Leave it to champion Hilary Knight to ace it both on and off the field. The ice hockey star recently appeared on SNL (Saturday Night Live), where she took a subtle jab at Donald Trump and the men’s hockey team. Ironically, Quinn Hughes and Jack Hughes from the men’s hockey team were also a part of the gag.
Netizens thought Hilary Knight’s SNL moment deserves a medal of its own. Members of the US men’s and women’s hockey teams appeared on SNL after their recent Olympic win, accompanied by Heated Rivalry star Connor Storrie.
Connor Storrie’s monologue! pic.twitter.com/j3b9QkrcWB
— Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) March 1, 2026
Hilary Knight joked in a segment of SNL, “It was going to be just us, but we thought we’d invite the guys too.” To this, Megan Keller added, “We thought we’d give them a little moment to shine”. After which, they were joined by Quinn Hughes and Jack Hughes.
Meanwhile, Connor Storrie’s SNL monologue was equally adept at winning the Internet. He introduced himself with these words, “Now, some of you may have seen all of me on my show, Heated Rivalry.” He jokingly added, “It’s a show that’s taught a lot of people about hockey, and it’s taught a lot of straight women that their sexuality is actually gay man.”
He then talked about the recently-held Winter Olympics in Milan, where both the women’s and men’s hockey teams defeated Canada to Olympic glory. “I am just so thankful for everything this job gives me the chance to do. Like, in two weeks, I had the chance to learn how to speak Russian and look like I knew how to play hockey and then I’m watching the Olympics, and I see these amazing players, and I’m like, ‘I don’t think I pulled it off,” Storrie said.
🏅🏅🏅🏅 pic.twitter.com/K8Np9P6MNF
— Saturday Night Live (@nbcsnl) March 1, 2026
A quick look at what the netizens thought of this viral SNL moment. “The women’s applause was so much louder and longer,” read a comment. Another one added, “Cheering louder for the ladies from home…crushed it SNL.” A third wrote, “Metaphorically…. That was the best line ever.”
Connor Storrie also got a huge shout-out. “We only care about Connor and the women’s team,” a netizen wrote. Another comment on the post read, “Aww, Connor and the women did so good.” Another one added, “Haha, the women throwing shade at the men…well done script writers…too bad the men were included at all.”
This line garnered a separate fanbase altogether: “This is what I think Connor nailed when he said ‘my show speaks to people who are not always represented in hockey so this is really great to have actual hockey legends here tonight’. This is the important bit. This is how we change things. That and ‘we thought we’d invite the guys tonight,’ Beautiful.”
Similar thoughts echoed in this comment: “Hearing the crowd cheer so loudly for the women’s team is music to my ears. Connor did incredible.” Another netizen dropped a comment that read, “Good writing.” Another one commented, “This is everything.”
Last month, the women’s hockey team skipped meeting President Donald Trump after he made a sexist FaceTime joke. As the men’s hockey team geared up to celebrate their victory in the locker room, Trump said on a call, “We’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know…I do believe I probably would be impeached [if I didn’t].”
A spokesperson of the women’s team released a statement after declining Trump’s invitation. An excerpt from the statement read, “We are sincerely grateful for the invitation extended to our gold medal-winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and deeply appreciate the recognition of their extraordinary achievement. Due to the timing and previously scheduled academic and professional commitments following the Games, the athletes are unable to participate. They were honored to be included and are grateful for the acknowledgment.”
The men’s team later met Trump at the Oval Office, where he joked about keeping the gold medal. “I’m not giving it back. Hey, that’s cool. I never thought I’d ever have this on,” Trump jokingly said. The team was treated to McDonald’s meals at the White House.
