MILAN ~ The U.S. men’s hockey team is facing backlash over a celebratory phone call with President Donald Trump and a viral locker room celebration with FBI Director Kash Patel, with the mother of high-profile hockey player Jack Hughes responding to the controversy.
Following a gold-medal victory over Canada in the Winter Olympics on Sunday, Trump called the team to congratulate them on their victory. During the call, which was recorded on video, the president said, “We’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that. I do believe I probably would be impeached,” which drew laughs from the team members. This drew criticism towards Trump and the men’s team, many claiming the comment insulted the gold-winning women’s team and showed a double standard between the men’s and women’s teams.
Ellen Hughes, mother of Jack Hughes and consultant for the U.S. women’s hockey team, told an interviewer on the Today Show that, “These players, both the men and women, can bring so much unity to a group and to a country. People that cheered on that don’t watch hockey, people that have politics on one side or on the other side, and that’s all both the men’s team and the women’s team care about.”
The men’s hockey team is also tied to a controversy with Patel, seen in a video flinging alcohol, pumping fists, and wearing a gold medal with the team in the locker room. This stunt raised eyebrows due to a perception that he was not prioritizing high-profile matters related to his role, such as a security breach at Mar-a-Lago and the ongoing investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.
