Jack Hughes is the “Golden Boy.” After scoring the gold-medal-winning goal in sudden-death overtime at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Hughes delivered a blunt statement for everyone on Team USA—and Canada as well—to hear.
“It’s all about our country right now,” Hughes admitted in dialogue with NBC after the game. “I love the USA. USA Hockey’s brotherhood is so strong. I’m so proud to be American today. That’s American hockey right there. Tonight was all for the country.
“We’re such a team. We’re so proud to win for our country. I can’t even believe this. USA-Canada such a good game. That’s exactly how we wanted it to go. We wanted to go through Canada and beat them. It could’ve gone either way tonight, but that’s an unbelievable win for the Americans.”
What a night for Hughes
Like every sport, hockey is unpredictable, and that’s what makes it so great. The night could have gone a variety of ways for Hughes, but it ended up being the best experience of his hockey career. It was quite an eventful evening, capped off by a gold-medal-clinching goal in overtime.
Hughes took a high stick to the mouth from Canada’s Sam Bennett, which caused him to lose several teeth. You win some, you lose some—as they say—and Hughes will take that trade any day, especially if it means becoming an Olympic gold medalist.
Missing teeth and all, he was still the biggest smile on Team USA—and that’s saying something. Not even the fact that Hughes was snubbed from the 2026 Winter Olympics All-Star team could take anything away from the best night of his life.
Beyond the incident with Bennett, Hughes also flirted with becoming a villain in Milan. With 3:23 left in regulation and Team USA on the man advantage, he committed a high-sticking penalty, handing Canada a late power play that could have been costly. Still, Hughes got a chance to redeem himself, and he made the most of it. Generations and generations will talk about Jack Hughes’ golden goal, which secured Team USA’s first gold since 1980, and the third in the USA’s history.