DENVER — Brock Faber had no idea the whirlwind he and his American teammates were in for after winning an Olympic gold medal on Sunday in Milan.
The trip to Miami and a party at a club. The visit to the White House.
“I thought maybe I’d be practicing when I got back,” the Minnesota Wild and U.S. defenseman said Thursday, smiling. “It was a hectic, crazy, crazy, crazy few (days).”
“It’s crazy it’s over,” said fellow U.S. Olympian and Wild teammate Quinn Hughes.
“A rollercoaster of emotions,” said Matt Boldy, the Wild forward who scored the opener for the U.S. in its 2-1 win over Canada. “I don’t think I’ve ever shed a tear from happiness like that on the ice, looking around and taking it all in, finding my family in the crowd. A lot of emotion.”
Faber, Boldy and Hughes all flew back to Minnesota on Wednesday morning and joined the team on their charter flight to Denver for Thursday’s game against the best-in-the-NHL Colorado Avalanche. They’ll all be in the lineup Thursday and play their regular roles, fully recovered or not.
“I feel like we owe it to the Wild to make sure we’re at our best,” said Hughes, who was named the top defenseman of the tournament. “There shouldn’t be a reason why not. We played in the best hockey game anyone has ever watched or played in. I don’t think the game has ever been played at that speed or that skill. I think going from that to this, we should be ready to go.”
All three players said their favorite moment in the celebration was on the ice, hugging their teammates and finding their families in the stands. “The people, that’s the reason you’re there,” Faber said. “So emotional. It was an incredible time. The hugs on the ice, the hugs off the ice with people you love the most, is so special.”
Hughes, who scored the overtime winner in the semifinal over Sweden, got to celebrate with his brother Jack, the OT hero of the gold-medal game.
“When that goal goes in, it’s pure joy,” Hughes said. “Just hugging everyone on the ice. I’ve never been part of anything like that. And who knows if I ever will be again?”
Boldy said the group had no idea what was coming next, from the flight to Miami, where they partied at a club (J.T. Miller was a star singing on stage). Then, amid backlash over a joke President Donald Trump made at the expense of the U.S. women’s gold-medal team (which the Wild players also responded to Thursday), came the trip to Washington, D.C., with Trump inviting them to the State of the Union.
“We were flying everywhere, and we didn’t want it to end,” Hughes said. “We didn’t want to leave the guys. It was funny before the last day, we were all saying how depressed we were because it was already over pretty much. Just a great group of guys, and we were able to accomplish what we wanted to accomplish. And I’ll cherish it forever.”
Wild coach John Hynes, who was an assistant for the U.S., talked to the players about the impact of winning a gold medal and having tasted winning a championship.
“We’ve all lost big games, and we’ve won big games,” Faber said. “The biggest games, it’s so weird going into the game. It’ll be the best day of your life or the worst day of your life. It’s huge. It brings so much confidence, knowing it’s possible. The NHL playoffs is a lot different — not a one-and-done. But it’s just a lot of confidence.”
The Wild are one point behind the Dallas Stars for second in the Central and seven points behind the Avalanche, who have two games in hand. If Minnesota wants to catch Colorado, head-to-head matchups between the teams on Thursday and next weekend are going to be crucial.
“We know how they play. They’re one of the best teams in the league right now,” Faber said. “We’re going to have to be at our best. They’re skilled. They’re fast. They’re physical. We have to play our game.”