{"id":476719,"date":"2026-02-28T08:14:06","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T08:14:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/476719\/"},"modified":"2026-02-28T08:14:06","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T08:14:06","slug":"brady-tkachuk-talks-clearly-fake-tiktok-shared-by-white-house-trump-call-and-gold-medal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/476719\/","title":{"rendered":"Brady Tkachuk talks \u2018clearly fake\u2019 TikTok shared by White House, Trump call and gold medal"},"content":{"rendered":"

OTTAWA \u2014 Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk said he understands why the U.S. women\u2019s hockey team would feel put down by President Donald Trump\u2019s comments on a call with players Sunday following the U.S. men\u2019s hockey team\u2019s gold medal win over Canada.<\/p>\n

On the call, Trump joked he would have to invite the gold-medal-winning women\u2019s team to the White House in addition to the men to avoid being impeached. The women\u2019s team declined an invitation, citing scheduling issues. On Wednesday, U.S. captain Hilary Knight called the remarks \u201cdistasteful and unfortunate.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Asked why he would laugh at Trump\u2019s comments, Tkachuk said he didn\u2019t have an answer.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, it was just a whirlwind of a moment that (you) can\u2019t really control what somebody says, and it\u2019s just caught (me) off guard a little bit,\u201d Tkachuk said Thursday morning ahead of his first game back from the Olympic break with the Ottawa Senators.<\/p>\n

In his first media appearance in Ottawa since returning from Milan-Cortina, Tkachuk called the experience \u201ca dream come true.\u201d He and Ottawa teammate Jake Sanderson joined most American players at the White House as Trump\u2019s guests before attending the State of the Union address, where the team was celebrated and cheered.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember thinking, being in the Oval Office, \u2018How did I get here?\u201d Tkachuk said. \u201cIt was special. Just being an American citizen, you never really think you\u2019ll go in the White House, see the White House, be in the Oval Office. And for it to happen, it was really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

That evening, Tkachuk appeared on Fox News and acknowledged Ottawa fans weren\u2019t the \u201chappiest\u201d with him right now.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a funny feeling when you feel their support every day. And then, within two weeks, you\u2019re public enemy No. 1,\u201d he said on Fox.<\/p>\n

Members of the U.S. team have faced criticism for laughing at Trump\u2019s joke. Some of Tkachuk\u2019s U.S. teammates, including defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Zach Werenski, apologized in their first media appearances<\/a> back with their NHL teams.<\/p>\n

\u201c(We\u2019re) just coming off the ice, and I think it was 15 minutes later, you have the President of the United States calling you,\u201d Tkachuk said Thursday, recounting the events that led to Trump\u2019s call. \u201cYou just can\u2019t really believe, you\u2019re still riding the high of being a world champion, and for the President to take the time and call.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to the women\u2019s team, one of my favorite memories from the Olympics is after we won and after the women\u2019s team came back from the closing ceremonies, both our teams are just in the dining hall hanging out having fun, just kind of being on top of the world. You have two gold medalist teams just hanging out before we\u2019re going back to our respective cities. And it was just great to hear their experience. A lot of us went to a couple of their games, and they know that we supported them throughout the whole tournament.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tkachuk was also asked about an AI-generated video<\/a> shared earlier this week by the White House\u2019s official TikTok account in which he and his brother, Matthew, are answering a question during last year\u2019s 4 Nations Face-Off tournament. In the video, Brady\u2019s answer is overdubbed to make him appear to refer to Canadians as \u201cmaple syrup-eating f\u2014s\u201d before showing highlights of the Americans during the Olympic tournament to the tune of Lynyrd Skynyrd\u2019s \u201cFree Bird.\u201d It has been viewed over 11 million times.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, it\u2019s clearly fake,\u201d Tkachuk said. \u201cBecause it\u2019s not my voice, not my lips moving. \u2026 I\u2019m not in control of any of those accounts, and I know that those words would never come out of my mouth. So, I can\u2019t do anything about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not my voice. It\u2019s not what I was saying. I would never say that. That\u2019s not who I am. \u2026 I don\u2019t like that video because that\u2019s just never come out of my mouth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tkachuk also said he didn\u2019t yell \u201cclose the Northern border\u201d during the team\u2019s phone call with Trump.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been seeing stuff that people think it\u2019s me,\u201d Tkachuk said. \u201cBut if you watch the video, that\u2019s not my voice. It\u2019s something that I\u2019d never say. I don\u2019t really know how that kind of took a storm on its own when I play here (in Ottawa) and give everything I have here. I just think that\u2019s something that I never thought would happen in my head and especially would never say. It\u2019s crazy when things go on social media, how fast they go. And, of course, I would never say anything like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanderson was also asked about Trump\u2019s phone call and said the team\u2019s reaction to his comments was a \u201cmistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think things got blown out of proportion a little bit,\u201d Sanderson said. \u201cWe have nothing but the utmost respect for the women. We had a lounge in the village that we were hanging out with them all the time, watching other events, and going to their games \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we were to do it again, I think we wouldn\u2019t do that, and we made a mistake. But, again, I think it kind of got blown out of proportion a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Brady Tkachuk and Matthew Tkachuk attend a celebration of Team USA\u2019s gold medal in Olympic men\u2019s hockey in Miami, Fla. (Alexander Tamargo \/ Getty Images for E11EVEN Miami)<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Senators teammate Drake Batherson admitted he was \u201cjealous\u201d of Tkachuk and Sanderson being able to celebrate a gold-medal victory at the Olympics and wasn\u2019t surprised to see Tkachuk indulge in celebratory festivities, including at the White House.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s just celebrating a championship with his teammates,\u201d Batherson said. \u201cIf anyone (else) won, they would be doing the same, no matter what country they are. I think they\u2019re just proud as a group to win a championship and celebrate. I don\u2019t know much at all about politics, so I can\u2019t get into that. But I think they\u2019re just celebrating and having a good time, and just going with the flow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senators head coach Travis Green echoed those sentiments, saying the celebration with President Trump \u201cisn\u2019t about politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to talk about personal, political views,\u201d Green said Wednesday. \u201cAnd I\u2019m sure they\u2019re not doing that either. This is about them celebrating a big win for them. Something that they\u2019ve probably dreamed of for a long time. I don\u2019t look at it like they\u2019re making a political statement by any means.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tkachuk and Sanderson will return to the Senators\u2019 lineup in their first game back from the break Thursday night against the Detroit Red Wings, as part of the Senators\u2019 \u201cWomen in Sport Night\u201d festivities. The Senators are six points out of a playoff spot, trailing the Boston Bruins, who own the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n