "We want USA. We want USA."The Canadians have been expected to win the gold medal in hockey since it was announced in 2003 that Vancouver was going to be the host.

"How important is hockey in Canada? It's like you took football, baseball, and basketball and rolled them all up into one," said fan Robbie Bursey, 56, of Tide Head, New Brunswick. "Maybe that's the best way for Americans to understand what hockey is to Canadians. Throw in NASCAR too. And it's really key to our national identity."

Canada won the Olympic gold medal in 2002 by defeating the Americans 5-2 in Salt Lake City, but the buzz about this game is far greater because it is being played in Canada, where one of every 66 people plays on a registered hockey team. There are 500,000 registered players in a country of 33 million people.

"We've been building up to this game for years," said Canada forward Jarome Iginla. "We've talked about it as Canadians and hockey players wanting to be a part of this team."

Asked what he thought the arena will be like for the game, U.S. forward Phil Kessel said, "I think it is going to be nuts." As crazy as the arena will be, U.S. forward David Backes said he can't imagine what the streets around the arena will be like. Fans were carrying Canadian flags all over the city hours after Canada defeated Slovakia in the semifinals.

"The fans here are so passionate about Canada and the Olympics in general," Backes said. "But when you get to hockey, there's a whole other level above passionate. They almost live and die from it." Although the Americans probably don't face as much pressure as the Canadians, the game isn't any less important.

Earthquake Hit Chile-8.8 Magnitude

News from CNN reported that a massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck central Chile early Saturday, rattling bulidings and triggering a tsunami. At least 6 people were killed and the death toll is expected to rise, government officials said.

The epicenter of the earthquake was located near the city of Concepcion, 212 miles (341 kilometers) from the capital of Santiago. The quake struck at 3:34 a.m. (1:34 a.m. ET). Concepcion is Chile's second largest city with a population of 200,000. There are reports of collapsed buildings in Santiago. The quake was felt in several Chilean towns and in parts of Argentina as well.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for Chile and Peru. A tsunami watch has been issued for Ecuador, Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica. The center recorded a tsunami wave as high as 9 feet.

iReport.com: Did you feel it? Share information, images with CNN. "An earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines near the epicenter within minutes and more distant coastlines within hours," the National Weather Service said in a statement.

Officials hoped to learn more about the devastation in the morning. Santiago resident Leo Perioto jumped out of his bed in his apartment at the top of a six-story building.

"The whole building was shaking," he said. "The windows were wobbling a lot. We could feel the walls moving from side to side."

Alessandro Perez, who is staying at the Santiago Marriott Hotel, reported shattered windows, but there was no structural damage. No one at the hotel was injured, he said. Anita Herrera, who works at the Hotel Kennedy in Santiago, said electricity was knocked out at that hotel and guests were nervous.

"Our hotel is built for this," she said. "In Chile, this happens many times." Chile holds the record for the largest earthquake in the world, according to the USGS. A magnitude 9.5 quake struck the South American country in May 1960 and killed 1,655 people.

Vancouver 2010: Men Hockey

Latest news from Vancouver 2010: Today is Men’s Play-offs Semifinals: Canada has scored 2 goals against Slovakia who are at zero in the first period. The venue of the Canada vs Slovakia match is Canada Hockey Place.

In the first period of the semifinal game between Canada and Slovakia, Canada is leading. Canada got 10 shots to the goal as compared to 4 shots of Slovakia.

Canada remains the hot favorites even though Team US performance has been outstanding and chances are Team USA may do a miracle, observers say.

Observers predict an apocalyptic rematch between the U.S. and Canada is very much on course.