Team USA’s men’s hockey team faced criticism from some over its postgame actions following a 2-1 win over Canada in the gold-medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics on Sunday. Specifically, the team’s response to comments made by President Donald Trump during that call raised some eyebrows.
Following the win, video emerged of the men’s team speaking to Trump from the locker room. On the call, Trump jokingly told the players, “We’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that. I do believe I probably would be impeached.” Trump’s comment drew laughs from players in the locker room.
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The cadence of Trump’s words, combined with the reaction from the men’s team, resulted in criticism to both parties. Some felt Trump’s phrasing meant that he felt obligated to invite the women’s team — which also won the gold at the 2026 Olympics — and would do so begrudgingly. Some also felt the men’s response to Trump’s comment was disrespectful to a women’s team that accomplished the same feat as the men, and turned in a more dominant performance in its run to the gold.
Quinn Hughes, who played for Team USA on the men’s hockey team, addressed the latter issue during an appearance on “Good Morning America” on Tuesday. When asked about the situation, Hughes said the men’s team was “really happy” for the women.
“I’m glad you mentioned the women’s team again. We’re really happy for them. [There’s] a lot going around on social media right now surrounding our team and their team, but in the last couple summers, we did a lot of training with them and got to know a lot of those girls really well.”
Regardless of how some interpreted the phone call, Trump did invite the women’s hockey team to the State of the Union. A spokesperson for the women’s team said it was “sincerely grateful” for the invite, but could not attend due to “previously scheduled academic and professional commitments,” per NBC News.
Jack Hughes, Quinn’s brother and the player who scored the game-winning goal in the gold-medal game, also offered a defense of the women’s team, telling the Daily Mail the men’s team was “proud” of the women’s accomplishment.
“People are so negative about things. I think everyone in that locker room knows how much we support them, how proud we are of them and we know the same way we feel about them, they feel about us.”
He added that the team was excited and proud to meet Trump.
“Yeah, we’re excited. Everything is so political. We’re athletes.
“We’re so proud to represent the US and when you get the chance to go to White House and meet the President, we’re proud to be Americans and that’s so patriotic.”
Hughes’ mother, Ellen, weighed in on Trump’s phone call with the men’s team as well. Ellen Hughes, who also represented Team USA hockey, playing at the 1992 Women’s World Championship with the national team, said both teams were all about “unity” during the Games, per Today.
“These players, both the men and women, can bring so much unity to a group and to a country,” she said. “People that cheered on that don’t watch hockey, people that have politics on one side or on the other side, and that’s all both the men’s team and the women’s team care about.”
Trump and the men’s team weren’t the only parties to receive criticism following the win. FBI director Kash Patel came under fire for flying to Italy and partying with the men’s team following the victory. Patel was the person who called Trump in the locker room after the win.
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Trump’s State of the Union will take place Tuesday night, which could present problems for some players on the men’s team. Those players are set to return to their NHL teams Tuesday, with play resuming following a break for the Olympics on Wednesday. That could create a scheduling conflict for a fair amount of players.
At the end of the phone call with Trump, a number of players on the men’s team expressed a desire to attend the event. Turns out, scheduling wasn’t a major problem for most players, who met with Trump in the Oval Office and took pictures in front of the White House on Tuesday prior to the State of the Union.
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