U.S. Men's Hockey Team Stumbles out of Frying Pan into Fire Over Association With Trump
Star player Jack Hughes made things worse with a milquetoast defense of their actions.
Published Feb. 24 2026, 4:34 p.m. ET
When the U.S. men's hockey team took home the gold in Milan's 2026 Winter Olympics, it should have been a moment of untarnished triumph.
Unfortunately, their major win and come-from-the-shadows victory was quickly eclipsed by two controversies, all centered around associations with President Donald Trump.
It all started with a surprise visit by a member of Trump's administration, and escalated after a call from Trump himself. Here's what we know about why people are mad at the U.S. men's hockey team when they were previously enjoying a social boost from the release of hockey-centered Heated Rivalry.
Why are people mad at the U.S. men's hockey team?
The United States was proud of the U.S. men's hockey team after they broke a 46-year gold medal drought, taking home a major victory against Canada in Milan. Hockey is on fire right now thanks to the release of Rachel Reid's book-to-television series, adapted for Crave by Jacob Tierney, Heated Rivalry. Hockey is hot, and hockey players are hotter.
But the team's victory soon soured in the mouths of fans.
It started with a video uploaded to social media that showed the team celebrating with FBI Director Kash Patel in their midst. Patel, a controversial figure who has received criticism for his alleged mishandling of investigations while at the head of the FBI, was front and center of the team's locker room celebration.
His presence immediately drew criticism, not least of which because he used taxpayer-funded transportation to fly to Milan, per The Hill.
Many blasted the team for making their victory political, calling Patel's presence "inappropriate" and "insulting" as the United States struggles with its image on the world stage due to the hostility of the Trump administration.
The U.S. men's hockey team also under fire for letting Trump diss the women's hockey team.
However, that wasn't the end of things. Trump himself called to congratulate the team on their victory, and a recording of the call soon went viral, throwing the men's team into an even bigger controversy.
It was a good Winter Olympics for the U.S. hockey teams across the board. Not only did the men's team win 2-1 over Canada, but the women's team earned a 2-1 victory over Canada, also winning the gold.
In the phone call congratulating the men's hockey team, Trump can be heard joking that he "has to" invite the women's team now, too. The players listening laughed uproariously. "I must tell you, we're going to have to bring the woman's team. You do know that? I do believe I probably would be impeached," if he didn't, he implied (excerpt via USA Today).
The team was soon slammed again for degrading their female counterparts, with fans blasting the players for encouraging Trump's known misogyny.
Star player Jack Hughes soon made it worse with a milquetoast defense of the team's support of Trump's misogynistic joke, per The Independent. He complained that "everything is political," citing a "busy schedule" to explain why the women's team declined Trump's invitation to attend the State of the Union, whereas the men's team accepted.
Hughes went on to add, "People are so negative out there, and they are just trying to find a reason to put people down and make something out of almost nothing."
Needless to say, that defense went over like a lead balloon, with many slamming the men's team for harming their female counterparts and playing politics during a perilous time.