{"id":2572184,"date":"2026-02-21T08:02:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T13:02:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-entire-usa-womens-hockey-team-honored-america-by-standing-for-the-national-anthem\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T08:04:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T13:04:12","slug":"the-entire-usa-womens-hockey-team-honored-america-by-standing-for-the-national-anthem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-entire-usa-womens-hockey-team-honored-america-by-standing-for-the-national-anthem\/","title":{"rendered":"The Entire USA Women&#8217;s Hockey Team Honored America by Standing for the National Anthem"},"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\">28<\/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%2Fthe-entire-usa-womens-hockey-team-honored-america-by-standing-for-the-national-anthem%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=2572184&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>This piece centers on the U.S. women\u2019s hockey team\u2019s 2026 Olympic gold over Canada, highlighted by an overtime victory and a medal-ceremony moment in which the American players sang the national anthem wiht pride. It contrasts protests in sports, such as Colin Kaepernick\u2019s anthem kneeling, with patriotism and winning with excellence, suggesting that public admiration tends to follow athletes who represent the country with dignity. The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >article notes controversial remarks<\/a> about Kaepernick\u2019s possible fictional involvement in women\u2019s hockey and references Megan Rapinoe as a public figure who has faced criticism for activism. Through tweets and embedded videos, it argues that the moment offered a unifying, non-political display of national pride despite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dar-doubles-down-on-allowing-men-against-members-wishes\/\" title=\"DAR Doubles Down On Allowing Men Against Members\u2019 Wishes\">ongoing cultural debates<\/a>. it suggests that moments of genuine athletic excellence and patriotism can transcend politics and win broad support for Team USA.  <\/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<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Thank goodness Colin Kaepernick doesn&rsquo;t play women&rsquo;s hockey.<\/p>\n<p>(Though, given how <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/let-go-man-colin-kaepernick-still-pushing-every-day-make-triumphant-nfl-return\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">desperate<\/a> he&rsquo;s been to get back into sports, he&rsquo;d probably be willing to give it a whirl.)<\/p>\n<p>Because if Kaepernick &mdash; who&rsquo;s perhaps most infamous for kneeling for &ldquo;The Star-Spangled Banner&rdquo; before NFL games as a form of protest &mdash; had been on the 2026 U.S. women&rsquo;s hockey team, American viewers may have been robbed of one of the best moments of the Winter Olympics.<\/p>\n<p>Team USA won the gold medal in women&rsquo;s hockey, beating their archrival&nbsp; Team Canada in overtime.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&ldquo;Tonight, we are the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/15-patriotic-movie-moments-that-will-make-you-proud-to-be-an-american\/\" title=\"15 Patriotic Movie ... That Will Make You Proud To Be An American\">greatest hockey team<\/a> in the world.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Tonight belongs to USA Women&rsquo;s Hockey &#127482;&#127480; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/W0OpHOn7od\">pic.twitter.com\/W0OpHOn7od<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; espnW (@espnW) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/espnW\/status\/2024590884482723985?\">February 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>During the medal ceremony, every American female hockey player was standing, arms linked, and proudly singing the national anthem.<\/p>\n<p>It was a refreshing change of scenery from the usual politics that have seeped into sports &mdash; and you can view the moment for yourself below:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-media-max-width=\"560\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">USA Women&rsquo;s Hockey sings the national anthem after defeating Canada for GOLD.<\/p>\n<p>&#128293;&#128293;&#128293; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/RUw62PYWF3\">pic.twitter.com\/RUw62PYWF3<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; American AF &#127482;&#127480; (@iAnonPatriot) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/iAnonPatriot\/status\/2024617895481729132?\">February 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>It was a wonderfully patriotic scene, punctuated with the gold medals.<\/p>\n<p>It was also a stark reminder that if you represent the U.S. in sports, it&rsquo;s&nbsp;<em>really <\/em>easy to be beloved.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Win.<\/li>\n<li>Don&rsquo;t denigrate the country or its traditions.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>It&rsquo;s a lesson that Team USA women&rsquo;s soccer would do well to heed.<\/p>\n<p>You see, while the NFL has largely rebounded from Kaepernick&rsquo;s anthem protests in 2016 (it&rsquo;s virtually non-existent in the league now, after every team had some sort of anthem message to convey back then), the U.S. women&rsquo;s national soccer team has carried on this &ldquo;tradition.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In turn, those athletes, like retired U.S. women&rsquo;s soccer standout and social justice activist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/leftists-melt-christian-soccer-player-despised-megan-rapinoe-named-olympic-roster\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Megan Rapinoe<\/a>, have become persona non grata to the general public.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XQtDf7MJPOs?si=8LST7Cc_WXdehZY5\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>That&rsquo;s the difference between protest as performance and patriotism as posture &mdash; one divides, the other unites.<\/p>\n<p>When the puck dropped in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/upset-u-s-womens-soccer-loses-to-canada-ending-shot-at-gold\/\" title=\"UPSET: U.S. ...s Soccer Loses To ..., Ending Shot At Gold\u00a0\">gold medal game<\/a>, nobody cared about hashtags or culture wars. They cared about grit, execution, and whether Team USA could outlast Canada in overtime. They did. And when the anthem played, the Americans sang &mdash; not because someone forced them to, but because they wanted to.<\/p>\n<p>That authenticity is impossible to fake and even harder to resent.<\/p>\n<p>Athletes are free to say what they wish, of course. But if you&rsquo;re wearing the crest of the United States on your chest, the formula for widespread admiration isn&rsquo;t complicated: Win with excellence. Represent with pride.<\/p>\n<p>The 2026 U.S. women&rsquo;s hockey team reminded the country that sports can still offer moments that transcend politics &mdash; and for a few minutes on the medal stand, that felt like victory enough.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s a paraphrase of the provided text:<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s fortunate that Colin Kaepernick isn\u2019t playing women\u2019s hockey. He\u2019s best known for kneeling during the national anthem as a form of protest, and his presence on the 2026 U.S. women\u2019s team might have spoiled one of the Olympics\u2019 best moments. Team USA won gold in overtime against their longtime rival Canada, inspiring a post that proclaimed, \u201cTonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As for the ceremony itself, during the medal presentation every American woman hockey player stood with arms linked and sang the national anthem with pride. It felt refreshingly free of the political distractions that have lately seeped into sports. The moment was patriotic and memorable, underscored by the gold medals.<\/p>\n<p>The piece suggests that representing the United States in sport can earn widespread admiration, in contrast to the way public opinion has treated protest in other arenas. It notes that while NFL anthem protests largely faded after 2016, the U.S. women\u2019s national soccer team has continued with a form of protest, and players like Megan Rapinoe have become controversial figures to some. The author draws a line between protest as performance and patriotism as a posture: the former can divide, the latter can unite. When the puck dropped, people cared about grit, execution, and whether Team USA could prevail in overtime\u2014not about hashtags or culture wars. And when the anthem played, the Americans sang because they wanted to, not because they were forced to. That kind of authenticity is hard to fake\u2014and even harder to resent. Athletes should be free to speak, but wearing the U.S. crest calls for a straightforward formula: win with excellence and represent with pride. The 2026 women\u2019s hockey team reminded the country that sports can still offer moments that transcend politics, and for a few minutes on the medal stand, that felt like victory enough<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2572185,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/USA-womens-hockey.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[28553,33763,7825,50742,74266],"class_list":["post-2572184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-sportsmanship","tag-national-anthem","tag-patriotism","tag-usa-hockey","tag-womens-hockey"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/USA-womens-hockey.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572184","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\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2572184"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2572188,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2572184\/revisions\/2572188"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2572185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2572184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2572184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2572184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}