BOSTON (AP) 鈥� The general manager of the United States team in the 4 Nations Face-Off hockey tournament said he would welcome a visit from President Donald Trump to the championship game between the U.S. and Canada on Thursday night.
Bill Guerin, who played 18 years in the NHL for eight teams, said on Fox News that Trump鈥檚 presence would give a boost to the rivalry between the North American hockey powers. He credited Trump鈥檚 tariff threats and talk of making Canada the for ratcheting up the intensity in their fight-filled matchup in the preliminary round.
鈥淲e would love it if President Trump was in attendance,鈥� Guerin said in the . 鈥淲e have a room full of proud American players and coaches and staff. Listen, we鈥檙e just trying to represent our country the best way we can.鈥�
The tournament marks the return of the top hockey stars to international play after sitting out the last two Olympics.
The United States beat Canada 3-1 on Saturday in a game that began with . The quality of play, intensity of emotions and geopolitical backdrop have drawn comparisons to the Americans鈥� 鈥淢iracle on Ice鈥� victory over the Soviet Union at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics.
鈥淚 think there was a little bit of a political flair to it. It鈥檚 just the time that we鈥檙e in,鈥� Guerin said. 鈥淚f you let it get the better of you, then you鈥檙e in trouble. But I do think the players used it as inspiration.鈥�
Since his Jan. 20 inauguration, Trump has attended the and .
Canada forward Brandon Hagel said Tuesday his team didn't need any extra motivation, referencing American players having discussed over group chats their plan to start the previous game with fights.
鈥淚 think we鈥檙e out there playing for the flag, not the cameras. That鈥檚 a part of Canada that we have in there. We don鈥檛 need to initiate anything. We don鈥檛 have any group chats going on,鈥� Hagel said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going out there playing our game and then giving it everything and doing it for our country.鈥�
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