Hockey Canada has reportedly said players of the 2018 world junior team will be ineligible for Team Canada pending an investigation into alleged sexual assault.
According to reports from TSN's Rick Westhead and the Canadian Press, Hockey Canada won't allow players of the 2018 Canadian world junior team to represent their country in international play until an investigation into an alleged group sexual assault is completed.
“Earlier this year, Hockey Canada made a decision that until the investigation and adjudicative process of the alleged incident in 2018 are complete, no players from the 2018 National Junior Team will be considered for participation for Team Canada,” said Hockey Canada in a statement provided to TSN.
“This has been communicated to the management group for Team Canada at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championship.”
Team Canada's management team for the 2023 Men's World Championship in Tampere, Finland, and Riga, Latvia, include St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong and Detroit Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman. The tournament is scheduled for May 12 to 28.
Notable names from the 2018 world juniors roster include Colorado's Cale Makar, St. Louis' Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, Ottawa's Drake Batherson and Philadelphia's Carter Hart, among others.
No players have been named or charged, and the allegations have not been proven or tested in court.
The statement came after the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage motioned on Monday for Hockey Canada to hand over a report from Toronto-based law firm Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP about the alleged group sexual assault in June 2018 in London, Ont. The report was requested to be redacted for privacy purposes before being submitted to the parliamentary committee.
It also comes months after Hockey Canada's chief executive and board of directors resigned amid further investigations into the alleged assault.
According to a statement provided to TSN late Monday afternoon, Hockey Canada has reportedly not yet received the committee's motion.
In a filing from the London police reported by The Globe and Mail in December 2022, investigators said they have sufficient evidence to believe five members of the 2018 Canadian world junior team sexually assaulted a woman, and other players may be prospective witnesses. This has also not been tested or proven in court.
The NHL said it is also investigating the allegations.