All of the players who were part of the team that won the World Junior Championship gold in the USA in 2018 were acquitted in the trial where they were charged with sexual assault on a woman at a hotel in Ontario, Canada, the same year. On Thursday, the verdict was announced where the court did not consider the testimonies reliable.
The players left their clubs when the charges were brought – and despite the acquittal – the NHL is now evaluating whether they will be allowed to return to the North American ice hockey league. In a statement, the NHL describes the players' behavior as "very disturbing" and their conduct as "unacceptable", according to Canadian TSN.
Players' union critical
"While we do the analysis and decide on the next step, the accused players will be ineligible to play in the league", writes the NHL.
A decision that is being criticized by the players' organization NHLPA.
"After missing more than a whole season of their respective NHL careers, they should now have the opportunity to return to work", writes NHLPA in a statement.
The players involved in the case are Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dubé, Carter Hart, and Cal Foote.
Several experts who TSN has spoken to believe that the players will be allowed to play in the NHL again.
"A different culture"
Ice hockey has a different culture and more leeway in how they assess an individual's personal behavior, says Ann Pegoraro, professor of sports leadership at the University of Guelph.
Do I think they will end up with teams again? If they are good enough, some teams, not all teams, will turn a blind eye (to the charges) and take them back to their lineups if they can contribute to the team.
