Team USA Captain Facing Criticism After Unsportsmanlike Conduct During Medal Ceremony
The 2024 World Junior Championships was one that was filled to the brim with drama, shocking upsets, and countless highlight-reel moments. In the end though, the tournament came down to the favorites as Sweden and the USA battled it out for the goal medal.
USA Wins 6th Gold Medal At U20 World Junior Championships
The gold medal game was not filled with as much drama and tension as some of the earlier rounds as USA handily defeated the hosts by a final score of 6-2. The victory secured team USA's 6th gold medal in tournament history.
The team celebrated their victory with their traditional call and response anthem after the game.
Team USA Captain Faces Criticism For Gold Medal Celebration
All of that being said, some believe team USA's celebrations went a bit too far as team captain Rutger McGroarty is now facing criticism for a celebratory dance he did on his way to claim his gold medal and the tournament trophy for his team.
Fans were not happy to see the 19-year-old show off in front of the tournament hosts.
That being said, other fans supported the move as they enjoyed seeing some personality from the player. Hockey players can be known for giving rather dry interviews most of the time so we do not often see a ton of personality from our favorite players outside of moments like these.
Be sure to tune back in next year for the next edition of the world junior championships.
As seen on Team USA Captain Under Fire For Lack Of Sportsmanship While Accepting Gold At World Juniors
| POLL | ||
Do you think this celebration was over the top? | ||
| Yes | 792 | 47 % |
| A little | 254 | 15.1 % |
| They're kids, let them have their fun | 390 | 23.1 % |
| Not at all | 249 | 14.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
