WARMINGTON: Trump offers inspirational speech for American players ahead of 4 Nations final

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For President Donald J. Trump, the big Canada versus USA 4 Nations Face-Off final in Boston Thursday night is a lot more than a hockey game.

It’s a front-line battle in his quest to acquire Canada. He really wants to win this game.

“I’ll be calling our Great American Hockey Team this morning to spur them on towards victory tonight against Canada,” the president declared on his Truth Social network.

But he couldn’t help himself with trolling both Canada and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau once again, writing “with FAR LOWER TAXES AND MUCH STRONGER SECURITY, (Canada) will someday, maybe soon, become our cherished, and very important, Fifty First State.”

Talk about fighting words. Talk about bulletin board material for Team Canada.

If they didn’t already have enough incentive to win the rematch with the Americans after losing the first game on Saturday, they certainly do now.

So far no response from Trudeau. But Trump, who attended both the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500, invited him to watch the game in Washington with who the president feels are his fellow governors.

“I will be speaking before the Governors tonight in D.C., and will sadly, therefore, be unable to attend. But we will all be watching, and if Governor Trudeau would like to join us, he would be most welcome.”

Ouch.

Trudeau was at the game in Montreal where fans booed the Star-Spangled Banner national anthem, and he later tweeted that he was “damn proud of this country.”

Time will tell if the largely American crowd at the TD Garden will reciprocate tonight. While there are some who promote such classless behaviour, there are many more who feel disrespecting an anthem is crossing a sacred line.

“I really hope our people don’t boo the anthem,” ESPN announcer Seam McDonough said on a Boston sports radio station.

Certainly, Canadians booing the American anthem didn’t work. USA player Matthew Tkachuk made it clear he didn’t like it when it happened and was the first to drop his gloves to fight. There ended up being three fights in the first nine seconds and the Americans pulled out a 3-1 win.

For all of the brash loudness of Trump, in a true Canadian way, Canada’s coach and captain have been signalling a more measured message.

“When you’re in the position we’re in to make a country proud, to make a country be able to stick its chest out a little bit farther, it’s rewarding, and we understand that,” Team Canada coach Jon Cooper said Wednesday.

“But before that puck drops, I don’t think anybody will be thinking anything outside of this hockey game, other than winning. These guys, they’re just all in it for each other, and knowing that there’s an outcome we want. But there’s a process we have to go through to get that outcome.”

Sidney Crosby, who scored the winning goal against the Americans in the Olympic gold medal game in Vancouver in 2010, said “we’re a pretty hockey-proud country” and “people have a lot of pride and hopefully we’re a team that’s represented that well to this point. Hopefully we can go out there and find a way to win it for them.”

This all comes at time when Leger did one of their online surveys that found 27% of Canadians now see America as the enemy. While it seems pretty extreme, there is no question in hockey terms that Team USA certainly are that on the ice Thursday night.

Trump can use his bully pulpit on Canada and most subject, but not on hockey. This is a lane Canada won’t be bullied on. Canada always comes to play when it comes to winning a hockey championship. There is much on the line here. Not just hockey supremacy but for many fans, Canadian sovereignty is on this ticket.

If Canada does win this game, it will go down in history as a great comeback like the Canada-Soviet Union series in 1972. There won’t be many eyes not watching this game. Normally the mayors, premiers or national leaders place a playful, friendly bet with their opponents. There is nothing playful or friendly about this one.

“Good luck to everybody and have a GREAT game tonight. So exciting! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP,” he wrote on Truth Social.

If America wins this game, this will go down as a Knute Rockne-type message of inspiration. If they lose, Canadians who don’t appreciate his 51st state talk will be able to shove it back in his face.

The puck drops at 8 p.m. This is more than just a hockey game. Clearly, it’s big for Trump who has stuck his neck way out here. But it’s big for Canadians too – even those who consider the country being a post-national state.

Seems it takes suggestions of annexing Canada to bring the patriotism out in everybody – and their blades, sticks and, perhaps, even fists.

jwarmington@postmedia.com