White House and NFL Star Target Trudeau After U.S. Ice Hockey Gold Triumph

By Nicole Weatherholtz
Monday, February 23, 2026

The White House seized the opportunity to tease former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following Team USA’s stunning victory over Canada for Olympic gold in men’s ice hockey.

At the Milan Cortina Winter Games on Sunday, the U.S. ended a 46-year drought of men’s ice hockey gold, defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime with Jack Hughes scoring the game-winning goal.

After the win, Team USA received a congratulatory phone call from President Donald Trump.

However, the celebrations were not limited to players.

The White House’s Twitter account revisited a post Trudeau made last year during the 4 Nations Face-Off when Canada defeated the U.S. In that post, Trudeau wrote: “You can’t take our country — and you can’t take our game.”

On Sunday, the White House shared Trudeau’s message and added its own visual jab: an image of a bald eagle perched atop a Canadian goose.

Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III also joined in, posting Trudeau’s old message alongside an image of himself with an American flag and writing: “We took your game.”

Hughes scored the game-winning goal after Zach Werenski delivered a cross-ice feed, electrifying fans in Milan and Americans back home as they tuned into the game early Sunday.

In an interview following his goal, Hughes said: “This is all about our country right now.”

“I love the USA,” he added. “I’m so proud to be American today.”

“I love my country; I love my teammates,” he continued.

“That’s American hockey right there,” Hughes remarked. “That’s a great Canadian team, but this means so much. We are such a team.”

FBI Director Kash Patel was in the stands for Team USA’s victory and joined players in celebrating after the game.

Patel is an amateur hockey player and an avid fan.

A video circulating online showed Patel drinking beer, spraying it on a table, and having the gold medal draped around his neck.

The FBI director later posted on Twitter in response to news reports about his locker room visit: “For the very concerned media — yes, I love America and was extremely humbled when my friends, the newly minted Gold Medal winners on Team USA, invited me into the locker room to celebrate this historic moment with the boys — Greatest country on earth and greatest sport on earth.”