President Trump extended a high-profile invitation to the U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey Team, inviting them to attend his State of the Union address following their dramatic gold medal victory at the 2026 Winter games in Milan-Cortina.
The team clinched the gold on Sunday, defeating archrival Canada 2-1 in overtime, marking the first U.S. men’s hockey Olympic gold since the legendary “Miracle on Ice” in 1980.
Jack Hughes scored the game-winning goal early in the extra period, while goaltender Connor Hellebuyck delivered a stellar performance with 41 saves to secure the triumph.
Trump Invites US Men’s Hockey Team to State of the Union After Historic Olympic Gold
Trump’s invitation was part of an incredible phone call he had with the team, who were celebrating in their locker room with FBI Director Kash Patel.
“I’ll tell you what. I just told my people two minutes ago, I didn’t know they’d be calling, I said we’re giving the State of the Union speech on Tuesday night,” Trump can be heard saying. “I can send a military plane or something, but if you would like to, it’s the coolest night, it’s the biggest speech …”
“We’re in,” one player shouts before Trump can finish his thought.
MUST WATCH: President Trump called Team USA’s hockey team to congratulate them after their thrilling gold medal win at the Milan Olympics—defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime.
— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) February 23, 2026
“And by the way, your goalie play. Not bad!…You were all Unbelievable!”
Amazing! pic.twitter.com/ilSZX6fkQo
Trump praised the players’ performance and specifically highlighted Hellebuyck’s outstanding play.
“By the way, your goalie played not bad. … I’ve seen hockey goalies have slightly worse games,” he quipped. “Unbelievable, and you were all unbelievable. The team is pretty good.”
Trump also announced plans to honor the team with additional recognitions and extended an invitation to the U.S. women’s hockey team, which had also claimed gold over Canada.
“We’ll do the White House…we’ll just have some fun, we have medals for you guys,” Trump said.
“And we have to, I must tell you, we’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that?” he joked. “I do believe I probably would be impeached.”
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The State of the Union appearance would provide a prominent platform to celebrate the athletes’ contributions to American sports excellence.
The President was clearly excited about Team USA’s first Olympic hockey gold in 46 years. Not since the “Miracle on Ice” has something like this happened.
“We’re winning too much, it’s just not fair!” he wrote on Truth Social.