Veteran NHLer releases statement condemning Team USA's White House visit

Team USA men's gold winning hockey team arrived at The White House earlier today where they were greeted by American President Donald Trump ahead of tonight's State of the Union address.

See captain Auston Matthews along with Dylan Larkin, Matthew Tkachuk, Charlie McAvoy, Connor Hellebuyck, Brady Tkachuk, Brock Faber, Jack Eichel, Jack Hughes and Quinn Hughes enter the Oval Office this afternoon.

And I mean... what a photo here:

Matthew Tkachuk even shared his gold medal with Trump:

Of course, this visit doesn't come without some level of controversy though.

Colorado Avalanche forward Brock Nelson, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jake Guentzel, Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jackson LaCombe, Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger and Winnipeg Jets forward Kyle Connor have all declined President Trump's invite and instead have returned to their respective NHL teams.

Guentzel released a statement through the Lightning stating simply that he is preparing for his team's next game. Ditto for Connor, who joined the Jets for practice today.

While none of these players have "spoken out" per se, you can read between the lines I think here.

As far as speaking out, veteran NHL defenseman Jon Merrill has released a statement through his anti-bullying organization Hockey's Beauty Club condemning Trump and the Men's team for mocking the gold medal Women's team.

Check it out:

Near as I can tell Merrill is the only NHLer to make any sort of definitive statement on today's developments.