Brady Tkachuk Slams “Clearly Fake” White House AI Video
The controversy began shortly after Team USA’s 2-1 overtime victory against Canada on February 22, 2026. The official White House TikTok account shared a video using AI to alter a clip of Tkachuk from a previous press conference. In the doctored version, Tkachuk appeared to call Canadians “maple-syrup-eating [expletive]” and boasted, “Canada, we own you little bro.”
Tkachuk’s Response: “Not Who I Am”
Upon returning to Ottawa, Tkachuk—who has played his entire professional career in Canada’s capital—distanced himself from the footage during a team media availability on February 26, 2026.
- On the Footage: “It’s clearly fake, because it’s not my voice, not my lips moving. I’m not in control of any of those accounts.”
- On the Sentiments: “I know that those words would never come out of my mouth… It’s not who I am. So I guess I don’t like that video.”
- Clarifying the Border Remark: Tkachuk also denied being the voice heard shouting “Close the northern border!” during a celebratory phone call with President Donald Trump earlier in the week.
The Wider Olympic Fallout
The incident is part of a series of political headlines following the U.S. hockey “double gold” sweep in Milan-Cortina:
- Trump’s “Distasteful” Quip: Women’s captain Hilary Knight criticized a joke made by President Trump during a congratulatory call, where he claimed he’d “probably be impeached” if he didn’t invite the women’s team to the State of the Union alongside the men.
- SOTU Attendance: While the women’s team declined the invitation due to professional and academic commitments, several members of the men’s team attended the State of the Union on February 24, 2026.
- Team Unity: Players from both the men’s and women’s squads have emphasized that despite the political noise, there is deep mutual respect and shared pride in their historic achievement