Here's what Trump gifted Carney the last time the leaders met in Washington

OTTAWA — It may not be his favourite team but Prime Minister Mark Carney is now the proud owner of a Washington Capitals jersey emblazoned with his name and the number 24 thanks to U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump gifted Carney, a die-hard Edmonton Oilers fan, the framed and mounted jersey after the leaders sat down for their first in-person meeting in the Oval Office last month, according to a public registry of disclosures. That meeting laid the groundwork for what Canadian political and business leaders hope leads to a reprieve from Trump’s global tariffs on autos, steel and aluminum. It is a deal the two leaders have yet to lock in as they meet again, this time in Alberta, as Canada plays host to the G7 leaders’ summit. Gift-giving between leaders is a diplomatic custom during official visits. Another round is unfolding this week as Carney welcomes leaders from across Europe and other parts of the world for the G7 gathering. For his part, the last time Carney and the rest of the Canadian delegation saw Trump, they left behind a photograph of a famous football game played between Canadian and American soldiers several months before D-Day in 1944, snapped by a Canadian military photographer. It was an image meant to signal the coming together over sports, and amid global uncertainty, the latter of which Carney is trying to bridge with a volatile Trump administration. Canada also gifted Trump a hat and golf gear from the Kananaskis Country Golf Course, given that Kananaskis is where he and other G7 leaders are meeting. It appears Trump stuck with the sports theme for his last gift to Carney, too. The Washington Capitals are not only Trump’s hometown team, but also where Russian-born NHL star Alexander Ovechkin plays. Trump mentioned Ovechkin by name during his Oval Office meeting with Carney last month, which began with a wide-ranging question-and-answer session with the U.S. president, while Carney and other Canadian ministers watched on. And while the president may not have gotten the team quite right for Carney, who cheers for the Edmonton Oilers, he nailed his number, given that Carney serves as Canada’s 24th prime minister. Most Canadians will likely be relieved that the president chose that digit over the number 51, given how often Trump has repeated his desire for Canada to become the U.S.’s “51st state.” staylor@postmedia.com National Post Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here.