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The U.S. Olympic hockey team’s thrilling 2-1 overtime win against Canada for the gold medal on Sunday was a moment that resonated differently across the political spectrum in America. President Trump added to the celebration by calling into the jubilant locker room, where FBI Director Kash Patel was seen celebrating with the team, to offer his congratulations on their remarkable victory.
For Trump’s supporters and American patriots, this gesture symbolized the qualities they admire in the president. Meanwhile, critics might view it as an instance of unnecessary nationalism and bravado. Regardless of these differing perspectives, the enthusiasm shared by both the president and the team was undeniably contagious.
The elation following the win was palpable as President Trump expressed his excitement, capturing the buoyant spirit of the moment (a brief excerpt of the interaction is available, but the full clip reveals the players’ lively camaraderie and enjoyment).
In particular, the performance of goalie Connor Hellebuyck stood out, with one of his saves being hailed as one of the greatest ever seen, adding to the team’s heroic efforts on the ice.
You can hear the genuine pride in Donald Trumps voice when he called the Team USA Hockey Team pic.twitter.com/ch6GbXShwh
— Harrison Krank (@HarrisonKrank) February 23, 2026
POTUS was pumped up by the victory (this is heavily abbreviated — listen to the full clip to hear the players joshing around and having a great time):
TRUMP: And by the way, you only played… not bad… I have seen hockey goalies have slightly worse games.
Unbelievable! And you are all unbelievable, and that team is pretty good, you played…
…[W]e’re giving the State of the Union speech on Tuesday night, I could send the military plane or something.
[..]
PLAYER: Boys are going to the state of the union!
TRUMP: What would really be cool, and we’ll do the White House the next day, we’ll just have some fun. We have medals for you guys. And we have to, I must tell you, I have to bring the [gold-medal winning] women’s team, you do know that… I do believe I would probably be impeached [if I didn’t invite them].
[…]
Congratulations. That was an unbelievable game… You’re going to proud of that game for 50 years as you grow older. I mean, it was amazing. So we love you guys.
Congratulations and I hope to see you and Kash Tuesday night, and I want to shake hands; I’m gonna shake hands with everybody — but I gotta shake hands with that goalie.
PLAYER: We’ll see you Tuesday night, Mr. President.
Speaking of that goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, he made one of the greatest saves you’ll ever see:
CONNOR HELLEBUYCK JUST MADE THE GREATEST SAVE IN USA HOCKEY HISTORY pic.twitter.com/uDjVfH7OWy
— Bussin’ With The Boys (@BussinWTB) February 22, 2026
‘MERICA: Hot Takes: Great Patriotic Message As US Wins Gold, Inspires Memes Dunking on Canada
USA Reclaims Hockey Gold, Edging Out Canada – 46 Years to the Day After the Miracle on Ice
As Trump noted, Kash Patel was in the house, and he was soaking it all in:
I do not think the lefties at @MSNOW quite understand the impact of this video on the standing of @FBIDirectorKash https://t.co/ynkoTPPnPE
— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) February 23, 2026
Despite taking endless criticism for supposedly shirking his duties, the FBI director was in town on long-planned official business. Apparently, for the liberal Karens (or in this case, for some Washington Post/MS Now hack named Carol), one must have their nose to their desks at all times and cannot take the opportunity to celebrate a historic win (Team USA hockey hadn’t taken the gold since the Miracle on Ice in 1980 — 46 years ago). Where were they when Obama was out on the golf course?
“His office insisted this was strictly a business trip” – BS. That is not what happened. You tried to claim Kash only went to Italy for hockey. I responded 2/19 outlining the meetings we had scheduled and said any other personal expenses would be reimbursed. Here’s the email. pic.twitter.com/5t8JXk70u5
— Ben Williamson (@_WilliamsonBen) February 23, 2026
Despite all the negativity and America-bashing emanating from the Left, it’s refreshing to see people genuinely moved by a rousing victory for our country. When did hating America come into fashion, and loving it become the object of scorn? I have zero shame in saying that I’m blessed to be a U.S. citizen, and hopefully, with attitudes like these, more and more people will feel free to admit the same in the future.
When I was a kid, this photo would be on the cover of Time, the Wheaties box, next years Trapper Keeper, lunchboxes, and the bedroom wall of teenagers all over America. https://t.co/je5vbRQVZF
— Shashi (@shashigalore) February 23, 2026
Congratulations to the team, and I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that I really hope they work out the logistics and that we see the gold-medal winning American hockey squad at the SOTU Tuesday night. The Democrats can boycott it all they want, but it would be monumental to see.
Editor’s Note: We at RedState love America, and we’re not afraid to show it.