Team USA hockey would like to see President Donald Trump in attendance when they take on Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game on Thursday night.
The Stars and Stripes secured their spot in the championship game with a thrilling win against Canada in their round-robin game on Saturday, and Canada set up a rematch with the U.S. after defeating Finland 5-3 on Monday. Bill Guerin, the general manager for Team USA, invited Trump to watch the game in person in Boston, telling Fox News on Monday, “We would love it if President Trump was in attendance. We have a room full of proud American players and coaches and staff. And listen, we’re just trying to represent our country the best way we can.”
Team USA’s Saturday matchup against Canada in Montreal was embroiled in bad blood from the very beginning as Canadian fans continued their trend of booing the U.S. national anthem. Immediately after the opening face-off, American players Matthew and Brady Tkachuk and JT Miller dropped their gloves with Canadian players in three consecutive fights, setting the tone for what would be a fast and physical game.
After going down 1-0, the U.S. scored three unanswered goals and beat Team Canada 3-1, handing the Canadians their first loss in best-on-best international hockey in 15 years.
Asked if the anthem-booing or the current political climate between the U.S. and Canada had any effect on the game, Guerin said he believes the American players used the “political flare” as “inspiration” in their game against Canada.
“Canada-U.S. is a huge rivalry in hockey,” he said. “I think there was a little bit of a political flare to it. It’s just the time that we’re in. I think our guys used that as inspiration. If you let it get the better of you, then you’re in trouble. But I really do think the players used it as inspiration.”
Trump has already attended multiple major sporting events in the first month of his second term. Earlier this month, he attended Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, and on Sunday, he was driven around the track at the Daytona 500.
