Trump goads ‘51st state’ Canada ahead of hockey grudge match

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump took a slap shot at Canada on Feb 20, again suggesting a US takeover of the northern neighbour as a “fifty first state” and urging the US hockey team to prevail in a closely watched grudge match.

Tensions have soared in the run-up to a tournament final in the US city of Boston following Mr Trump’s ordering of tariffs on Canadian imports - and his repeated verbal assaults on the sovereignty of the longtime close ally.

Brawls between players and booing by Canadian fans of the US national anthem marked the teams’ previous meeting in Montreal on Feb 15 in the Four Nations Face-Off tournament, a round-robin featuring the NHL’s top players from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States.

The US president called Team USA to wish them luck, the White House said, and he will be watching the game on television when the puck drops at 8pm (9am on Feb 21 in Singapore).

Mr Trump posted on social media that his message to the team was “to spur them on towards victory tonight against Canada, which with FAR LOWER TAXES AND MUCH STRONGER SECURITY, will someday, maybe soon, become our cherished, and very important, Fifty First State.”

Mr Trump said a previous commitment - addressing a gathering of US governors in Washington - will “sadly” prevent him from attending the game in person.

“But we will all be watching, and if Governor Trudeau would like to join us, he would be most welcome,” Mr Trump said.

The US president has repeatedly made disparaging references to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as a mere US governor. Mr Trudeau was at the Montreal game.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed the jib, saying, “We look forward to the United States beating our soon-to-be 51st state.”

Despite the snark, Mr Trump concluded with a sporting remark: “Good luck to everybody, and have a GREAT game tonight. So exciting!”

But both teams advanced to the final after eliminating Finland and Sweden.

In the first US-Canada clash, there were three fights between players in the first nine seconds, an emotionally charged opening that many linked to the ugly politics.

Canadians have a long history of taking their national team hockey seriously. But with Mr Trump repeatedly insulting their country, the temperature ahead of the Feb 20 final is decidedly icy.

The Toronto Star newspaper on Feb 20 said Canadian national pride would “surge” should their team prevail in the rematch.

The paper cited a Rogers survey which said more than three-quarters of citizens believe hockey is core to Canada’s national identity, and a similar amount say Canada’s national pride is deeply intertwined with the sport. AFP