
By Mallory Mattingly
Team USA hockey player Jaccob Slavin scored his first official point in the Winter Olympics as the USA topped Latvia, Denmark and Germany.
According to the NHL, the athlete “has filled a shutdown role for a star-spangled U.S. blue line, helping his team post the tournament’s only perfect penalty kill during preliminary play (10-for-10). Logging an average of 14:47 TOI per game, Slavin also collected an assist against Denmark.”
Slavin, a devout Christian, constantly makes his faith known.
“Jesus is everything. He’s Lord of my life, He’s Lord of all my life because if He’s not Lord of everything, He’s not Lord at all,” Slavin said, per Christhlete on Instagram.
Related: NHL Player Jaccob Slavin Glorifies God ‘On and Off the Ice’
“If the Lord wanted to take hockey away from me tomorrow, I’m still good. My identity is not in this sport. My relationship with Christ is the only thing that doesn’t change,” he emphasized.
In 2021, Slavin won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, an award given “to the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability,” per the NHL.
In his acceptance speech, he credited God for the award.
“As a Christian hockey player, I know this isn’t myself that everyone’s seeing; it’s Christ living through me, and so I’m thankful just to God’s faithfulness in my life and being able to share the love of Christ in everything I do on and off the ice and how I conduct myself,” the Olympian said.
“It has everything to do with the person God’s created me to be and how I conduct myself,” he told Canes Country after receiving the award. “I want to live a life that glorifies Him. So in doing that, whether it’s on or off the ice, just making sure, kind of like the Golden Rule, treat everybody how you want to be treated. So going about my life in that way, and in a way that everything that I do, I want to glorify him in. So the on-ice play and not taking penalties is definitely part of it, but more so the gentlemanly conduct and just loving people well.”
“This award’s super special, just because I know it wasn’t me that won this award, it was just Christ living through me,” Slavin emphasized. “And just being able to share the love of Christ to the world, through hockey on and off the ice, that’s why I’ve been given this platform, and being able to share the love to everybody, so it is something that is special to me.”
Slavin puts his faith on full display at the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics. Team USA currently sits No. 1 after group play. The Americans will play the winner of Sweden vs. Latvia on Wednesday.
Read Next: ‘My Foundation’: Former NHL Player Reflects on His ‘Personal Relationship’ with Jesus
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