Nearly seven weeks have passed since the five players involved in the 2018 Hockey Canada sexual assault trial were found not guilty on all charges. And yet, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote and Dillon Dube continue to remain ineligible to return to the NHL.
At least, for now.
According to NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, a decision on the players’ future is coming. The question is whether it will arrive before the start of the 2025-26 regular season.
“I don’t have an update,” Daly told reporters at the NHL/NHLPA Player Media Tour in Las Vegas on Tuesday. “But I do anticipate a decision in the relatively near future.”
There is no guarantee that any of the players will be allowed back into the NHL this season. Even if they are, there is no guarantee that any of the 32 teams will want to offer any of them a contract.
Although all five players were found not guilty of sexual assault, the details of the trial shined a light on toxic masculinity and the negative culture that still pervades the sport of hockey. What the players did behind closed doors after a night of drinking at a Hockey Canada gala honoring their victory at the 2018 World Junior Championship might not have been criminal. But it was wrong on several levels.
NHL Made The Right But Difficult Decision With The Five Former WJC Players Found Not Guilty
When a London, Ont., judge ruled on Thursday that all five players involved in the 2018 Hockey Canada sexual assault trial were not guilty on all charges, the NHL found itself at a crossroads of moral decency.
“The allegations made in this case, even if not determined to have been criminal, were very disturbing, and the behavior at issue was unacceptable,” the NHL released in a statement at the conclusion of the trial.
“We will be reviewing and considering the judge’s findings. While we conduct that analysis and determine next steps, the players charged in this case are ineligible to play in the league.”
The NHL’s strong stance could explain why Formenton, whose NHL rights are still owned by the Ottawa Senators, recently signed a three-and-a-half-month contract to play in Switzerland.
When asked about Formenton during the Senators’ annual charity golf tournament on Monday, GM Steve Staois refused to say whether he had interest in the 25-year-old left winger.
“I have no comment on that. In fact, it’s a league matter, and the player is ineligible to play,” Staios told reporters. “I won’t comment on it.”
Formenton is not the only player who has played in Europe since London police initially laid charges on the five men.
Dube and McLeod, who last played for the Calgary Flames and New Jersey Devils, respectively, spent last season in Russia. Foote, a Tampa Bay Lightning first-round draft pick who has played for Nashville and New Jersey, spent last season in Slovakia.
Hart is so far the only player who is yet to play in North America or elsewhere. However, there are reports suggesting that several teams, including Philadelphia, where he last played, could be interested in signing the once-promising goalie if he becomes eligible to return to the NHL.
When — or if that is — remains unclear.
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