Hilary Knight Calls Out Donald Trump Over ‘Distasteful’ Joke About USA Women’s Hockey Team

Team USA women’s hockey captain Hilary Knight has responded to a joke made by former President Donald Trump regarding an invitation to the White House. The comment, made after both the U.S. Men’s and women’s hockey teams won gold medals at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, drew criticism and overshadowed the team’s accomplishments.

Trump’s Comment and the Reaction

Following the U.S. Men’s hockey team’s overtime victory against Canada, video surfaced of Trump inviting the men’s team to Washington, D.C., for the State of the Union address. He then added, with a laugh, that he would “probably be impeached” if he didn’t also invite the women’s team [1]. Several players on the men’s team were seen laughing at the remark.

Hilary Knight’s Response

Knight addressed the comment during an interview on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” on Wednesday, February 25, 2026. She described Trump’s joke as “distasteful” and expressed her disappointment that it was diverting attention from the women’s team’s success [3]. “I thought it was sort of a distasteful joke, and unfortunately that is overshadowing a lot of the success, the success of just women at the Olympics carrying for Team USA and having amazing gold medal feats,” Knight stated [4].

Knight emphasized her focus on celebrating the achievements of the women’s team, including their record-setting performance at the Olympics and their third Olympic gold medal, as well as the double gold achieved by both the men’s and women’s teams [3]. She wants to focus on “celebrating all great things that have come out of the Olympics and feeling the love and support and getting back in our respective communities and sharing this journey with them” [3].

PWHL Season and Olympic Celebrations

The Seattle Torrent, where Knight currently plays in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), has six players who competed in the 2026 Winter Olympics [1]. The team is back in Seattle to begin the second half of the PWHL season, and the gold medal-winning Team USA players were honored with a celebratory press conference at the Space Needle on Wednesday [1].