This time, following a week-long feud between the U.S. women’s and men’s Olympic gold medal hockey teams, it was Hilary Knight’s turn to laugh, courtesy of a “Saturday Night Live” writer.
Knight, captain of the U.S. women’s team, made a surprise appearance Saturday night during “The Rivalry” star Connor Story’s opening monologue on “Saturday Night Live,” along with teammate Megan Keller and men’s team brothers Jack and Quinn Hughes.
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The Hughes brothers were already on stage with Story, and Knight and Keller joined them in a standing ovation. All four players wore Team USA jerseys with gold medals around their necks.
Knight started by saying, “It was going to be just us, but we thought we’d invite others as well.”
The quote was an apparent reference to the controversy that erupted when the men’s team received a congratulatory call from President Donald Trump following Sunday’s 2-1 overtime win over Canada at the Cortina Games in Milan.
Trump, speaking to the team on speakerphone, invited men to his State of the Union address, then added that he must invite women as well. The president later said he risked impeachment if he didn’t invite the women, leading players to mock comments that many considered sexist.
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Knight called the joke “disgusting and unfortunate” on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, many men said they were having a blast laughing at the celebrations. Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Silverman admitted they “should have reacted differently” to Trump’s comments.
Three days ago, the U.S. women’s soccer team also defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime, but politely declined Trump’s invitation due to travel plans. The players were on a commercial trip and returned to North America Monday night, much later than the men’s team, on a charter flight paid for by the NHL and NHL Players Association.
Jack Hughes scored in overtime for the men’s team.
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Keller scored the overtime goal for the women’s team, and Knight tied the game in the final minutes of regulation.
Knight plays for the PWHL’s Seattle Thrashers and traveled to New York City a day after being placed on long-term injured reserve. Keller, who plays for Boston, rushed to New York just hours after playing in the Fleet’s 3-2 shootout win in Ottawa earlier in the day.
Jack Hughes plays for the NHL New Jersey Devils and Quinn plays for the Minnesota Wild.
Quinn Hughes said the last time a men’s team won a gold medal was 46 years ago at the 1980 Lake Placid Games, and Knight added another quip.
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Knight then said the last time a woman won was in 2018.
Jack Hughes smiled and responded, “Well done,” before turning to Story and saying, “These gold medals are not just for us, they belong to all hockey fans, including yours.”
When Story asked if he could try on one of the medals, all four players turned around and said, “No.”
“The Rivalry” quickly became a hit after its first season aired on HBO Max. The show, adapted from the 2019 novel by Rachel Reid, tells a gay hockey love story in which two players from rival teams form a secret, long-term relationship.
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AP Olympics coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
