The most memorable smile at tonight’s State of the Union address will likely belong to U.S. hockey hero Jack Hughes.
The New Jersey Devils center, whose overtime goal secured a gold medal for Team USA over Canada at the Milano Cortina Olympics, is expected to be among the American players attending the prime-time speech at the invitation of President Trump.
Still missing pieces of his two front teeth after taking a high stick to the mouth before netting his game-winner in overtime, Hughes’ jagged smile as he celebrated on the ice (and afterward) is one of the iconic images from the 2026 Winter Games.
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How did Jack Hughes lose his tooth?
Hughes took a high stick to the mouth from Canada’s Sam Bennett in the third period of Sunday’s gold medal game in Milan. The hit drew blood and knocked out parts of two front teeth as Hughes went down on the ice before play was stopped.
Hughes returned to the game and less than three minutes later was called for a high-sticking penalty of his own. However, neither team could score on their resulting power plays and the game went to overtime.
Less than two minutes into the extra period, Hughes took a perfect pass from Zach Werenski to beat Canadian goaltender Jordan Binnington for the game-winning and gold medal-clinching goal.
When will Jack Hughes get his tooth replaced?
Hughes has not offered a timetable for fixing his teeth, but he did confirm that he intends to indeed get them fixed.
‘I’m gonna fix these things, Hughes said to NBC 5 Chicago. ‘I want my good smile back.’
Jack Hughes golden goal vs. Canada
In a thrilling, intense, superbly played championship game, Jack Hughes’ goal lifted the United States to a 2-1 overtime victory over Canada and to the gold medal in men’s ice hockey at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Games.
Skating 3-on-3, Hughes collected the puck in the Canadian end and scored the golden goal one minute, 41 seconds into the extra period.
How old is Jack Hughes?
Jack Hughes was born in Orlando, Florida on May 14, 2001 and is 24 years old.
Jack Hughes stats
Jack Hughes was among the top goal scorers at the 2026 Winter Olympics. His four goals tied him with Nick Olesen (Denmark), Tim Stutzle (Germany), Sebastian Aho (Finland), Nathan MacKinnon (Canada) and Juraj Slafkovsky (Slovakia). Macklin Celebrini (Canada) scored five at the Milano Cortina Games.
Hughes has played 36 games in his seventh season for the New Jersey Devils, amassing 36 points across 12 goals and 24 assists.
