Will US women’s hockey get Denver parade after declining Trump invite?

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston wants the city to hold a parade for the U.S. women’s Olympic hockey team, which declined an invitation from President Trump to attend the State of the Union speech.

The team won the gold medal at the Olympics, earning the prize over Canada in a 2-1 overtime thriller in Milan, Italy.

In a post on social media on Feb. 24, Johnston extended his invitation to the team.

“Come to Denver,” Johnston said in the post. “Let us throw you the Olympic Championship Parade that you deserve. We’ll welcome you here at City Hall, and we’ll open our city to the nation to celebrate your historic achievement with a ticker-tape parade worthy of a champion. This will give Americans from across this country, who love and support you, the chance to gather in one place and celebrate America’s team. You’ve earned it.”

While the women’s team declining Trump’s invitation was blamed on scheduling and logistical issues, some have wondered if it was in response to a joke Trump made about feeling like he had to invite them instead of just the men’s Olympic hockey team, which also beat Canada in overtime to secure its own gold at the games.

Johnston made the connection in his post.

“I understand why you declined the invitation to the White House,” Johnston wrote. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to assemble one of the greatest Olympic teams in American history, achieve the impossible, and be celebrated by millions of Americans – only to inspire countless little girls to ask their parents if they can sign up for hockey, and then, before the euphoria has even faded, have your own president suggest that welcoming you to the White House would be a chore.”

Why did the USA women’s hockey team skip the state of the Union?

Officially, the team declined because of logistical issues.

“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,” a team spokesperson told USA TODAY. “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 Olympic men’s team is expected to attend Trump’s speech on Feb. 24. The Professional Women’s Hockey League has games on Feb. 26 and the college hockey players on the USA team have games on Feb. 27, while the NHL season resumes Feb. 25.

However, the men’s team flew on a private jet while the women flew commercial and arrived in the U.S. significantly later on Feb. 23, according to media reports.

What joke did Trump make about the women’s hockey team?

After the U.S. men’s hockey team won the gold medal on Feb. 22, Trump called the locker room to congratulate the team.

During the call, he invited the players to the State of the Union address and said they could tour the White House. During the call, he briefly mentioned the U.S. women’s hockey team.

“I must tell you, we’re going to have to bring the women’s team. You do know that?” President Trump said to laughter in the locker room. “I do believe I probably would be impeached,” the President added, apparently in reference to what would happen if he only invited the men.

Jack Hughes, who scored the winning goal for the men, and his mother, Ellen, who is a consultant to the U.S. women’s hockey team, both denied there was any slight intended by the players laughing at the remark.

“People are so negative out there, and they are just trying to find a reason to put people down and make something out of almost nothing,” Jack Hughes told the Daily Mail.

“People are so negative about things. I think everyone in that locker room knows how much we support them, how proud we are of them, and we know the same way we feel about them, they feel about us.”

Ellen Hughes lamented the controversy in an appearance on the Today Show.

“These players, both the men and women, can bring so much unity to a group and to a country — people that cheered on that don’t watch hockey, people that have politics on one side or on the other side,” Ellen Hughes said. “And that’s all both the men’s team and the women’s team care about.”

How else could the US women’s hockey team be honored?

Regardless of if it accepts the invite from Johnston, the women’s team has an invitation to celebrate in Las Vegas with Flavor Flav. The founding member of Public Enemy wrote Feb. 23 on social media that if the team “wants a real celebration and invite … I’ll host them in Las Vegas. Do some nice dinners and shows and good times.”

Nate Trela covers trending news in Colorado and Utah for the USA TODAY Network.