Trigger Warning: Sexual Assault (Don’t continue reading if you’re uncomfortable with this topic!)

(Image from Toronto Star)

Recently, within the NHL, various players who were originally a part of Canada’s 2018 World Junior Team have been charged with sexual assault. This scandal has affected multiple teams, fans, people, and the NHL community as a whole. With so much information being spread, here’s a simple breakdown of the scandal and what you should know about it.

Players Involved

To begin, there are allegedly eight players involved in this scandal, yet only five out of eight players have been publicly addressed. As transpired by NBC News, NHL players, Michael McLeod and Cal Foote, who play for the New Jersey Devils, Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers, and Dillon Dubé of the Calgary Flames, have all been granted indefinite leaves of absence by their teams. Additionally, a former NHL player from the Ottawa Senators, Alex Formenton, who currently plays for a Swiss club HC Ambrì-Piotta, is also involved and known publicly as the fifth player. Although all of these players have requested a leave, they’re listed under non-injury reserved, either because of personal and mental health reasons or simply unknown reasons. All of these players have one thing in common: they were all in London, Ontario, at the 2018 Hockey Canada Gala which as described by USA TODAY, was to honor and reward the gold-medal-winning world junior championship team for their achievement. 

The Case Itself

In addition, now that we know most of the players involved in this case, let’s go over what allegedly happened. As previously mentioned, these players were all in London. Not London, England, but London, Ontario. The investigation originally began in 2018 and closed in 2019 without any charges filed but eventually reopened in 2022. What’s said to have occurred was that after the Hockey Canada Foundation Gala and Golf Fundraiser, a woman (referred to as E.M.) met someone at a bar, became highly intoxicated with that person, and was led to a hotel room by them. Furthermore, NBC News also mentions that E.M. claims that said person allowed seven more people to enter the hotel room and forced her to perform various sexual activities, without her consent. They then proceeded not to allow her to leave and intimidated her. It also mentioned that she was forced to take a shower afterward and stated in a video recording that she was sober. According to The Toronto Star, “Through their lawyers, each of the players have maintained their innocence and said they intend to plead not guilty”. It’s important to realize that this situation is likely highly traumatizing for E.M., and it should be handled with the utmost care and consideration, whether or not the players are found guilty or not guilty.

Actions being Taken

Moving forward, it’s crucial to take into account the consequences of these actions. ESPN goes into detail about how the victim sought around $3.55 million in damages from Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League, and the other eight players, in April of 2022. Eventually, they reached an out-of-court settlement with the victim for an undisclosed amount in May of the same year. The NHL took some responsibility, and began an investigation on their own, to find out more and to get to the bottom of this situation. Since they started and continued it, the 5 known players involved were asked to surrender themselves to London Police, in January of 2024, and have not played in any games since. The NHL has also removed the option to buy jerseys with these players’ names and a company named Liberty Bell Jersey has claimed that they will strip the names of those players involved in the scandal from people’s current jerseys with a minimum of a $35 donation to a charity that specifically helps with victims of sexual violence.

Suspicions and Other Thoughts

Overall, there is still much more to be learned and solved about this case. These allegations are still not 100% percent confirmed. Many people are torn about who to believe, whether the allegations of their favorite players are true, and what to think. It’s also worth noting that while these players play and are associated with their team, it’s important to know that neither their teammates nor the team itself should be associated with this case or the actions with it. Plus, more information is upcoming, as the investigation is not fully done yet, and the NHL and the players have given full public statements about this scandal. Hopefully, this article has provided you with a better understanding of this controversial matter.