On Tuesday, Canadian rock star Jordan Miller stood stunned. She was at Montreal’s Bell Centre belting out the Canadian national anthem before Team Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off opener against Sweden. The crowd sang along so loudly that she could barely hear herself. She was moved, she said. Peter Kuitenbrouwer, a journalist and author of Our Song: The Story of O Canada, stated such a display of patriotism from Canadians was a rarity. But would it really be a stretch to say this was no less than a public outcry?

Recently, US President Donald Trump announced to impose tariffs on Canadian imports. Experts say this would devastate the Canadian economy. If this was not enough, the Republican leader presented an idea: Canada could, and should, become the 51st US state. “I think Canada would be much better off being a 51st state,” Trump said. The proposal was widely denounced, and it looks like the proud Canucks decided to bring their discontent to the sporting arena. And how did they do it? Booing The Star-Spangled Banner in the previous games. Or better yet, 21,105 red-clad Canadian fans roaring in unison as they sang O Canada on Tuesday! 

The Devils-Canadiens game last week began with announcer Michel Lacroix asking the crowd to respect both anthems despite recent events. A handful of fans, however, ignored the request. Some booed, others remained seated. Many thought Trump issuing a 30-day reprieve on his plans would calm the storm. Wrong, they were. It was a rinse, wash, repeat at the Bell Centre before its opening game against Finland. For good reasons, the incident has triggered some American players. Cameras showed Matthew Tkachuk fuming at the end of his team’s bench. And before it’s too late, Canadian captain Sidney Crosby has now shared his thoughts on the matter.

The Pittsburgh Steelers star is not quite happy with the incident. On X, according to Sportsnet’s Luke Fox, the Canadian captain said, “I’m not going to get into that. We respect the anthems, and I’ll leave it at that.” While he left a lot to be desired in his comment, his choice to refrain from elaborating too much is understandable, given the sensitive nature of the issue. The NHL has also spoken out on the matter.

“It’s unfortunate, obviously, and we wish it wasn’t the case,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told reporters Wednesday. “But from time to time things happen and people have strong feelings about it. Obviously, we’re aware of what’s been happening here.” It’s worth noting that some of the Canadian players here, including Brad Marchand, have urged the home fans not to boo the American anthem. However, looks like it did not much affect the United States, who dominated Team Finland with a score of 6-1.

Although not the national anthem, Crosby had also spoken out against booing on a previous occasion. Last year in December, the Penguins suffered a 6-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. While allowing six goals to the Avalanche, including a Mikko Rantanen hat trick, boos began to be heard from the Penguins fans at the PPG Paints Arena. The boos were loud enough that Penguins captain Crosby noticed them and had expressed his unhappiness about it. Coming back to Montreal, the #87 isn’t the only person who shared his thoughts on the situation.

They have similar opinions like Sidney Crosby

Following an amazing game on the rink, Team USA’s Matthew Tkachuk, who received the first star of the night, shared his thoughts on the booing and disrespect of the American anthem, stating, “I didn’t like it, and that’s all I got.” Again, even he chose not to go deeper into the matter but was very clear about how upset he was with the way the crowd treated not only the players but also the entire country.

Similarly, another key player of Team USA, goalie Connor Hellebuyck, was candid about his dissatisfaction with the crowd, stating, “I paid no attention to it. You have free speech; you can do whatever you want if you are gonna boo the anthem. We sing it for the troops that protected our freedom.” Politics should always remain out of any sport, and this also includes hockey, which is something he wanted to point out.

Furthermore, Team USA’s coach, Mike Sullivan, had similar thoughts, stating, “As far as the national anthem, I’m not sure there’s influence there. That’s really not something we can control; we just wanna play hockey and represent our nation in the right way.” The motto is pretty clear here; as a team, they just want to represent their country in this international event like others. And even if there’s influence, owing to the global problems outside of the rink, Sullivan demanded nothing but respect for his nation and his players.