During the State of the Union address by President Trump on Tuesday evening, most of the members of the U.S. men’s hockey team walked into the House chamber of the Capitol wearing their Winter Olympics gold medals. The audience rose to their feet in applause and chants of “USA! USA!” echoed through the room.
Two days prior, the U.S. men’s hockey team clinched the gold medal in a thrilling final against Team Canada, bringing a perfect conclusion to the 2026 Winter Olympics and ending a 46-year gold medal drought for the United States. During the State of the Union address, President Trump specifically praised one of the team members, but why?
Before the State of the Union address, the U.S. team visited the White House and met with Trump in the Oval Office. Trump mentioned that he had conducted an informal public opinion poll regarding the situation of goaltender Connor Hellebuyck.
“Based on their votes and my own vote – which is more important in this case – I will soon award Connor our highest civilian honor… the Presidential Medal of Freedom,” Trump announced during the address. The U.S. team members were present in the audience, listening to the President’s speech.
Hellebuyck delivered a stellar performance in the gold medal showdown at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, making 41 saves out of 42 shots to secure the net and prevent any goals until the game-winning goal was scored by the U.S. team less than two minutes into overtime.
“I have never seen a goaltender perform as brilliantly as Connor Hellebuyck did,” Trump stated during the State of the Union address, before declaring that he would bestow upon Hellebuyck the highest civilian honor.
The President mentioned that every member present in the Oval Office had voted to award Hellebuyck the Presidential Medal of Freedom. One of the most memorable saves in the second period of the gold medal match was when Hellebuyck stood up to a shot from Canadian player Devon Toews.
“That save where you used the back of the stick to fend off the shot, hitting the neck of the stick and deflecting it out,” Trump recounted during his speech on Tuesday evening at the State of the Union address.
“Was that a move you practiced, or was there a bit of luck involved?” Trump followed up with a question.
The President added that Hellebuyck declined to answer that question.
At 32 years old, Hellebuyck, born in Commerce, Michigan, serves as the goaltender for the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. He has won the Vezina Trophy thrice, which honors the league’s top goaltender. In the 2024-2025 season, he secured the Hart Trophy with a record of 47 wins, 12 losses, and 3 overtime losses, becoming the NHL’s Most Valuable Player.
Hellebuyck played college hockey at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the fifth round of the 2012 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut in the 2015-2016 season.
According to U.S. Congressional statistics, from 1963 to 2025, a total of 671 individuals and one group (the Apollo 13 mission operations team) have been awarded 674 Presidential Medals of Freedom.