London police have laid charges against five players from Canada’s 2018 world junior men’s team, all of whom have been asked to surrender themselves to police in relation to a group sexual assault case.
The five hockey players, including four from the National Hockey League, were granted leaves of absences from their teams and have since released statements through their lawyers acknowledging the charges.
The accused are: Cal Foote (New Jersey Devils), Michael McLeod (New Jersey Devils), Carter Hart (Philadelphia Flyers), Dillon Dube (Calgary Flames) and , who formerly played with the Ottawa Senators and turned himself in to police on Sunday. The lawyers for Foote, McLeod, Hart and Dube each independently confirmed that each player was charged with one count of sexual assault and all plan to plead not guilty. Formenton’s lawyer, when reached out to on Sunday, declined to comment on the charges Formenton is facing.
The controversy and outrage swirling around Hockey Canada and the 2018 world junior team has now spanned years.
The allegations against members of the 2018 world junior team led to police investigations, the uncovering of sexual assault claims dating back decades, and massive scrutiny on an organization deeply embedded into all levels of hockey in Canada.
Here’s a recap covering everything you need to know.
What is Hockey Canada?
Hockey Canada is a government-funded organization and is the national governing body for hockey in Canada. It manages everything from minor hockey to Olympic and other professional international competitions. With some exceptions for the Canadian Hockey League and U Sports, most Canadians that have played or been involved with hockey have interacted with Hockey Canada.
What was the Hockey Canada scandal?
Attention was first drawn to Hockey Canada following a $3.55-million lawsuit filed in 2022 by a woman who alleged eight players from the 2018 Canadian world junior team had sexually assaulted her.
The lawsuit led to a committee meeting in June 2022 where MPs grilled Hockey Canada executives on the organization’s response to the allegations. The sports minister at the time, Pascale St-Onge, froze Hockey Canada’s federal funding and multiple high-profile sponsors severed ties with the organization following the hearing.Â
In July 2022, The Canadian Press reported that Hockey Canada had been using its “National Equity Fund†— which drew from minor hockey membership fees — to cover uninsured liabilities, including sexual assault and abuse claims. Hockey Canada said it had used $7.6 million from the fund for nine different settlements related to sexual assault and abuse claims since 1989, not including the settlement for the 2018 world junior team lawsuit.
An audit commissioned by the federal government found that no public funds had been used to settle sexual assault cases.
Hockey Canada also revealed in July 2022 that members of Canada’s 2003 world junior team were alleged to have been involved in a group sexual assault. Halifax Regional Police were notified and opened an investigation after video evidence was brought to light by TSN’s Rick Westhead.
Some of sponsors who initially withdrew in 2022 when the organization was embroiled in scandal, including Tim Hortons, Telus and Esso, reinstated their support for Hockey Canada in December 2023.
The findings of an investigative report into allegations of sexual assault by the 2018 Canadian world junior hockey team were in the process of being appealed, Hockey Canada announced in November 2023.
An independent adjudicative panel held hearings to determine if members of the 2018 junior team had breached Hockey Canada’s code of conduct and, if so, what penalties should be imposed. After the panel submitted its report to all involved parties, an appeal was requested.
Hockey Canada did not say who asked for the appeal, did not clarify to the Star who would be hearing the appeal, and did not provide a timeline for when the appeal process is expected to finish.
Allegations of sexual assault involving the 2018 Canada world juniors team
Canada’s junior men’s hockey team won the gold medal at the world junior championship in January 2018, defeating Sweden.
At a Hockey Canada gala on June 18 celebrating the gold medal, several players are alleged to have sexually assaulted an intoxicated woman in their hotel room that night. While an initial lawsuit from 2022 alleges eight players were involved in the sexual assault, London police said it has grounds to believe that five players were involved.
London police, in 2022, said they believe the woman was sexually assaulted by the players, but have not yet laid charges and none of the claims have been tested in court.
The incident was first reported to London police when it allegedly occurred in 2018, but no charges were laid then.
The police reopened their investigation in 2022 and sought warrants to search the hotel room where the alleged assault occurred and to collect information from law firms hired by Hockey Canada to conduct their own investigations. The investigation was later criticized for its lengthy timeline at parliamentary hearings in June 2023.
The woman sued Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League and eight unnamed players for $3.55 million in 2022. The lawsuit was settled by Hockey Canada out of court for an undisclosed amount.
Multiple players from the 2018 junior team have since distanced themselves from the event or outright denied their involvement in the assault after the lawsuit was widely reported on.
On Jan. 24, the Globe, citing unnamed sources, reported that five players from the 2018 team had been asked to surrender to London police. Their identities remained unknown, and London police scheduled a news conference for Feb. 5 to address the situation and declined to comment further.
The following Sunday, Formenton turned himself in to London Police and his lawyers confirmed that he was being charged in connection with the 2018 sexual assault case.Â
Finally, on Tuesday, the identities of the four remaining players were confirmed — Hart, Dube, Foote and McLeod, all through their lawyers, put out statements confirming that they had each been charged with one count of sexual assault and would all, independently, plead not guilty.
What has Hockey Canada done since the scandal?
Following the avalanche of scandals and reports, Hockey Canada’s president and CEO, Scott Smith, resigned, along with the entirety of the organization’s board of directors.
The organization’s government funding, which was paused amidst the flurry of outrage in 2022, was restored in April 2023 conditional on the organization implementing recommendations from an independent review. The organization was also required to more frequently report back to Sport Canada.
Katherine Henderson, the former head of Curling Canada, was appointed the CEO of Hockey Canada in July 2023 and officially took up the position in September.
With files from The Canadian Press.
