NHL issues blunt warning to teams looking to sign 2018 WJC scandal players

The NHL sent shockwaves through the hockey world on Thursday, handing down suspensions to the five players acquitted in the 2018 World Junior Championship sexual assault case, and delivering what sounded like a warning to any team considering signing them.

Alex Formenton, Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, and Callan Foote will be ineligible to return until December 1, though they can sign contracts as early as October 15. All five were charged in connection with a June 2018 incident at a London, Ont., hotel following a Hockey Canada gala. McLeod also faced an additional charge of being a party to the offence. In July, Justice Maria Carroccia acquitted the group, but the NHL quickly declared their conduct “unacceptable” and barred them from immediate reinstatement.

That decision was immediately criticized by the NHLPA, which argued that the league’s stance didn’t align with the collective bargaining agreement. On Thursday, however, the league softened its position, while sending a message to its 32 teams.

Deputy commissioner Bill Daly didn’t mince words.

“Even though the players were acquitted in the trial — those demeaning text messages don’t reflect high character even if they don’t reflect guilt. I hope teams consider the values they want in their athletes before taking the plunge.”

It was less an update and more a warning shot. Yes, the players can return. But the league is making it clear: signing them comes with baggage.

Four of the five, Dube, Foote, Hart, and McLeod, had active NHL careers until charges were announced in 2023–24. They now sit as unrestricted free agents. Formenton, out of the league since 2022, recently returned to Swiss club HC Ambri-Piotta.

So, which team will be bold enough to take the plunge? And what message will that send, not just to fans, but to the league itself?