New York Rangers forwards Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller will go down in United States sports history as members of the gold medal-winning men's ice hockey team in the 2026 Winter Olympics. It was quite the feat, considering they defeated Canada to win their first gold medal since 1980.
There has been plenty of controversy surrounding the team and their celebrations. But recently, Jack Hughes added another chapter to the saga. During an interview with ESPN, Hughes called it "bulls***" that the Hockey Hall of Fame gets to keep the game-winning puck and not him. Hughes scored the goal in overtime and said he wanted to give it to his father. The Hockey Hall of Fame issued a response to Hughes, saying that "unfortunately, in the easiest words, it was never Jack's puck to own."
Before Wednesday night's game between the Rangers and Devils, Trocheck was asked by the NHL on TNT crew for his thoughts on the golden goal puck controversy. Trocheck took his USA teammate's side, saying that he should have the puck.
Trocheck talked to the boys before the game about who should have Jack's Golden Goal puck and the trade buzz around him! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/YswOE3iypm
— NHLonTNT (@NHL_On_TNT) March 18, 2026
Vincent Trocheck says Jack Hughes deserves golden goal puck after Devils star's dispute with Hockey Hall of Fame
"I saw a couple of Instagram clips of him saying it's 'bulls***,' but why wouldn't he, you know," said Trocheck. "Someone said it wasn't his puck to begin with, but there's pucks when we get a milestone, we get our puck in a game. So those aren't technically ours to begin with either but we get those."
Hughes' comments made quite the stir across all of hockey. But the reality is, that puck was always going to go to the Hockey Hall of Fame. While the NHL usually allows players to have possession of their keepsakes, international competition is completely different.
Vice president of the Resource Center and the Curator of the Hockey Hall of Fame, Philip Pritchard told ESPN that the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has been sending them items from the Olympics and world tournaments since 1998. The IIHF has an on-ice official will get the puck and hand it to the IIHF, who would then send it to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Canada.
Pritchard also said that they have received requests from players and their families about getting pieces of sports history, but have stuck by their rules of keeping the items in the museum.
Hughes provided further comments after the Devils' 6-3 win over the Rangers, saying that he is honored to have the puck in the Hockey Hall of Fame, and that his comments were taken out of proportion.
"Obviously honored that the puck is (at the Hockey Hall of Fame). It's the most special place in hockey. ... Things were taken crazy. That's the way I felt. I didn't know where the puck was. It is what it is," said Hughes, h/t Peter Baugh of the New York Post.
The reality of the situation is that the puck will remain in the Hockey Hall of Fame, despite Trocheck's defense of Hughes.