Jack Hughes, mom respond to U.S. men’s hockey backlash over Trump call

Olympian Jack Hughes and his mom recently responded to the fallout from the U.S. men’s hockey team’s viral call with President Donald Trump.

During the locker room call with the team, President Trump invited the players to the State of the Union address. He briefly mentioned the U.S. women’s hockey team, who also won gold during the Olympics, beating Canada in an overtime thriller, saying he had to invite them too, or he would be ‘impeached.’ The men’s hockey team laughed at the president’s remark.

‘People are so negative out there, and they are just trying to find a reason to put people down and make something out of almost nothing,’ Jack Hughes told the Daily Mail.

‘People are so negative about things. I think everyone in that locker room knows how much we support them, how proud we are of them, and we know the same way we feel about them, they feel about us.’

During an appearance on the Today Show, Ellen Hughes, Jack’s mom, also addressed the backlash. Ellen Hughes is also the mother of Team USA’s Quinn Hughes and a consultant for the U.S. women’s hockey team.

‘These players, both the men and women, can bring so much unity to a group and to a country,” Ellen Hughes said. “People that cheered on that don’t watch hockey, people that have politics on one side or on the other side, and that’s all both the men’s team and the women’s team care about.’

A USA Hockey spokesperson said while the women’s team received an invitation, it wouldn’t be able to attend. They declined the President’s invitation.

‘Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate,’ the spokesperson said. ‘They were honored to be included and are grateful for the acknowledgment.’

Jack Hughes seemed to confirm that he and his teammates will be in Washington for President Trump’s address. ‘We’re so proud to represent the U.S., and when you get the chance to go to White House and meet the president, we’re proud to be Americans, and that’s so patriotic,’ Hughes said.

Despite the backlash to the phone call with Trump, Hughes’ mom says both rosters supported one another during their respective runs to gold medals.

“If you could see what we see from the inside, and the men and women sharing, you know, dorm rooms and halls and flex floors and the camaraderie and the synergy and the way the women cheered on the men and the way the men cheered on the women — that’s what it’s all about,’ Hughes’ mom said.

‘And the other things they cannot control. They care about humanity. They care about unity, and they care about the country.”