Tkachuk, Sanderson, and Team USA visit the White House amid controversy, celebrating their gold medal win over Canada.
When an American sports team wins a major championship, it's pretty standard that they receive an invitation to the White House at some point to meet and pose for pictures with the President.
That's just what happened on Tuesday as President Trump welcomed Senators stars Brady Tkachuk, Jake Sanderson, and Team USA after their 2-1 overtime win over Canada in the gold medal game at the Winter Olympics in Italy on Sunday.
But this divided world of ours is anything but standard right now. Being invited to the White House used to be universally described as a great honour. For some, it still is. For others, to put it mildly, it is highly controversial.
Some of the players had already been catching heat for laughing at the punchline of the President's joke when he FaceTimed them after the gold medal game. Trump remarked that he'll now have to invite the gold medal-winning women's team as well, or get impeached.
The American women's team opted not to accept the White House invitation, but didn't say if it had anything to do with the President's comment.
"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 USA Hockey spokesperson said. "Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate."
On Tuesday, most of the men's players, including Tkachuk and Sanderson, forged ahead with their visit. Five Team USA players did not attend for undisclosed reasons.
Jack Hughes, who scored the golden goal, addressed the social media dialogue about their visit on Monday.
"Everything is so political," Hughes told the Daily Mail. "We're athletes. We're so proud to represent the U.S., and we get the chance to go to the White House, meet the president. You know, we're proud to be Americans."
"No matter what your views are, we're super excited to go."
Senators head coach Travis Green said on Monday that both Tkachuk and Sanderson will be back in time for the club's next game on Thursday, when they host the Detroit Red Wings at Canadian Tire Centre.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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