Team USA’s Megan Keller Shares Where She Thinks the ‘Conversation Should Go’ After Men and Women’s Olympic Hockey Wins (Exclusive)

need to know

• Megan Keller tells PEOPLE exclusively about her “golden goals” for the 2026 Winter Olympics and praises her U.S. women’s hockey teammates for their win

• She shares the direction she wants to see the conversation take a political turn after President Donald Trump spoke with the men’s lacrosse team on the phone after their respective wins

• Keller also revealed her excitement about returning to the Boston Fleet for the second half of the season, serving as captain for her second year with the team

Megan Keller is golden!

The U.S. women’s hockey star, who scored the “golden goal” in a thrilling 2-1 victory over Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics, spoke exclusively with PEOPLE about the dramatic overtime comeback and the week ahead.

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“It definitely hasn’t settled yet,” Keller, 29, told PEOPLE exclusively on Thursday, February 19, about her gold medal win for Team USA. “Honestly, it’s crazy to think that that was a week ago. Super special. I think this is one of the best American teams to ever step on the stage.”

“The golden goal to end the game…Obviously Hilary Knight announced this was her last Olympics, so in order for her to do that, she had to get us into overtime and I could go on and on about the performance,” she continued. “But yeah, it hasn’t been embraced yet. It’s very special.”

Keller, while praising Team USA, is now re-energizing the PWHL’s Boston fleet. Three days later, the matter took a political turn with a phone call between the U.S. men’s hockey team and President Donald Trump about where she thought the conversation should go.

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“I have to tell you, we’re going to have to bring a women’s team,” Trump, 79, told the men, who began laughing after inviting them to the State of the Union address. When the men’s team got his call from the locker room, they laughed with him. Trump added, “You do know this. I do believe I could be impeached [if the women’s team wasn’t invited]”.

“I try to be honest and stay away from all comments,” the “Armada” star told People a few days after the call. “Everyone has an opinion.”

“Yes, it’s a little unfortunate in a sense to see where this conversation is going, but I thought I could talk about how proud I am of our team and how proud I know we are of representing our country on the biggest stage in the world,” she added.

“This is the honor of a lifetime for all of us, not just the women’s team but the men’s team, and it’s unbelievable to bring that gold medal home,” Keller continued. “This has never been done before, so I think the conversation should be about all of us as athletes.”

“It’s been our dream to put on a Team USA jersey and represent our country on the biggest stage,” she said. “It’s a dream to win a gold medal for your country and all the people who helped get you here. Everybody across the country.”

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Keller made it clear, “All the men and women who serve us and allow us to represent our country in the way that we do, so honestly, that’s where I think the conversation should be.”

During a video call from the rink during her first training session with the fleet since returning from Milan, Keller spoke freely, transferring all the excitement from the Olympics into the second half of the PWHL.

“It’s so exciting to be back in Boston. I think we have a really special group here and these girls are really missed, especially having the opportunity to represent Boston and play for this city,” she told PEOPLE. “It has become my home and it’s really special to be a part of it.”

“We’re about to have a big second half,” she continued. “We’re at the top of the league right now and I think our whole goal is to bring the Walter Cup to the city of Boston. So that’s our top priority and we’re really excited to get back to work.”

Keller, who was named fleet captain in November 2025, said she has already felt the growing spotlight on the PWHL following Team USA’s gold medal win, which is a nostalgic moment for her as she reflects on her aspirations as a young female athlete.

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“When Team USA won its first gold medal … that team ignited a dream in all of us to want to play hockey,” she said of the U.S. team’s win over Canada at the 1998 Nagano Games, which marked the first time women’s hockey made it to the Olympics.

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“You definitely feel the impact right away,” Keller said. “A lot of us want to be great ambassadors for sports and women’s sports and continue to push the envelope. There’s a lot of great things to come. I don’t think we’ve even scratched the surface of what we’ve been able to accomplish.”

Reflecting on her gold goal, Keller talked about her interaction with men’s hockey star Jack Hughes, who scored the gold goal for the men’s team three days after her in their respective wins over Canada.

Hughes, 24, spoke highly of Keller immediately after he scored the winning goal at Stadio Santa Giulia in Milan, Italy. In a postgame interview, he told NHL Network’s Jackie Redmond that the women’s hockey star was the first person he thought of after hitting the ball.

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“Honestly, it’s so cool,” Keller told People of her reaction when she heard Hughes thought about her being the first person who came to mind after that milestone moment.

“I saw him in the cafeteria after we won and he came up to me and congratulated me,” she recalled, adding, “A few days later, when he scored the golden goal, I was lucky enough to be able to hug him in the cafe and say ‘congratulations.’ “

Keller continued, “Those are the goals we’ll always remember, and honestly, sweeping USA Hockey and getting both sides a gold medal, I think those are the goals we’ll all always remember.”

“We were able to have lunch with the men’s team and develop creative friendships and relationships throughout the tournament,” she shared, emphasizing that “for the first time, the U.S. men’s and women’s teams [hockey teams] Bringing home a gold medal to USA Hockey is pretty legendary. “

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Read the original article on People