The chants of ‘USA’ erupt in House as US men’s hockey gold medalists attend Trump’s State of the Union
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Players from the United States men’s hockey team arrived at the House of Representatives for President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night.
Trump introduced the team and received applause from those in attendance.
The players wore American sweaters with their gold medals around their necks.
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Members of the United States men’s Olympic hockey team attend as President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, February 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
The chamber erupted in chants of “USA.”
“They beat a fantastic Canadian team in overtime, as everyone saw, as did the American women who will soon be in the White House,” she said.
During the speech, Trump said he would honor goaltender Connor Hellebuyck with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Some players were unable to attend because NHL commitments were about to ramp up again. But others were in Washington to visit the president at the White House before the event began. The players traveled to DC from Miami after celebrating their gold medal win at the Winter Olympics.
Several gold medalists took photos with Trump. Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk even let the president wear his gold medal in a joyous moment in the Oval Office.
Connor Hellebuyck on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, after President Donald Trump announced he will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
“I’m not giving it back,” the president joked.
Trump invited the team to the State of the Union address on Sunday night as they celebrated in the locker room after their 2-1 victory over Canada. FBI Director Kash Patel put Trump on speakerphone.
“I’ll tell you what. I told my people two minutes ago that I didn’t know they were going to call me. I said we were giving the State of the Union address on Tuesday night,” Trump said. “I can send a military plane or something, but if you want, it’s the coolest night, it’s the most important speech.”
One player interrupted Trump and said, “We’re in.”
“We will get Kash and we will get the military to help them,” Trump continued. “You won’t have to worry about the weather or landing. We don’t care if it’s snowing or if it’s the worst blizzard. We’ll sail like you did on the ice.”
Jack Hughes poses for a photo with members of Team USA on Tuesday, February 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
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A couple of days later, some of the players were in DC.
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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor at News Digital.