The United States and Canada clash one again, this time for the 4-Nations Face-Off championship. This game is available on multiple streaming services for free. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)AP
President Donald Trump spoke with Team USA players and staff ahead of their 4 Nations Face-Off championship game against Canada, turning up the heat on their rivalry that has gone beyond the rink.
Politics have been at the center of the tournament with Trump’s continued threats of tariffs and wishes for Canada to become the 51st state, prompting the U.S. national anthem to get booed before NHL and NBA games in Canada, including two 4 Nations games at Montreal’s Bell Centre.
Trump called Team USA general manager Bill Guerin and coach Mike Sullivan and then spoke with the rest of the team to wish them luck in Thursday’s game. According to The Athletic, Trump got political in mentioning the 51st state.
“A little bit, but I would just try to focus on the message that he was giving us,” Guerin, a former Devils player, told The Athletic. “I’ve said it before: We’re here to play hockey. This is not a political forum. This is a hockey tournament. And he’s just trying to be supportive in the best way that he could, and we appreciate it.”
The tension and excitement for a best-on-best game between the U.S. and Canada nine years in the making has been heightened through politics.
Trump announced he would be calling the team on his Truth Social account on Thursday morning. In the same post, he referred to Canada as “someday, maybe soon, our Fifty First State,” and prime minister Justin Trudeau as “Governor Trudeau,” which he has done throughout the first month of his second term.
Recent political turmoil between the two countries bled into Saturday’s 3-1 USA win over Canada. American power forwards Matthew and Brady Tkachuk fought Canada’s Brandon Hagel and Sam Bennett, respectively, in the first three seconds of Saturday’s game. Then at the next whistle, USA’s J.T. Miller fought Canada’s Colton Parayko.
“It was so awesome to get his support,” Miller told The Athletic. “It’s a pretty big deal for him to take time out of his schedule to talk to us for five minutes. It’s just another one of those things where we’re kind of pinching ourselves this tournament.”
Hagel said after Saturday’s game the fights were “for the flag, not the cameras.” Matthew Tkachuk said he and his teammates planned in a group chat to fight before the game.
The rest of the game was full of violent checks and playoff-level intensity. It was the first time the best players for each country faced each other in nearly a decade since NHL stars sat out the last two Olympics.
Players and pundits expect Thursday’s rematch at TD Garden in Boston (8 p.m. ET on ESPN) for the trophy will bring a similar environment.
“Should be the same, probably just as fast, just as physical,” Devils star Jack Hughes said. “I don’t know if there will be the fights tonight but definitely should be a great game.”
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Gabriel Trevino can be reached at GTrevino@njadvancemedia.com or on X @GabeCTrevino
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