The simmering trade war and online Twitter/X combat between President Donald Trump and “Governor” Justin Trudeau is boiling over on the ice. The 4 Nations game between the U.S. and Canadian teams was full of fighting and physicality, reflecting the international animosity.
In early February, Matthew Tkachuk, the American-born star of the Florida Panthers, visited the White House with his team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory. He moved President Trump with these words:
“Thank you, Mr. President, for having us today. We greatly appreciate it. Being one of the few Americans, who loves this country so much, it’s such an incredible day for myself. You wake up every day really grateful to be an American. So, thank you.”
This American player, who forced his way off a Canadian NHL team a couple years ago, gushed his devotion to the red, white, and blue, eliciting a pat on the back and a handshake from the president.
This overt patriotism by a famous young American athlete is new in mainstream culture. Out of weakness, fecklessness, or conformity to bourgeois notions of internationalism, Americans have slowly allowed our sense of patriotism to degrade. But Tkachuk proved that a vibe-shift has happened.
A hockey game between the U.S. and Canada was the perfect setting for this real world tension to finally boil over. Last weekend, thousands of Canadians began booing the American flag, the Star Spangled Banner, and the inherent ethos of the United States, riling up Team USA.
Two seconds into the game, U.S. player Matthew Tkachuk dropped the gloves and pummeled Canadian Brandon Hagel. Three seconds after the second puck dropped, Brady Tkachuk—Matthew’s brother—squared off with Canadian Sam Bennett and beat him down to the ice, joining his brother in the penalty box where they high-fived. A few seconds later American J.T. Miller—a hot-tempered player known for even fighting his own teammates—threw hands with the much larger Colton Parayko of Canada.
The Canadians were shocked by the tenacity and physicality of the Americans only nine seconds into the game and were distracted for the rest of the night.
But the Americans weren’t done yet. With the game tied 1-1 halfway through the second period, Detroit Red Wings Captain Dylan Larkin, the current fastest skater in the NHL, blazed down the right side and sent a heat-seeking wrister past Canadian goalie Jordan Binnington for the eventual game winner.
Hockey is known internationally as “Canada’s game,” and there’s ample reasons for that reputation, but the American players have a reputation of their own. Sports pundits have waxed poetically on our grit and toughness.
That tenacity, inflamed by the stinging of a booing Canadian fanbase, sparked three fights in the first seconds of the game, two of which were started by sons of the legendary Keith “Big Walt” Tkachuk, who also had a famous reputation for throwing hands with Canadian players in international tournaments.
When asked if the booing factored into his play Saturday night, Matthew Tkachuk said simply, “I didn’t like it.”
This wasn’t just a hockey game. This was a rebirth of American exceptionalism.
The two teams will have a rematch in the 4 Nations championship game Thursday night in Boston in front of a far friendlier crowd, and pre-game chirping has already begun.
Brandon Hagel, obviously stung by Saturday’s loss, fired off accusations the fights were pre-planned by the Tkachuk brothers and J.T. Miller via team group chat saying “We don’t need to initiate anything, we don’t have any group chats going on.”
Matthew Tkachuk was unfazed: “Maybe their team doesn’t like each other then, if they don’t have group chats.”
Canada has seen how a booing crowd can ignite the Americans. Will Canada be able to muster a better response than a complaint about group chats?
Jay Murray is a writer for Michigan Enjoyer and has been a Metro Detroit-based professional investigator for 22 years. Follow him on X @Stainless31.
