Jordin Tootoo responds to sexual assault allegations.

On Friday news broke regarding an investigation into an alleged incident that occurred all the way back in 2003 involving members of Canada's World Junior Hockey Team at the time. The allegations amount to what would be a gang rape and, although they have yet to be tested in court, we are already seeing this matter being taken very seriously, even at the highest levels of the National Hockey League.

On Friday the NHL released the following statement via their official website:

“We were made aware earlier today of the horrific allegations against members of the 2002-03 Canadian National Junior Team," said the league in a statement. "The National Hockey League will look into the allegations and will respond appropriately.”

Since then, 2 former NHL players who were members of that squad have come forward and expressed their desire to participate in the investigation while also proclaiming their innocence. Those players are former first round pick Carlo Colaiacovo and former NHL forward P.A. Parenteau.

While none of the players involved in this have been named, former NHL forward Jordin Tootoo has found himself at the center of the controversy due to a exerpt from the book he has written about his life and his career. In the book, Tootoo can be seen describing how group sex activities were not foreign to the players he was around during his time as a hockey player.

Here is the excerpt from his book that has caused all the controversy:

But frick, we were just kids back then. The shit that we did. . . . We were horny young men. We were in Halifax and we had every goddamned girl hitting on us. What are you going to do? Let's start slaying these broads. And it wasn't just one-on one action. A few of the guys would get a couple of girls after practice and head into one of the rooms. Enough said.

Of course none of this amounts to an admission of sexual assault, but nonetheless Tootoo's name has been dragged through the mud as a result. Somewhat unsurprisingly this has now resulted in him responding with a statement of his own.

From Tootoo:

I join the community in calling for a full investigation into disturbing allegations that surfaced involving members of the 2003 Canadian World Junior Hockey Team. 

My book chronicles many experiences from the tournament when I was age 19, as well as my journey with alcohol addiction, which started at age 14. If I am being totally honest with myself and you, I don't recall knowing or hearing about the incident in question during or after the tournament. I was shocked when I heard about it in the media and will cooperate fully with any investigation.

We likely won't know the whole truth until a thorough investigation has been conducted but the good news is that a full investigation into this matter is now underway. Hopefully justice will prevail in this matter sooner rather than later.