shockedcanadian
Diamond Member
- Aug 6, 2012
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It was a fairly funny exchange at the WH. Half of the team is Canadian so it was interesting for Trump to say "we are doing so much better than Canada", though he did say he hoped we would do well also (which his team probably advised him that we are not).
Some Canadians online are upset, I just laugh as Im not responsible for our failures and unfortunately Canada loses many of its best talent.
Regardless, I wish Canadian athletes would say "Im proud to be Canadian" publicly as Thachuk did and tell the world WHY.
www.nhl.com
WASHINGTON -- Vowing āWeāre not going to stop,ā the Florida Panthers brought the Stanley Cup to the White House again Thursday to be honored for their back-to-back championships.
The Panthers accepted an invitation from President Donald Trump to attend the ceremony in the White Houseās East Room, flying to Washington for the afternoon before heading to Raleigh, North Carolina, to face the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, SCRIPPS, SNO, TVAS).
āI just want to say on behalf of the organization and mainly the players, weāre so honored to be here,ā Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. āBeing an American, I know I said it last year, nothing beats this. Iām so proud to be an American and so proud be here.ā
Like when the Panthers visited the White House last year to be honored for their 2024 Stanley Cup championship, Tkachuk gave a brief speech during the ceremony, as did owner Vincent Viola.
āI speak on behalf of every Florida Panther fan all over the world,ā Viola said. āWeāre not going to stop. Weāre not going to stop.ā
Tkachuk, captain Aleksander Barkov and defenseman Seth Jones gifted the President with a āTrump 47ā Panthers jersey, a gold stick, and Stanley Cup rings from each of the past two seasons before heading to the Oval Office with him for some more photos. In presenting the gold stick to President Trump, Tkachuk remarked that it was āgood for slashing.ā
President Trump lauded the Panthers' āaura of winningā for repeating as champions last season by again defeating the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final.
āNot only did you live up to the sky-high expectations, you gave us perhaps the most dominant playoff run in NHL history,ā President Trump said.
President Trump went through the Panthersā long list of accomplishments, including winning the Presidentsā Trophy as the NHLās top team in the regular season in 2021-22 and three consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup Final before wondering out loud how they lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 Cup Final.
āYou shouldāve won that, too,ā President Trump said.
Trump praised Viola, general manager Bill Zito and coach Paul Maurice for their accomplishments along with a host of players, beginning with forward Sam Bennett, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The president also pointed out the contributions of forwards Sam Reinhart, who scored four goals in Floridaās repeat-clinching 5-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, Brad Marchand, Tkachuk and Barkov, defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Jones, and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.
āAn incredible two straight Stanley Cup victories and I just want to congratulate their unbelievable players,ā President Trump said. āThey have something different because I watched some of the games and it looked like it was going to be tough, and you blew them out.ā
Florida has been hampered by a slew of injuries this season in its bid to become the first team to win the Stanley Cup in three consecutive seasons since the New York Islandersā run of four consecutive championships from 1980-1983. Tkachuk has yet to play after having offseason surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and sports hernia, but he could make his season debut against the Hurricanes on Friday.
The Panthers have also been without Barkov (knee), Marchand (undisclosed), Jones (upper body), forwards Jonah Gadjovich (upper body), Tomas Nosek (knee) and Cole Schwindt (arm), and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (upper body). Through its first 45 games, Florida (24-18-3) entered Thursday trailing the Buffalo Sabres and Boston Bruins by three points for the two wild cards into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
āLike I said last year, winning, it takes a toll,ā Tkachuk said. āYou pay a price for it and each one of these members behind me, it really does take a village to make it happen. Each person played a very, very important part, and coming down to Florida, thanks to Vinnie Viola and Bill Zito, has really changed my life and I cannot believe that the three years we got two Stanley Cups and, like Vinnie said, weāre not stopping now.
āWe hope to be here next year. So, thatās the plan.ā
Some Canadians online are upset, I just laugh as Im not responsible for our failures and unfortunately Canada loses many of its best talent.
Regardless, I wish Canadian athletes would say "Im proud to be Canadian" publicly as Thachuk did and tell the world WHY.
Panthers visit White House to celebrate back-to-back Stanley Cup wins | NHL.com
Owner Viola tells president, āWeāre not going to stopā
www.nhl.com
WASHINGTON -- Vowing āWeāre not going to stop,ā the Florida Panthers brought the Stanley Cup to the White House again Thursday to be honored for their back-to-back championships.
The Panthers accepted an invitation from President Donald Trump to attend the ceremony in the White Houseās East Room, flying to Washington for the afternoon before heading to Raleigh, North Carolina, to face the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, SCRIPPS, SNO, TVAS).
āI just want to say on behalf of the organization and mainly the players, weāre so honored to be here,ā Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. āBeing an American, I know I said it last year, nothing beats this. Iām so proud to be an American and so proud be here.ā
Like when the Panthers visited the White House last year to be honored for their 2024 Stanley Cup championship, Tkachuk gave a brief speech during the ceremony, as did owner Vincent Viola.
āI speak on behalf of every Florida Panther fan all over the world,ā Viola said. āWeāre not going to stop. Weāre not going to stop.ā
Tkachuk, captain Aleksander Barkov and defenseman Seth Jones gifted the President with a āTrump 47ā Panthers jersey, a gold stick, and Stanley Cup rings from each of the past two seasons before heading to the Oval Office with him for some more photos. In presenting the gold stick to President Trump, Tkachuk remarked that it was āgood for slashing.ā
President Trump lauded the Panthers' āaura of winningā for repeating as champions last season by again defeating the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final.
āNot only did you live up to the sky-high expectations, you gave us perhaps the most dominant playoff run in NHL history,ā President Trump said.
President Trump went through the Panthersā long list of accomplishments, including winning the Presidentsā Trophy as the NHLās top team in the regular season in 2021-22 and three consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup Final before wondering out loud how they lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 Cup Final.
āYou shouldāve won that, too,ā President Trump said.
Trump praised Viola, general manager Bill Zito and coach Paul Maurice for their accomplishments along with a host of players, beginning with forward Sam Bennett, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The president also pointed out the contributions of forwards Sam Reinhart, who scored four goals in Floridaās repeat-clinching 5-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, Brad Marchand, Tkachuk and Barkov, defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Jones, and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.
āAn incredible two straight Stanley Cup victories and I just want to congratulate their unbelievable players,ā President Trump said. āThey have something different because I watched some of the games and it looked like it was going to be tough, and you blew them out.ā
Florida has been hampered by a slew of injuries this season in its bid to become the first team to win the Stanley Cup in three consecutive seasons since the New York Islandersā run of four consecutive championships from 1980-1983. Tkachuk has yet to play after having offseason surgery to repair a torn adductor muscle and sports hernia, but he could make his season debut against the Hurricanes on Friday.
The Panthers have also been without Barkov (knee), Marchand (undisclosed), Jones (upper body), forwards Jonah Gadjovich (upper body), Tomas Nosek (knee) and Cole Schwindt (arm), and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (upper body). Through its first 45 games, Florida (24-18-3) entered Thursday trailing the Buffalo Sabres and Boston Bruins by three points for the two wild cards into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
āLike I said last year, winning, it takes a toll,ā Tkachuk said. āYou pay a price for it and each one of these members behind me, it really does take a village to make it happen. Each person played a very, very important part, and coming down to Florida, thanks to Vinnie Viola and Bill Zito, has really changed my life and I cannot believe that the three years we got two Stanley Cups and, like Vinnie said, weāre not stopping now.
āWe hope to be here next year. So, thatās the plan.ā
