Men Are Disappointing, Blegh

USA’s gold medalists Brady Tkachuk and teammates celebrate with their medals during the medals ceremony of the men’s ice hockey event at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan, on Feb. 22, 2026. (Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

Both the men’s and women’s Olympic hockey teams won gold in Italy last week, but the men’s team has stayed in the media’s eye–and not for good reasons. 

A video was posted from the locker room celebration after the win, where President Trump was on a FaceTime call with the team. Trump was heard in the video stating that if he did not invite the women’s team, “I do believe I probably would be impeached.”

The entire team laughed at his joke, and then proceeded to chug beers with FBI Director Kash Patel. Fans were outraged at this behavior, and many were unable to believe that the players would align themselves with the current administration. 

The aftermath of the win has been a tremendous letdown for fans, as many players showed their true colors as supporters of the current administration.

The American public should be celebrating the success of the teams, but the men’s team’s response to the women has stained any pride held in their victory. Laughing at a joke putting down women, for the public to see, was disappointing. 

More than disappointing, it was disgusting. 

Some players have come out and said that they were caught up in the celebration, making it acceptable that they laughed at an inappropriate joke. One Boston Bruins reporter posted a video of Charlie McAvoy, a defenseman for the Bruins, stating that the players were sorry for how they responded and that, “Things just happened really quick there.”

However, morals do not disappear in the heat of the moment. Most players, like McAvoy, have only expressed remorse because the public called them out on their behavior, not because they believe their reactions were inappropriate. 

Other players have buckled down on their response to President Trump, either through statements or social media actions. Quinn Hughes, defensemen for the Minnesota Wild and members of the US Olympics hockey team, followed a communications advisor for President Trump after the White House visit. 

The newest social media interest for fans of the NHL has been the NHL Follow Tracker on X (formerly Twitter). While some players have reportedly followed and unfollowed entertaining accounts–Evgeni Malkin followed “Humans Choose Kindness” on Instagram and unfollowed after only three days–other players have been on display for their political affiliations.

Many players have recently followed Kai Trump, the 18-year-old granddaughter of President Trump. In fact, Luke Hughes felt left out when his brothers were revealed as MAGA supporters, and added her to his following just one day after the Team USA White House visit. 

The behavior of the team is disappointing, but not surprising. Hockey runs amuck with misogyny, as female fans are frequently referred to as “puck bunnies,” as if their interest in the sport could only be for the looks of the players, not the game. 

The members of the Olympic’s men’s team played into this. They proved that they do not take the women’s team and their success seriously, despite the women being more consistent in their Olympic success than the men. 

Some may argue that sports are not about politics, but at the end of the day: everything is political, even if Jack Hughes tells you it’s not. Players that led people to take an interest in the sport, making them feel accepted with past comments, have proved themselves to be very disappointing.

In 2024, Jack Hughes stated in an interview that it was important to participate in the Devils’ Pride Night celebration, and that, “I think a bunch of the guys on our team, we’re looking forward to that. Obviously, with how we grew up, my family really supports that too.” These comments resurfaced after the locker room video, but the sentiment falls flat. 

It is impossible to support teams and players if they don’t show the same support and respect for the identities of fans. Fans do not want to dedicate their time and money to individuals and organizations that do not care about them. 

The women’s team turned down their invitation to the White House (rightfully so), and will be attending a celebration thrown by Flavor Flav in Las Vegas in July. The rapper is a sponsor and “hype man” for the United States’ men’s and women’s bobsled and skeleton and water polo teams. 

The response of the men’s team has taken away from the public’s celebration of the women’s win. Hilary Knight, captain of the women’s team, stated that the joke is, “overshadowing a lot of success, the success of just women at the Olympics carrying for Team USA and having amazing gold medal feats.” 

The disrespect shown to the women’s team, both from President Trump and the men’s team, has been disappointing. Not only did they win on the same level as the men, but they are a more consistent Olympic team. Since women’s Olympic hockey started in 1998, the U.S. team has medaled in every single Olympics. 

Women’s hockey is on the rise, with Olympic success and the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), but the NHL continues to have disasters: locker room and fan homophobia, a lack of true support for the LGBTQ+ community, support for women, misogyny. The league cannot commit to proper support of any marginalized group. 

So, next time the NHL wants to run a “Hockey Is For Everyone” campaign, remember that all of those considered the best in the league were positively giddy over a misogynistic joke and a chance to eat cold McDonald’s with the President.