It’s been less than two days since Brad Marchand discussed the possibility of the U.S. national anthem getting booed during their clash at the 4 Nations Face-Off. However, those in attendance at Montreal and the people watching from home didn’t have to wait till Saturday. Despite the public address announcer requesting the fans show respect to the national anthems, they didn’t listen.

Elite Prospect’s Cam Robinson described how it all went down. “It went quiet for a moment and some dude yelled ‘F**k that!’ and the rink proceeded to boo the American anthem,” Robinson described in his post on X. Needless to say, the Team USA fans were not happy to hear about the national anthem get disrespected once again.

“This is why no one likes Canada,” commented an enraged fan. However, such a harsh condemnation by a U.S. fan doesn’t come as a complete surprise. The 4 Nations Face-Off isn’t the first time Canadian hockey fans have booed when the U.S. national anthem came on. They’ve been doing this since President Donald Trump announced trade sanctions against most Canadian goods.

The POTUS did grant a reprieve at the 11th hour, postponing those sanctions from going into effect. However, the last-moment decision to curb the tariffs did nothing to turn the public perception around. Canadian fans continued to boo the U.S. national anthem during the regular season NHL games. However, team USA’s first match showed that sentiment has only intensified.

Hence, even the best efforts of the organizers have fallen short of having any positive effect. The boos started as early as Wednesday during the 4 Nations Face-Off opening ceremony. “Our goal is to make sure that we create an environment and that hockey represents an opportunity to bring people together, and I think people understand that,” Commissioner Gary Bettman told the Associated Press this Wednesday. Unfortunately, Bettman couldn’t have been more wrong.

The 4 Nations Face-Off situation may get even worse on Saturday

Team USA dominated Finland, winning their clash 6-1 despite the Montreal crowd supporting the Fins. “How classy. Not sure why it’s so hard to respect the anthems, no matter what country,” commented one fan hockey fan. However, the netizen may be in for another rude awakening as the USA will square off against Canada at the Bell Center on Saturday.

Even a Canadian fan expressed his shock at the booing. “As a Canadian, this is so embarrassing and I apologize for everyone for this. These acts don’t define the whole country,” commented the fan. However, with how the fans reacted to Team USA’s win, it’s safe to assume that the boos may be relentless on Saturday. Yet, team USA’s players at the 4 Nations Face-Off are prepared.

Team captain Auston Matthews said he and his team are ready to play the “villain role” on Saturday and during the entire tournament. Teammate J.T. Miller added that the booing will only embolden him and his team. “I think we like it, not politically, but we just had a sense of, we know where we’re at in Canada, and I think that fires us up more than anything,” Miller said, as Per Canucks reporter Noah Strang.

In fact, some fans are baking on it, as they are excited to see how the USA-Canada clash turns out. “Saturday is gonna [fire emoji] be in that building,” commented a netizen. Meanwhile, some U.S. fans have already planned a tit-for-tat response. “Looking forward to the ‘USA!’ chants during Canada’s national anthem while in Boston,” commented one fan, hoping that Team Canada can progress and make it to the other venue, the TD Garden in Boston. Yet, what do you feel about the situation unfolding at the 4 Nations Face-Off? Write your views in the comments.