Matthew Tkachuk won his first Olympic gold medal on Sunday. After the victory, he shared some bold statements about the state of the hockey world that has outraged Canadian fans.
Matthew and his brother, Brady Tkachuk, accomplished something their Hall of Fame father, Keith Tkachuk, never did: winning Olympic gold.
Keith competed in four Olympic tournaments—1992, 1998, 2002, and 2006—but his closest finish was a silver medal at the 2002 Games. Now, his sons will add two Olympic gold medals to the family’s trophy cabinet.
READ MORE: Team USA wins the Olympic gold medal
Matthew Tkachuk’s words on the gold
The gold medal game was a hard-fought battle between rivals Team USA and Team Canada. Canada has long claimed hockey as its national sport, but after Team USA’s victory, a visibly excited Matthew Tkachuk—who recorded six assists during the tournament—made a striking declaration while speaking with reporters.
Asked how it felt to defeat Canada, he said:
“The United States of America, the greatest country in the world, deserves this because we’ve been knocking at the door for a long time. We’re on top of the world—hockey is our game now. We are ready to party hard; we’ve waited a long time.”
Canada fans are furious
His bold claim that hockey now belongs to the Americans sparked strong reactions from Canadian fans.
“There is no way he actually believes that garbage,” one fan wrote on X.
“I’m OK with them winning gold every 46 years. He is such a blowhard,” another one wrote.
“I will high-praise the Hughes brothers, but these brothers did sh*t all,” a third fan commented:
READ MORE: Canada fans’ surprising gesture for Connor Hellebuyck
