Trump State of the Union Address: The US men’s hockey team arrives at the event

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US men’s hockey team players arrived on the floor of the House for President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday evening.

Trump introduced the team and they received a round of applause from the crowd. They wore “USA” jerseys with their gold medals around their necks.

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Members of the United States Olympic hockey team attend as President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

The chamber erupted into “USA” chants.

“They beat a great Canadian team in overtime that everyone saw, as did the American women who are coming to the White House soon,” he said.

During the speech, Trump said he would honor goaltender Connor Hellebuyck with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Some players were unable to follow NHL commitments by re-ascending. But others were in Washington to visit the president at the White House before the event began. Players came to DC from Miami after celebrating their gold medal win at the Winter Olympics.

Several gold medalists took pictures with Trump. Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk even let the president wear his gold medal in a bright moment in the Oval Office.

Connor Hellebuyck seen after President Donald Trump announced that he will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Tuesday, February 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

“I’m not giving it back,” the president joked.

Trump invited the team to the State of the Union Sunday night as they celebrated in the locker room after their 2-1 win over Canada. FBI Director Kash Patel put Trump on speaker phone.

“I’ll tell you what. I just told my people two minutes ago, I didn’t know they were going to call, I said we’re 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 biggest speech…”

One player cut Trump off and said, “We’re in.”

“We’re going to get Kash and we’re going to get the military to get you guys over,” Trump continued. “Don’t worry about the weather or landing. We don’t care if it’s snowing or if it’s the worst blizzard—we’ll sail through like you did on the ice.”