NHL releases an official statement after Trump-Putin talks on NHL-KHL games in USA & Russia

The NHL issued an official statement following a lengthy phone conversation between U.S. President Donald Trum;p and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday.

During their discussion, which was primarily focused on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the leaders also explored the idea of organizing hockey games featuring players from both the National Hockey League and Russia's KHL.

Trump expressed support for Putin's suggestion to host these games in both the United States and Russia. Although the White House's summary of the call didn't reference these hockey discussions, the NHL was informed of the proposal afterward.

Subsequently, the league made its statement:

"We have just become aware of the conversation between President Trump and President Putin. Obviously, we were not a party to those discussions, and it would be inappropriate for us to comment at this time."

Vladimir Putin is a huge fan of hockey. He has been snapped many times attending games, most notably during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, where Canada won the gold medal. T.J. Oshie scored in the shootout for the United States in their preliminary round game against Russia.

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NHL fans react to Trump-Putin discussions of hosting hockey games

NHL fans quickly took to X (formerly Twitter) to react to Donald Trump's idea of hosting hockey games in the US and Russia, following discussions with Vladimir Putin.

One tweeted:

"No way. If I were the NHL I'd put together their own independent exhibition featuring the US, Sweden, Finland, Germany, et al."

Another chimed in:

"Trump wouldn't know the rules of hockey. He is just so jealous of Canada that he thinks US players against Russian players would be the best."

Here are some of the other top reactions on X:

"Let’s be honest, Russia should’ve never been banned from international competitions to begin with," a third fan posted.

"Considering that the US and Russia are now allies, I can see the NHL merging with the KHL while dumping the canadian teams," another opined.

"The Russians should have always been allowed to play in the 4 nations…punishing players because of their governments is ridiculous," another chimed in.

Meanwhile, Russia has been banned from participating in all international competitions. It remains to be seen whether the nation will be allowed to take part in the proposed 2028 Hockey World Cup.