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Dave Portnoy recently weighed in on the debate surrounding President Donald Trump‘s comments about the U.S. women’s hockey team.
Portnoy, 48, appeared on the Monday, February 23, episode of Wake Up Barstool, where he addressed Trump, 79, calling the U.S. men’s hockey team after their victory at the 2026 Winter Olympics. During the call, Trump invited them to attend the State of the Union address and mentioned he would be “impeached” if he didn’t also extend an invite to the gold-winning women’s team as well, sparking controversy and offending many.
“People are upset, they’re losing it. ‘Why is the hockey team laughing, why are they engaging with the president?’ This should be a test to see if you’re overreacting,” Portnoy remarked. “If the president calls you after winning a gold medal, it doesn’t matter if you don’t want to speak to him. But getting upset because someone else does, and he’s merely offering congratulations and being friendly, is unreasonable.”
Portnoy further commented, “If this conversation upset you, you probably need to relax and reconsider your perspective. There’s no reason to be angry when a president acknowledges a team’s gold medal victory.”
Meanwhile, while the men’s hockey team accepted an invitation to attend the State of the Union, the women’s team declined following Trump’s remarks.
“We are truly thankful for the invitation extended to our gold medal-winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and greatly value the acknowledgment of their remarkable achievement,” stated a USA Hockey representative, according to NBC News. “Due to the timing and existing academic and professional obligations post-Games, the athletes are unable to attend.”
“They were honored to be included and are grateful for the acknowledgment,” the spokesperson added.
The U.S. Women’s Hockey Team still plan to celebrate their incredible feat, however: Flavor Flav announced on Instagram that they “accepted [his] invitation to celebrate in Las Vegas.”