President Donald Trump holds a gold hockey stick present to him by the the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The ceremony was delayed nearly an hour because Trump was talking to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about pausing tariffs on the country, as he did with Mexico.
Trump made repeated references to Panthers owner Vinnie Viola being a friend. Viola was briefly Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of the Army in 2016 before withdrawing from consideration.
The team had a red customized “Trump 45-47” jersey framed for him. He was also presented a “Trump 47” jersey and a gold stick by Viola, Finnish captain Aleksander Barkov and American forward Matthew Tkachuk.
The Panthers made their White House visit before facing the Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals on Tuesday night.
President Donald Trump poses for a photo with Aleksander Barkov, left, and Matthew Tkachuk with a jersey and a hockey stick during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup win, in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump holds a hockey stick as he poses for a photo with Aleksander Barkov, left, and Matthew Tkachuk during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup win, in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team, pictured at left, in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory in the East Room of the the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump shakes hands with team owner Vincent Viola during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory in the East Room of the the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump, left, greets NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman during an event to honor the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump speaks during an event to honor the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory in the East Room of the the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump, center, listens as Matthew Tkachuk, of the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team, speaks during a ceremony to honor the team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)Vincent Viola, team owner of the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers hockey team, speaks as President Donald Trump, obscured at left, listens during a ceremony to honor the team in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Donald Trump shakes hands with Carter Verhaeghe as he speaks during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory in the East Room of the the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice waves before President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup victory in the East Room of the the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)President Donald Trump holds a hockey stick before he poses for a photo with Aleksander Barkov, left, and Matthew Tkachuk during a ceremony with the Florida Panthers NHL hockey team to celebrate their 2024 Stanley Cup win, in the East Room of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day.
