U.S. Women's Hockey Turns Down White House Invite After Trump's Joke

Team USA’s gold-medal women’s hockey team will decline its White House invitation to attend Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, per several reports. The reasons cited were scheduling challenges, a representative from USA Hockey said.

President Trump spoke to the men by phone on Sunday night.

“I must tell you, we’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that,” he said to the players, after extending an invite to the men’s gold medal-winning team during a call to their locker room. They beat Canada 2-1 on Sunday, on a goal by Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devils.

“I do believe I probably would be impeached,” Trump joked about the possibility of not inviti the women.

It was the first gold medal in men’s hockey for the USA since the 1980s’ famed “Miracle on Ice” team, when college athletes beat an undefeated Russian squad.

The women won their gold medal on Thursday night, also in a 2-1 overtime win vs. Canada. Laila Edwards became the first Black woman in Olympic history to win a medal of any color in women’s hockey. The Cleveland Heights native credited Travis and Jason Kelce for a $10,000 donation to her GoFundMe, which helped family members attend the Games in Italy.

After the victory, Edwards shared a meal with Megan Thee Stallion.

The late weekend invite made it logistically challenging for either team to attend a White House ceremony. The NHL returns to play on Wednesday and the PWHL goes back to work on Thursday. The men’s team flew from Italy to Miami via charter on Monday and were spotted partying in the city Monday night. The women’s team flew commercial to Atlanta, with several members arriving in Minneapolis on Monday.

“We are sincerely grateful for the invitation extended to our gold medal–winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and deeply appreciate the recognition of their extraordinary achievement,” a spokesperson from USA Hockey said in a release. “Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate.”

“They were honored to be included and are grateful for the acknowledgment,” the statement concluded.

The men’s hockey team will attend the State of the Union address, as confirmed by several players, including Hughes, who lost two teeth in the victory.

He also spoke to ESPN about the negativity surrounding Trump’s remark, saying that, “Everyone is giving us backlash for all the social media stuff today. People are so negative out there, and they are just trying to find a reason to put people down and make something out of almost nothing.”