Jack Hughes Addresses Gold Medal Puck Dispute as Crosby Weighs In

Jack Hughes has changed his tune about the Hockey Hall of Fame keeping his Olympic gold-medal winning puck from the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.

“It’s like the most special place in hockey,” Hughes said after the Devils beat the Rangers 6-3 on Wednesday night. “I’m honored that it’s there.”

That’s quite a shift from his earlier stance, when he called it “bull—t” that he couldn’t keep the puck from his historic moment.

The 24-year-old Devils star scored the game-winner that earned Team USA the gold medal back in February. It was America’s first men’s hockey gold since the “Miracle on Ice” in 1980.

Hughes admitted things got a bit heated in the aftermath. “Obviously I think things were taken crazy,” he said. “I didn’t know where the puck was. It is what it is.”

The puck’s journey to Toronto wasn’t exactly straightforward. The International Ice Hockey Federation collected it after the game – that’s standard procedure for Olympic tournaments – and then donated it to the Hall of Fame.

It’s different in the NHL, where players usually get to keep meaningful pucks from their big moments. Some choose to donate them to the Hall, but it’s their call.

Sidney Crosby, who knows a thing or two about Olympic glory, sees it differently than Hughes did. Crosby scored Canada’s golden goal in 2010.

“I didn’t even think about it that way, to be honest with you,” Crosby told The Athletic. “I was just happy that I scored the goal. I was happy that the puck was going to the Hall of Fame.”

Hughes seems ready to move past the controversy. “I’ve been playing hockey,” he said simply. “That’s where my head’s at.”

Maybe winning a Stanley Cup would help ease any lingering disappointment. After all, you get to keep that trophy – at least for a day.