It could have been a Cinderella story for Germany in the men's hockey gold medal game, but one big mistake late in the third period arguably cost them the victory as the Olympic Athletes of Russia pulled off a thrilling 4-3 overtime win.

The Germans were the clear underdogs who weren't expected to even make it to the gold medal game, but after a big upset against Canada, they made history playing in the country's first gold medal game at the Olympics.  

OAR was the clear favorite, but they haven't won gold since 1992 when they were known as a "Unified Team." A lot was on the line for Germany as they have never earned better than a bronze medal at the Olympics.

It was clear right away Germany wasn't going to down without a fight. They came out aggressive and threw off the pace of Russia's game. 

The Germans owned the first period outplaying Russia, but a turnover with 10 seconds left in the first period resulted in a Russian goal. It looked like it was going to be a scoreless first period, but Nikita Gusev set up Slava Voynova to make it 1-0 with 0.5 seconds left in the first period, and that was only the start of a very impressive game from Gusev. 

Germany responded tying it up 9:32 into the second period with a big play from Felix Schutz, who scored on a backhander. The goal helped shift the momentum for Germany who was instantly back in the game. Things started to get really interesting when Gusev made his first goal of the game, making it 2-1 Russia. Just 10 seconds later, Germany's Dominik Kahun tied it up.

With 3:25 left in the third period, Germany took the lead for the first time. Jonas Muller hasn't been a big playmaker for much of the tournament, but he made a crucial goal for Germany only to be followed up with a big mistake. 

It looked like Germany was ready to put away the game with a power play and a one-point lead as they had possession when it came down to the final minute of regulation, but the Russians stole away the puck. Germany's goalie came out of the net and Russia scored tying it up 3-3 with a shorthanded goal from Gusev in the power play. 

The game went into sudden death overtime, and it was Kirill Kaprizov who secured the gold medal for OAR 7:56 into overtime after Patrick Reimer was busted for a high-sticking penalty drawn by Pavel Datsyuk. 

Although Germany would have preferred to walk away with a gold medal, they still have a lot to be proud of as four years ago, they didn't even qualify for the Olympics in Sochi.