The court data has been set for the players of the 2018 Hockey Canada scandal

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Graham Montgomery
November 13, 2024 (11:22)

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The five former NHL players facing charges for their roles in the 2018 Hockey Canada scandal finally have a date for their upcoming trial.

The world will finally get to see the evidence for ourselves as former NHL players Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, and Cal Foote await a trial that could decide their futures in hockey. None of the players are active in the NHL anymore, although some of them are still active. Former Devil Michael McLeod signed in the KHL, joining Barys Astana for the season. Former Senator Alex Formenton has been playing in Switzerland for several years seemingly due to his role in the scandal himself.

Now Formenton, McLeod, and all the rest of them have a little bit of closure. Their futures just got at least a little more certain as a trial date has been chosen. The trial will begin on April 22nd, 2025. As such, both McLeod and Formenton will be able to finish their seasons before returning.

Depending on the outcome of the trial though, this year very well could be the last season either of them ever plays professional hockey. After all, this is an unprecedented situation in the NHL. If these players do get convicted could they ever make a return to the NHL? They will have time to serve, but assuming they are released before retirement age would any team in the league even consider signing them? What about the KHL or other European leagues?

One would imagine that all of them would struggle to get offers outside of the more obscure leagues around the world. That being said we really haven't seen a situation like this before. All it would take is for one general manager in the NHL to take a chance on one of them. Of course, there would likely be a lot of blowback from the league if that happened but we can't say that for certain until it happens.