OHL is aware of reports of alleged sexual assault by former players and will cooperate as police investigate

The Ontario Hockey League is aware of a report alleging eight former players sexually assaulted a woman in 2014 and the league will cooperate with any related police investigation, the OHL said in a statement Thursday.

Rick Westhead’s report detailing the alleged incident aired Wednesday on CTV’s “W5.” It included an interview with a woman who claimed the players sexually assaulted her in November 2014 at one of the players’ accommodations.

The OHL issued a statement regarding the allegations in a CTV report filed on Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/MRZ4m0nCN4

— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 17, 2024

The woman – whose identity was protected by CTV – said she was 22 at the time of the incident. She said the player who invited her to the quarters took her to the toilet and initiated sexual acts before the other players – aged between 16 and 19 – joined in. The woman did not attempt to report the incident to police until earlier this year.

“We learned about this yesterday when the news came out,” OHL commissioner Bryan Crawford said Thursday. “They had no contact with us before. No one in our league or on our teams was aware of it. So we learn about it like everyone else. Of course we take it incredibly seriously.

“It takes a lot for someone who has been a victim of sexual violence to come forward, and it is our job to take this seriously and cooperate with any investigations that arise as we move forward.” We are a little fussed about all the other reported circumstances in the dark.”

According to the report, the woman tried to file a police report earlier this year but received mixed responses about which department was responsible for handling the case. According to the report, Ontario Provincial Police said guidelines were not followed to ensure the woman was connected to the correct jurisdiction so she could file a report.

“We can confirm that the civilian caller provided the victim with the contact information for the relevant police department to facilitate reporting. However, standard operating procedures state that the caller should have personally connected the caller to the appropriate police department and remained on the line until the caller could confirm that a report had been initiated,” OPP spokesperson Gosia Puzio wrote in an email W5.

In the statement, the OHL said it takes allegations of this nature “very seriously,” but added that it had no knowledge of the alleged sexual assault before Wednesday.

“The OHL recognizes the courage it takes for victims of sexual assault to disclose their experiences and always desires to see justice served and perpetrators held accountable,” the league said.

When reached for comment, an NHL spokesman said: “The NHL is deeply troubled by any allegation of this nature. “We have no information beyond last night’s media report.”

Crawford further discussed ways the league can offer players resources for education.

“We talk about the things we can control and what we’ve been doing and investing in for almost a decade when it comes to our ONSIDE program and these types of educational programs that we have for our players and our players We have established teams that have tried to address these types of issues so that we can develop outstanding young people and community leaders. Ultimately, that is our top priority. Like everyone, we were completely shocked.”

– The AthleteScott Wheeler contributed to this report.

(Photo: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)