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Montreal fans boo American anthem prior to Canada-USA 4 Nations Face-Off game
Fans in Montreal loudly booed the U.S. national anthem prior to the 4 Nations Face-Off game between the Americans and host Canada on Saturday night.
MONTREAL — Hockey fans loudly booed the American national anthem before passionately singing “O Canada” ahead of Saturday night’s showdown between Canada and the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
The Montreal crowd gave the Canadian team a hero’s welcome when players skated onto the ice after being introduced by legendary MMA fighter Georges St-Pierre.
The mood quickly changed when warrant officer David Grenon of the Royal Canadian Air Force Band launched into the opening lyrics of “The Star-Spangled Banner” as people began jeering from the stands.
Under the watchful eye of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Montreal spectators lustily booed despite public address announcer Michel Lacroix’s request for fans to respect both anthems.
Saturday marked another instance of the American anthem getting disrupted ahead of Canadian sporting events amid rising political tensions between the neighbours and close allies in recent weeks.
“You got their president saying we’re gonna be their 51st state, I don’t like that,” said Jared Olsen of Lethbridge, Alta. “Why would I be any kind of encouraging about that? That’s just the silliest thing I’ve heard out of any president in my life.”
The energy dramatically flipped again when Grenon shifted to singing “O Canada.” He asked fans to sing with him before holding the mic up to the crowd, which belted out the country’s anthem.
The players then responded with three fights in the opening nine seconds.
Canada’s Brandon Hagel fought U.S. forward Matthew Tkachuk off the opening faceoff, before Canadian forward Sam Bennett dropped the glove with Brady Tkachuk on the ensuing draw.
Seconds later, Canadian defenceman Colton Parayko went fist-for-fist with J.T. Miller.
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A number of fans booed the U.S. anthem Thursday night when the Americans played Finland, continuing a trend from NHL games in several Canadian cities after President Donald Trump announced potentially crippling tariffs and continues to muse about Canada becoming a 51st state.
There were also boos at recent home games of Canada’s lone NBA franchise, the Toronto Raptors.
“I think that’s poor form. I mean, yeah, we all know who we’re here to cheer for, but I think there’s just an acceptable level of decorum,” Kimberly MacDougal of Peterborough, Ont. said. “I think we can do better as Canadians. I was disappointed to see that.”
A month-long tariff pause on goods entering the U.S. from Canada was negotiated Feb. 3, but Trump slapped 25 per cent duties on all steel and aluminum imports into the U.S. on Monday.
“I think there’s people from the U.S. that would boo the U.S. anthem at the moment,” said U.S. fan Jillian Gallagher of Chicago. “I don’t think it’s specifically so rude for Canadians to do it.”
Crowds in Montreal also booed the U.S. anthem at NHL games during the country’s 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Fans mostly refrained from booing last weekend when Lacroix asked spectators to respect the anthems during two Montreal Canadiens games. There was no anthem booing in Halifax for a recent Rivalry Series game between the Canadian and American women’s national teams.
Players and coaches from both Canada and the U.S. have mostly voiced that fans should hold back.
“I’d like to see all anthems respected,” Canada star Connor McDavid said. “That’s all I’ll really say, but I’d like to see the anthems respected.”
“Obviously don’t love to see that, but it is what it is,” U.S. captain Auston Matthews added.
Fans also booed the American team when it stepped onto the ice before puck drop Saturday, but that kind of treatment is hardly unusual for Canada’s biggest rival.
Political tensions or not, the pro-Canada crowd was charged with energy as the two hockey powerhouses met for the first game featuring their top NHL stars in more than a decade.
“The reason we’re all here is because this is the greatest sport in the world,” Canada head coach Jon Cooper said Saturday morning. “I trust that the great fans, the passionate fans that are gonna celebrate this sport will cheer both anthems, and we unite together and celebrate what might be the greatest game that’s going to happen in the past decade.”
The 4 Nations is considered an appetizer for the NHL’s return to the Olympics in 2026. NHL players participated in five Olympics between 1998 an 2014, before missing the 2018 and 2022 Games.
Canada opened the tournament with a nail-biting 4-3 overtime win Wednesday against Sweden. The U.S., meanwhile, bulldozed its way to a 6-1 win over Finland.
The tournament shifts to Boston for a pair of round-robin games Monday before next Thursday’s final.
“I would expect the fans in Boston to probably retaliate with some hefty booing of their own,” said U.S. fan Johnathan Bellotti of Chicago.
