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Goaltender Carter Hart has agreed to a new deal with the Vegas Golden Knights after being one of five former Hockey Canada players acquitted of sexual assault allegations at a recent trial.
Hart, a 27-year-old former Philadelphia Flyers goalie, is the first of the five 2018 Canada world junior hockey players to sign an NHL contract since their acquittal.
Vegas announced an agreement with undisclosed terms for Hart on Thursday, the second day after the window opened for the players to sign.
Hart and the others are not eligible to play in games until December 1 as part of the league's reinstatement process for him, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote and Alex Formenton.
'The Golden Knights are aligned with the process and assessment the NHL and NHLPA made in their decision,' the team said in a statement. 'We remain committed to the core values that have defined our organization from its inception and expect that our players will continue to meet these standards moving forward.'
McLeod, who was also found not guilty of an additional charge of being a party to the offense, signed a three-year contract in the Russia-based KHL.
Carter Hart is seen arriving at the London Courthouse in London, Ontario back in July
Carter Hart (pictured), now 27, spent his first six seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers
Formenton is playing in Switzerland, though it is unclear if he has an out clause to return to the NHL, which he has not played in since 2022 with Ottawa.
'Each team is going to have to make its own decision,' Commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday after the NHL's Board of Governors meeting in New York. 'They know the rules. And it´s up to them to decide whether or not, subject to those rules, they want to move forward.'
Hart is resuming his career after spending his first six seasons playing for Philadelphia. The Flyers last month ruled out bringing back Hart, whose camp communicated to general manager Daniel Briere that a fresh start was a better option.
The players were charged in 2024 in connection with an incident in London, Ontario, in 2018. The judge overseeing the trial said the prosecution could not meet the onus of proof to convict them and that complainant´s allegations lacked the credibility needed to justify the charges.
The 2018 Canadian junior team celebrates its gold medal victory over Sweden in the final
'Much has been made in this case about the concept of consent,' Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia told the courtroom. 'This case, on its facts, does not raise issues of the reformulation of the legal concept of consent. In this case, I have found actual consent not vitiated by fear.
'I conclude that the Crown cannot meet its onus [on the charges],' Carroccia said.
The accuser, identified as E.M., testified in May that she was naked, drunk and scared when four of the men showed up unexpectedly in her room at the Delta Hotel London Armouries in the early morning hours of June 19, 2018, and felt the only 'safe' option was to do what they wanted.
'I made the choice to dance with them and drink at the bar, I did not make the choice to have them do what they did back at the hotel,' she testified.
Defense attorneys cross-examined her for days and suggested she actively participated in or initiated sexual activity because she wanted a 'wild night.'
The players, who are now between the ages of 25 and 27, were in London, Ontario at the time for a gala and golf tournament marking that year's championship victory.
A composite image of five players; Alex Formenton, Cal Foote, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube and Carter Hart as they individually arrived to court in London, Ontario, Canada, April 22
London Detective Sargeant Katherine Dann said in announcing charges in early 2024 that London Police received a call on June 19, 2018, from a relative of the victim and launched an investigation. That investigation was closed in 2019 with no charges.
A 2022 lawsuit sought $3.55 million in damages but was dropped after E.M. reached a settlement with Hockey Canada, leading police to reopen the investigation and charge five members of the team. That investigation revealed the organization had two secret funds to pay settlements on claims of sexual assault and abuse.
The NHL launched its own investigation in 2022. Officials pledged to release the findings, though Commissioner Gary Bettman said in February that would depend on what the league can say given legal proceedings.
When announcing the reinstatement timeline in September, the NHL called the events that transpired 'deeply troubling and unacceptable' and that while they were not found to be criminal, said the players' conduct did not meet the standard of moral integrity.
The NHLPA at the time said the players cooperated with every investigation and considers the matter closed.
