On Feb. 9, Donald Trump claimed China would “terminate” hockey in Canada. Lower than two weeks later, Canada misplaced each Olympic gold medal video games to the U.S., 2-1 in time beyond regulation.
On Feb. 9, President Donald Trump issued a dire warning to America’s northern neighbor in a Truth Social rant tied to the Gordie Howe International Bridge. If Canada struck offers with China, he steered, the nation’s most beloved sport would pay the worth.
“The very first thing China will do is terminate ALL Ice Hockey being performed in Canada, and completely remove The Stanley Cup,” Trump wrote, with out explaining how that will even work.
Ten days later, Canada’s Olympic hockey hopes have been eradicated in a manner the put up by no means imagined. It wasn’t China. It was Staff USA’s women who beat Canada 2 to 1 in overtime on Feb. 19 to win gold.
Then, on Sunday, Feb. 22, it occurred once more. Staff USA’s males beat Canada 2 to 1 in time beyond regulation for gold, precisely 46 years after the “Miracle on Ice” recreation in 1980.
In fact, Trump’s rant didn’t develop into coverage. It turned a punchline with time beyond regulation doing the work.
The Timeline That Makes This Too Good
Feb. 9: Trump claims China will “terminate ALL Ice Hockey” in Canada and “remove The Stanley Cup.”
Feb. 19: USA girls defeat Canada 2-1 in time beyond regulation. Hilary Knight ties it with 2:04 left in regulation. Megan Keller ends it 4:07 into time beyond regulation.
Feb. 22: USA males defeat Canada 2-1 in time beyond regulation. Jack Hughes, bloodied by a high stick in the third period, scores the winner 1:41 into overtime. Connor Hellebuyck finishes with 40 saves.
Identical rating, identical additional session, identical opponent. Twice. No matter you assume Trump was doing with that put up, the Olympics turned it into an unintended punchline.
Was It a Warning or a Hex?
Trump didn’t warn Canada that the USA would take each gold medals. He warned that China would erase hockey itself.
And but the scoreboard at Milano Santagiulia saved flashing the identical message: USA 2, Canada 1.
The one manner the prediction “works” is by treating a 3-on-3 time beyond regulation objective like a geopolitical sanction, as if sudden loss of life is international coverage. It isn’t. It’s simply merciless timing.
Canada’s Perspective: “Thanks for the Heads Up”
Should you’re a Canadian hockey fan, the road lands like salt, not prophecy.
“Thanks for warning us about China terminating hockey,” one may think a Canadian writing. “Subsequent time, point out the half the place Staff USA does it first. Twice. With the identical rating.”
The irony is sharpened by the setting. Trump’s rant centered on a bridge named for Gordie Howe, “Mr. Hockey.” 13 days later, American groups handed Canada two time beyond regulation losses on the game’s largest stage.
What Staff USA Truly Did
Pause the satire. What occurred on the ice was historic.
The Ladies (Feb. 19): Knight pressured time beyond regulation with the late tying objective. Keller completed it. The U.S. received its third Olympic gold medal and its first since 2018, going 7-0 and outscoring opponents 33-2.
The Males (Feb. 22): The Individuals ended their males’s Olympic gold drought courting again to 1980. Hughes delivered the time beyond regulation winner after dropping tooth to that top stick. Hellebuyck anchored it with 40 saves. The U.S. finished 6-0, outscoring opponents 26-9.
Mixed, the U.S. turned solely the second nation to comb males’s and girls’s Olympic hockey gold on the identical Video games, becoming a member of Canada, which did it in 2002, 2010, and 2014.
Trump celebrated afterward on Reality Social. The quote was pure hype. The irony was the lacking footnote.
The Actual Winner
Canada’s coach Jon Cooper took the excessive highway afterward, saying hockey was the winner. He’s not fallacious.
However the web will not be constructed for nuance. It’s constructed for timing. And the timing right here is absurd: one weird “terminate hockey” declare, adopted by two an identical 2 to 1 time beyond regulation losses to Staff USA inside three days.
The Unintended Punchline
Trump predicted hockey can be “terminated” in Canada. Lower than two weeks later, Canada misplaced each Olympic hockey gold medal video games to Staff USA, 2 to 1 in time beyond regulation, on Feb. 19 and Feb. 22.
China had nothing to do with it. Staff USA did, and the coincidence did the remaining.
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