{"id":2571418,"date":"2026-02-19T12:05:02","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T17:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T12:08:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T17:08:13","slug":"greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/","title":{"rendered":"USA Hockey Player Touts His &#8216;Love&#8217; For America After OT Win"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgreatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2571418&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Quinn Hughes is highlighted as a standout exmaple of patriotism from Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics. The 26-year-old defenseman openly celebrated the United States after scoring the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >overtime <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-medias-hypocrisy-is-on-full-display-after-u-s-soccer-team-is-pelted-with-debris-by-fans-of-mexico\/\" title=\"The Media\u2019s Hypocrisy Is On Full Display After U.S. Soccer ... Is Pelted With Debris By Fans Of Mexico\">game-winning goal<\/a><\/a> against Sweden,telling reporters that playing amid American flags was special and that he loves the U.S.\u2014\u201cthe greatest country in the world\u201d\u2014and is proud to represent it. The 2-1 triumph advanced the Americans to the semifinals against Slovakia, with gold and bronze implications shaping the rest of the tournament.The piece contrasts Hughes\u2019s display of pride with other American athletes who have criticized U.S. immigration policies or shown mixed feelings about representing the country, citing Hunter Hess and media coverage surrounding Olympians like Eileen Gu as examples of anti-American rhetoric.The Federalist frames Hughes\u2019s stance as a refreshing antidote to such rhetoric, and the article is written by Shawn Fleetwood, a Federalist staff writer.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UXKNBIDC59A\">NHL\/YouTube<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=%E2%80%98Greatest%20Country%20In%20The%20World%E2%80%99:%20USA%20Hockey%20Player%20Promotes%20Patriotism%20After%20OT%20Win&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=%E2%80%98Greatest%20Country%20In%20The%20World%E2%80%99:%20USA%20Hockey%20Player%20Promotes%20Patriotism%20After%20OT%20Win&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=%E2%80%98Greatest%20Country%20In%20The%20World%E2%80%99:%20USA%20Hockey%20Player%20Promotes%20Patriotism%20After%20OT%20Win&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/greatest-country-in-the-world-usa-hockey-player-promotes-patriotism-after-ot-win\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Some American athletes may be predisposed to trash their country on the world stage while competing in the 2026 Winter Olympics. But the same can&rsquo;t be said for Team USA hockey player Quinn Hughes. <\/p>\n<p>The 26-year-old defenseman wasn&rsquo;t shy about voicing his love for America following his game-winning goal in Team USA&rsquo;s overtime win against Sweden on Wednesday. The moment came when a reporter asked Hughes in a post-game press gaggle about what it was like playing in an atmosphere with fans displaying American flags all throughout the arena. <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-940305291\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s special. &hellip; I love the U.S.,&rdquo; Hughes said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the greatest country in the world, so [I&rsquo;m] happy to represent it here with these guys. &hellip; It&rsquo;s really special.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>Wednesday&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/olympics-mens-ice-hockey\/game\/_\/gameId\/401845790\/sweden-united-states\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">game<\/a> was by no means an easy win (2-1) for the Americans. <\/p>\n<p>Following a scoreless first period, Team USA&rsquo;s Dylan Larkin scored midway through the second period to put his team up 1-0. While America seemed poised for victory as the clock ticked closer to zero, Sweden&rsquo;s decision to pull its goalie with roughly two minutes left in the third period gave the team the extra attacker needed to tie the game and send it to overtime.<\/p>\n<p>Lucky for Team USA, Hughes pulled through when it mattered most and helped his team advance to the semifinals. <\/p>\n<p>When asked what his team can take from its game against Sweden, Hughes expressed uncertainty but noted that &ldquo;you just want to move on and be ready to go, and get your feet up the next 24 hours and then be ready to go.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Team USA will play Slovakia on Friday, with the winner advancing to compete for the gold on Sunday. The loser will compete for the bronze against either Canada or Finland, who will play one another on Friday. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <span class=\"7KZAruQvqcDbiYEtkaMloG1Ne\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Quinn Hughes, who scored the game winning goal for the U.S. against Sweden after being on the ice for over 3 minutes in overtime: <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the greatest country in the world. Happy to represent it here with these guys and it&rsquo;s really special.&rdquo; &#127482;&#127480;<br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/s74wkF8vBL\">pic.twitter.com\/s74wkF8vBL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Greg Price (@greg_price11) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/greg_price11\/status\/2024305317333389388?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 19, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Hughes&rsquo; public display of patriotism is a breath of fresh air for Americans subject to incessant America-bashing from their nation&rsquo;s athletes.<\/p>\n<p>As The Federalist recently <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/16\/rooting-against-anti-american-olympians-is-the-patriotic-thing-to-do\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, rather than expressing gratitude for being given the opportunity to compete at such an event, multiple U.S. competitors have spent their time attacking ICE for upholding America&rsquo;s immigration laws. Team USA skier Hunter Hess took his criticisms a step further by saying he has &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-miracle-on-ice-legend-mike-eruzione-scolds-whining-us-olympians-for-getting-political\/\" title=\"Watch: &#039;Miracle on Ice&#039; Legend Mike Eruzione Scolds Whining US Olympians for Getting Political\">mixed emotions&#038;rdquo<\/a>; about representing his home country at the Olympics.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It brings up mixed emotions to represent the U.S. right now, I think. It&rsquo;s a little hard. There&rsquo;s obviously a lot going on that I&rsquo;m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kamala-harriss-rushed-campaign-plays-in-her-favor-democratic-strategists-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Kamala Harris\u2019s rushed campaign plays in her favor: Democratic strategists - Washington Examiner\">people aren&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t,&rdquo; Hess said. &ldquo;I think, for me, it&rsquo;s more I&rsquo;m representing my friends and family back home, the people that represented it before me, all the things that I believe are good about the U.S. If it aligns with my moral values, I feel like I&rsquo;m representing it. Just because I&rsquo;m wearing the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/is-the-left-planning-to-take-la-riots-national-this-weekend\/\" title=\"Is the Left Planning to Take LA Riots National This Weekend?\">flag doesn&#038;rsquo<\/a>;t mean I represent everything that&rsquo;s going on in the U.S.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Olympian later tried to clean up his remarks in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DUip9fYjEv1\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;ig_rid=96596f58-2b18-4db4-a5a8-1c6f9a9742b4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Instagram post<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p><strong>[READ:[READ:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/16\/rooting-against-anti-american-olympians-is-the-patriotic-thing-to-do\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rooting Against Anti-American Olympians Is The Patriotic Thing To Do<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Such anti-American rhetoric doesn&rsquo;t even include the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/13\/while-jimmy-lai-sits-in-prison-eileen-gu-takes-the-ccps-millions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fawning media coverage<\/a> devoted to skier <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/11\/eileen-gu-is-the-poster-child-for-the-post-nationalist-olympics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Eileen Gu<\/a>, a San Francisco native and daughter of a Chinese immigrant mother who abandoned her birth country to compete on behalf of Beijing. <\/p>\n<p><strong>[READ:[READ:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/19\/globalism-and-america-hating-destroy-all-the-fun-of-watching-the-olympics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Globalism And America-Hating Destroy All The Fun Of Watching The Olympics<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/culture\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Culture<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/hockey\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Hockey<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/immigration\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Immigration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/olympics\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Olympics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/patriotism\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Patriotism<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/quinn-hughes\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Quinn Hughes<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/sports-2\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">sports<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/team-usa\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Team USA<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/winter-olympics-2026\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Winter Olympics 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hughes proclaims U.S. pride after OT win<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2571419,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Quinn-Hughes.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[74119,7825,50742],"class_list":["post-2571418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-overtime-win","tag-patriotism","tag-usa-hockey"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Quinn-Hughes.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2571418"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571418\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2571422,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571418\/revisions\/2571422"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2571419"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2571418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2571418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2571418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}