Factfile

Since the 1980 'Miracle On Ice' game, the US and Russia have met five times with the Russians winning three times and one match ending in a tie.

Ahead of their clash on Saturday at the Sochi Olympics, AFP Sports looks at some fun facts on their rivalry:

During the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York, the US national team, made up of mainly college players and led by coach Herb Brooks, defeated the Soviet Union, which had won nearly every world championship and Olympic tournament since 1964. As part of its 100th anniversary celebrations in 2008, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) chose the "Miracle On Ice" as the century's No 1 international hockey story.