Latest details on possibility of Carter Hart joining the Oilers

When free agency opened earlier this month, insider Kevin Weekes stunned everyone when he mentioned how Oilers Stan Bowman was reportedly considering signing none other than Carter Hart in Edmonton to improve the goaltending situation for his team moving forward. Weekes talked about the possibility less than 30 minutes into TSN’s Free Agent Show.

The speculation got a lot of attention as we await the verdict in the trial in which Hart is facing serious accusations. As you may remember, five players were charged in the 2018 World Junior alleged sexual assault, including Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote and Michael McLeod. They were all charged with one count of sexual assault in the 2018 World Junior alleged incident that allegedly occurred following a Hockey Canada gala in Ontario in June 2018. Court documents from 2022 revealed London police believed they had reasonable grounds to accuse five players of sexually assaulting a young woman in a hotel room. At the time, the Philadelphia Flyers parted ways with Carter, making him a free agent. The trial started back in April, and a verdict is expected by the end of the month.

If found not guilty, Hart could be back in the NHL, but would probably need to undergo whatever discipline the league decides to impose on the five players who are defendants in the case.

And then came the rumour that he could ended up with the Oilers. Earlier this week, Daily Faceoff’s Jason Gregor wanted to set the record straight and revealed that the speculation was incorrect:

“Any report about the Oilers having interest in Carter Hart is incorrect.

Edmonton will not be approaching him, even if he is found not guilty.”

While some may still consider him a top goalie, can you imagine PR nightmare if the Oilers consider signing him? If Gregor is right, that’s great news for Edmonton and their fanbase.

Hart made 25 starts for the Flyers in the 2023-24 season before he left to deal with much bigger issues. In total, Hart played 227 total games for the Flyers, including 218 starts. He was a second-round pick by the Flyers in the 2016 NHL draft.