5 players from 2018 Canada world junior team take leave of absence from their clubs

The Globe & Mail is reporting that five players from Canada’s 2018 world junior team have been asked to surrender to London, Ont., police to face charges of sexual assault.

At this time, London police have not confirmed the report.

This week, five players from the 2018 team have announced that they will be taking leaves of absence from their professional hockey clubs. Though they have not officially been connected to the charges, some now play in the NHL.

In unsealed court documents, the alleged victim says she was having consensual sex with one member of the team in a hotel room in 2018, when she says seven more players entered the room and assaulted her.

Police launched a second investigation in 2022 after Hockey Canada quietly settled a $3.5-million lawsuit with the victim back in 2019.

The scandal rocked the hockey world and the NHL opened its own investigation and pledged to make those findings public.

Police in London say they anticipate holding a press conference on Feb. 5 to discuss further details regarding this investigation, noting the significant public interest the case has drawn.

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