Trump welcomes gold-medal U.S. hockey team in Oval Office video

President Donald Trump greeted members of the gold‑medal winning U.S. men's Olympic hockey team in the Oval Office, and the White House shared video of the meeting on social media on Tuesday afternoon. The footage, posted shortly after 3 PM Eastern and circulated by White House aides, shows players toured the West Wing, posed on the South Lawn and were expected to attend the president's State of the Union later that night with their medals.

The players heading to Washington, D.C., were flown aboard an Air Force C‑32, "at the request of the President," the Air Force said in a statement to USA TODAY. CBS News and other outlets reproduced a clip credited to Dan Scavino, the president's deputy chief of staff, that captured Mr. Trump greeting the team in the Oval Office and described the West Wing scene as being "with patriotic music blaring out of the Roosevelt Room." CBS's update was timestamped 3:17 PM Eastern; TMZ reported the video was shared "shortly after 3 PM EST" and placed the meeting roughly six hours before the State of the Union that evening.

Video and social posts show a light‑hearted exchange in the Oval Office. As CBS reported, Mr. Trump told the players, "Look at these guys. I recognize every one of you. I know every one of you," and added, "These are big guys." A White House social post reproduced by CBS read, "Happening Now, President Trump welcomes the @USAHockey team to the Oval Office here at the @WhiteHouse. Congratulations TEAM USA!!!!!🥇🇺🇸🦅🚀."

Outside the Oval Office the team was shown walking the colonnade and examining a wall of plaques. USA TODAY posted video of the players "walking along the wall of plaques of past presidents that Trump installed since his second term began," while TMZ called the display the "Presidential Hall of Fame" and reported that Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" blared over loudspeakers as players passed. Margo Martin, a White House special assistant, shared a photograph of team members standing on the South Lawn; TMZ noted a few players appeared to be missing from that group photo.

The meeting followed the United States' 2‑1 overtime victory over Canada to win the Olympic gold. USA TODAY recounted the final game's sequence: "The Americans drew first blood at the six‑minute mark of the first period on a shot by Matt Boldy, who made a fool of Cale Makar and Devon Toews, Canada’s top defensive pair." USA TODAY added that "Canada dominated the second period and finally responded late to tie the game, courtesy of a Makar goal." The outlet said, "The game would not be decided in regulation. The guys needed an extra period to crown a winner," and that "Jack Hughes, a 24‑year‑old center for the New Jersey Devils, provided late‑game heroics in overtime to clinch the United States' men's hockey team first gold medal since the 'Miracle on Ice' in 1980." The 2026 run has been dubbed "Miracle on Ice II."

Not all players appeared at the White House events. TMZ identified Brock Nelson, Kyle Connor, Jake Guentzel and Jake Oettinger as absent from the festivities, noting "no reason was given" and speculating they may have returned to NHL clubs ahead of the league's restart. TMZ also reported online backlash to the visit; Jack Hughes responded that getting the invite was "nothing but an honor."

House Speaker Mike Johnson told CBS the team "will be there with their gold medals" at the State of the Union and acknowledged logistics were "a bit of a challenge last minute," adding, "Somehow, some way, we'll squeeze in the hockey players tonight, and it'll be a great moment for America." The appearance tied a high‑profile sports victory to the president's address and underscored the administration's use of ceremonial events to amplify political messaging.