Inside a wild week for the U.S. men’s hockey team: From gold to the White House to ‘SNL’

As Megan Keller took a Taylor Heise stretch pass at the blue line in overtime of the women’s gold medal game, much of the American men’s hockey team crowded around a screen to watch. When Keller turned Canadian defender Claire Thompson inside out and slipped the puck between the pads of goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens, the men erupted in celebration.

“We’re all standing up, going nuts, clapping,” Brady Tkachuk said.

With their own semifinal against Slovakia looming the next day, most of the men didn’t attend the game, but they were there in spirit. The respect between the two teams had grown into a real bond over the course of the Olympics.

“They came to a lot of our games, and we went to a lot of theirs,” forward Grace Zumwinkle said after the tournament. “And I think there was that mutual level of respect. And it was evident with Ellen Hughes also being on our staff as well, and her two sons (Quinn and Jack) being on the (men’s) team. So, yes, we did feel the respect, and then just having been in the Village with them, as well, was a good experience.”

Three days later, the American men made it double gold for USA Hockey, with Jack Hughes’ golden goal giving the U.S. its first Olympic championship in men’s hockey since the Miracle on Ice in 1980, 46 years earlier to the day. But instead of a prolonged celebration of two historic teams, the afterglow of the men’s gold quickly devolved into a political firestorm, one that stretched from Milan to the U.S. Capitol to the “Saturday Night Live” and “Tonight Show” studios in New York. The discourse over a locker-room interloper, a “distasteful” joke and a once-perfunctory trip to the White House created headlines all over the world, forced players to answer uncomfortable questions about their politics, and dampened enthusiasm for what had been a watershed moment in American hockey history.

The unifying joy and celebration of the accomplishment lasted all of an hour or so. The scrutiny of what was done and said and laughed at in the locker room is still ongoing.

Here’s how it all went down:

Sunday, Feb. 22

An instant after Zach Werenski and goaltender Connor Hellebuyck break up a Connor McDavid rush, Jack Hughes — who started the tournament as a fourth-liner and an afterthought in the midst of another injury-plagued season — wins a puck battle with McDavid behind the net. Hughes then wins another 50/50 puck with Cale Makar at the blue line, before sending the puck into the offensive zone, where Werenski outmuscles Nathan MacKinnon for the puck, then sends a cross-ice pass to Hughes, who buries a shot past Jordan Binnington at 4:52 p.m. Milan time for the golden goal.

The celebration is on. First along the boards between the penalty boxes, where the dogpile began. Then all over the ice. Brady Tkachuk embraces captain Auston Matthews, then Matthew Tkachuk wraps up his kid brother in a bear hug. Brady Tkachuk has an American flag draped around his shoulder as “U-S-A” chants fill Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. Matthew Tkachuk holds a flag aloft and the Americans take turns skating it around the rink as if it were the Stanley Cup.

Eventually, Matthew Tkachuk and Werenski skate a Johnny Gaudreau jersey around, alongside a flag-draped Matthews. Two of Gaudreau’s children sit in on the on-ice team photo, with Werenski holding 3-year-old Noa and Dylan Larkin holding 2-year-old Johnny Jr.

After the medal ceremony, the national anthem and a jubilant walk through the mixed zone, Team USA enters its locker room to celebrate. American general manager Bill Guerin invites his friend, FBI director Kash Patel, into the locker room. Patel is a well-known hockey fan; he sat with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and hockey legend Wayne Gretzky as Alex Ovechkin tied Gretzky’s all-time goal mark last spring in Washington. Patel is later criticized for using a government jet to fly to Milan for the Olympics, though a spokesman said he had “highly productive meetings in Italy focused on strengthening joint counterterrorism coordination, transnational crime enforcement, the extradition of high value targets and Olympic security planning with our closest allies.”

Patel quickly finds himself at the center of the Americans’ locker-room celebration, as seen in Dylan Larkin’s live Instagram video. He chugs a beer and pumps his fists as the players cheer him on. Matthew Tkachuk, in what will become a signature move for him over the week, drapes his gold medal around Patel’s neck. Patel and the players then begin singing Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American).” The footage of the celebration appears to be coming from Tage Thompson’s phone.

Through Patel, U.S. president Donald Trump calls into the celebration. Patel’s phone simply reads “DT” on the screen as he puts the president on speaker.

Trump: “Your goalie played not bad.”

Matthew Tkachuk: “Helly! Say hi to him!”

Hellebuyck: “How ya doin’, Don?”

Trump tells the team that the State of the Union address will be on Tuesday night, in two days.

“I can send a military plane or something,” Trump says. “If you would like to, it’s the coolest night.”

Matthew Tkachuk immediately says, “We’re in!” which is met by universal agreement.

Matthew Tkachuk: “Can you pick us up in Miami on Tuesday morning?”

Trump: “We’ll get Kash and we’ll get the military to get you guys over here.”

Matthew Tkachuk: “Thank you, Mr. President.”

Trump: “And we’ll do the White House the next day. We’ll just have some fun. We have some medals for you guys. And I must tell you, we’re gonna have to bring the women’s team, you do know that.”

At this point, Tkachuk says, “Absolutely,” while another player yells, “Two for two! Two for two!”

Trump responds by saying, “I do believe I probably would be impeached, OK?” to which many of the players laugh.

Trump says he’d “be honored to have you,” and Patel chimes in excitedly, “I got it, Boss. I got it. I’m on it. I’m f—ing on it!”

Trump congratulates the team again, saying he didn’t know anybody who wasn’t watching the game.

“And you’re going to be proud of that game for 50 years as you grow older,” he says. “It was amazing. We love you guys. And I hope to see you. Kash? Tuesday night. I’m gonna shake hands with everybody, but I gotta shake hands with that goalie.”

Matthew Tkachuk: “We’ll see you Tuesday night, Mr. President.”

Trump: “We’ll see you Tuesday night.”

Patel: “I’m driving the bus, Boss. We’re bringing them home.”

Later that night, after packing up but before heading home, the U.S. men’s and women’s teams hang out and celebrate in the dining hall back at the athletes’ village following the women’s team’s return from the closing ceremony, where Hilary Knight was the American flag-bearer.

“We were in the cafeteria at 3:30 in the morning with them,” Jack Hughes said. “We go from there, pack our bags, and we’re on the bus.”

But while they’re celebrating together, the tenor of the discussion outside that dining hall has taken a dramatic turn. For one, Patel’s involvement in the middle of the celebration has injected politics into the celebration, and becomes the latest flashpoint in America’s fractured political discourse. For another, Trump’s joke about having to invite the women’s team is seen by many as dismissive and demeaning, meant to diminish their historic accomplishment in comparison to that of the men.

In the aftermath, the men’s players repeatedly point out how close they are to the women’s team, and how much the two squads supported each other. But the way the men’s team laughed at Trump’s joke rankles fans across the country.

“We love the women’s team,” Matthews says a few days later. “We support them. I mean, the night we won the gold medal, we were hanging out in the dining hall until like three, four in the morning. … We have nothing but love and respect for the women’s team and what they were able to accomplish. And it’s amazing that the men’s and women’s ice hockey teams are both bringing home gold medals for the United States of America. And I think that should be talked about more than (Trump’s joke). But we’re extremely proud of them and happy for them and we support them 100 percent.”

Monday, Feb. 23

The team flies to Miami in the morning. It was originally supposed to be a flight through New York, but a blizzard forced a change of plans.

USA Hockey releases a statement that the women’s team will not attend the State of the Union. “Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate. They were honored to be included and are grateful for the acknowledgement.”

About a dozen of the women’s players are later spotted on a commercial Delta flight from Atlanta to Minneapolis.

During the day, the White House shares an AI-doctored video on TikTok that has Brady Tkachuk calling the Canadians “maple syrup-eating f—s.” Tkachuk, of course, never said this.

“It’s not my voice,” he says three days later. “It’s not what I was saying. I would never say that. That’s not who I am. … I don’t like that video because that’s just never come out of my mouth.”

The men’s team arrives at self-described “ultraclub” E11EVEN in Miami around 11 p.m. It’s the same club that hosted the Florida Panthers after winning the Stanley Cup, the Indiana University football team after winning the national championship, and F1 champions Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.

Team USA celebrates the gold medal win at E11EVEN Miami, the same nightclub that hosted the Panthers after their Cup win. (Alexander Tamargo / Getty Images for E11EVEN Miami)

According to the club, there are more than 2,000 people waiting in line, hoping to get in. The team blows through more than $150,000 worth of champagne, pouring it into fans’ mouths and spraying the crowd. Matthew Tkachuk leads the team and the club in singing “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue,” “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Queen’s “We Are The Champions,” Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA,” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA.” Tkachuk addresses the crowd and calls Hellebuyck “the savior and secretary of defense.” Brady Tkachuk hoists Jack Hughes on his shoulders as Hughes waves an American flag. J.T. Miller crowd-surfs.

Before the party, Jack Hughes is asked about the growing controversy behind the Americans’ partying with Patel and laughing at Trump’s joke about having to invite the women’s team. Hughes’ mother, Ellen, works with the women’s team.

“Yeah, we’re excited,” Hughes says. “Everything is so political. We’re athletes. We’re so proud to represent the U.S. 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. No matter what your views are, we’re super excited to go to the White House tomorrow and be a part of that.”

Tuesday. Feb. 24

Jack and Quinn Hughes start the day with an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” Jack’s voice is largely shot. As he talks about celebrating with the women’s team, his audio is dropped out so the hosts —  Michael Strahan, Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos — can joke about them being hungover.

The team arrives at the White House in matching USA sweaters, white pants and, of course, gold medals. Five players — Kyle Connor, Jake Guentzel, Jackson LaCombe, Brock Nelson and Jake Oettinger — do not attend, citing commitment to their families and NHL teams. None mention any political reasons for their absence.

Guentzel tells reporters in Tampa it was about “timing,” saying he was “definitely not denying the request” and noting that he visited Trump at the White House with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2017. Nelson tells the Denver Post, “I would love to check out the White House,” but cites his family’s travel home and a looming schedule of five games in seven days with the Avalanche. LaCombe notes it was a “tight window” to be back in Anaheim for a Wednesday night home game and said it was “the only reason” he skipped the White House visit. Connor also cites a Wednesday night game to prepare for, and Oettinger points to both the Stars’ busy schedule and the fact that he has a 3-month-old baby at home for his decision, calling the invite “a tremendous honor.”

The rest of the team meets Trump in the Oval Office. Matthews, then Larkin, then Matthew Tkachuk are first to shake his hand at the Resolute Desk. Matthew Tkachuk says, “Good to see you again.” Trump responds, “You’ve come a long way since I last saw you.” Trump turns to the rest of the team. “I saw him when he was peanuts. Now he’s a big star.” Matthew Tkachuk gives Trump his gold medal to wear. For lunch at the White House, it appears the team is eating McDonald’s hamburgers.

Members of Team USA wait for their appearance at President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address. (Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt later posts a photo on her Instagram story with the Hughes brothers (in “USA” hats), Tage Thompson (in Trump’s signature red “Make America Great Again” hat), Hellebuyck and Jeremy Swayman. Later, a video shows Thompson still wearing the MAGA hat as the team tours the U.S. Capitol.

“I’m proud to be an American, and I have my own faith, my own beliefs, and everyone’s entitled to their own opinions and beliefs as well,” Thompson says the next night after his Buffalo Sabres beat Jack Hughes’ New Jersey Devils. “I think we should be able to live in peace knowing that not everyone’s going to agree with you.”

At 6:10 p.m. ET, the Tkachuk brothers and Hellebuyck do a nine-minute in-studio interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier.

“It’s absolutely insane, but we deserve it,” Matthew Tkachuk says of being feted by the president.

Baier reads a chunk of Pierre LeBrun’s postgame column in The Athletic on the first American gold medal in 46 years. Neither Baier nor the players mention the women’s team.

At the State of the Union, Trump spends roughly six minutes of his nearly two-hour, record-length address talking about the team.

“Our country is winning again,” Trump says. “In fact, we’re winning so much that we really don’t know what to do about it. People are asking me — please, please, please Mr. President, we’re winning too much. We can’t take it anymore. We’re not used to winning in our country. Until you came along, we’re just always losing, but now, we’re winning too much. And I say, no no no. You’re going to win again. You’re going to win big. You’re gonna win bigger than ever, and to prove that point — to prove that point — here with us tonight is a group of winners who just made the entire nation proud: the men’s gold medal Olympic hockey team.”

Seventeen members of the U.S. men’s team appear at the State of the Union address after the White House luncheon earlier in the day. (Kenny Holston / The New York Times / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

At this point, 17 of the men’s players step out onto the balcony to cheers.

Trump says Hellebuyck will get the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and says the women’s team “will soon be coming to the White House.”

At 11:51 p.m., Matthew Tkachuk sits down with Sean Hannity during his post-SOTU coverage. He puts his gold medal around Hannity’s neck for the interview. Hannity tells Tkachuk he’s a Panthers season ticket holder. The interview runs about four and a half minutes.

Wednesday, Feb. 25

Knight, during an interview on ESPN’s SportsCenter, says Trump made “a distasteful joke” during his locker-room call.

“And unfortunately, that is overshadowing a lot of the success, the success of just women at the Olympics, carrying for Team USA and having amazing gold-medal feats,” she says.

Knight reinforces the level of support and respect the men’s and women’s teams have had for each other.

“I think that’s being overshadowed by a quick lapse,” she says. “I think the guys were in a tough spot, so I think it’s a shame this storyline and narrative has kind of blown up and (is) overshadowing that connection and genuine interest in one another, and cheering each other on.”

Later, at a Seattle Torrent news conference, Knight expands on her thoughts: “I just thought the joke was distasteful and unfortunate. I think the way women are represented, it’s a great teaching point to really shine light on how women should be championed for their amazing feats. And now I have to sit in front of you and explain someone else’s behavior. It’s not my responsibility.”

The first NHL game after the break is the Devils hosting the Sabres. Before the game, Jack Hughes addresses the crowd and brings out Thompson to celebrate one last time as teammates before going at it as opponents.

As the men’s players return to their NHL teams throughout the day, they are asked about partying with Patel and Trump’s joke about the women’s team and why they laughed at it. A sampling of their responses:

Matthews: “I don’t like to get political or get into that kind of stuff. Like I said, we’re proud Americans and winning a gold medal, it’s been 46 years since the men’s ice hockey team has done that. So I mean the team that wins the Stanley Cup every year accepts the White House invitation to go. So I just think it is something that you do because we are proud Americans, whatever your political beliefs may be. Hopefully something like this will hopefully bring more unity to the country and stuff like that. But for us, we believe it’s a great honor no matter who’s in office.”

Thompson: “I think in the moment, you’re just in the locker room celebrating and you’re just excited that there’s people that are influential in this country that want to be a part of it, that are watching you play. You know, we’re all athletes, we love the country. The fact that there are people that are high up in the country that make decisions that are watching the game and want to be a part of it and celebrate, because that’s at the end of the day what it was, a celebration of the country. I think that’s why we were so excited.”

Swayman: “We should have reacted (to the joke) differently. We are so excited for the women’s team. We have so much respect for the women’s team. To share that gold medal for them is something we’re forever grateful for.”

Charlie McAvoy: “Certainly sorry for how we responded to it in that moment. Things just happened really quick there.”

Werenski: “Incredible group of women. We got to know them extremely well in the village. No one was bigger supporters of them than us as a team. … Obviously, it’s not a great moment. It doesn’t look great, so I understand that. But, you know, I think deep down, they know how we feel about them and how much support we have for them.”

Saturday, Feb. 28

Connor Storrie, one of the stars of HBO’s “Heated Rivalry,” hosts “Saturday Night Live.” During his monologue, he openly wonders if he really pulled off portraying a hockey player — which, of course, leads to Quinn and Jack Hughes joining him on stage, wearing their jerseys and gold medals. Jack Hughes had to hop a private jet from St. Louis after the Devils’ game to get to New York in time.

The brothers tell Storrie they heard he did great, but that they haven’t seen the show yet.

Quinn Hughes: “It’s about hockey, right?”

Storrie: “Kind of.”

Jack Hughes: “I got my teeth knocked out in the finals. Does that happen in your show?”

Storrie: “Metaphorically.”

Storrie then says, “I hope some hockey players watched it,” to which Keller and Knight walk on stage in their jerseys and gold medals — to a significantly longer and louder ovation. Jack Hughes claps along.

Keller: “Don’t worry, we saw your show.”

Storrie: “Hilary, Megan, it’s so cool that we’re all here.”

Knight: “It was gonna be just us, but we thought we’d invite the guys, too.”

The crowd gets the joke and cheers.

Keller, nudging Quinn with an elbow, says: “Yeah, we thought we’d give them a little moment to shine.”

After a bit more banter, they all put their arms around each other, smiling broadly.

The victory lap continues on Monday night, with Knight and the Hughes brothers scheduled to be on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.” For Jack Hughes, the big hero who scored the biggest goal of his life, it will cap a whirlwind eight-day stretch that took him from Milan to Miami to Washington to Newark to St. Louis to 30 Rock, as well as to the center of America’s fraught political discourse.

He still hasn’t gotten his teeth fixed.