After not making a qualifying offer to retain his rights, the Philadelphia Flyers officially let go of restricted free agent goaltender Carter Hart on July 1.
Hart, 25, has been away from the Flyers since Jan. 23 after requesting and being granted a personal leave of absence. On Jan. 30, Hart was charged with one count of sexual assault in connection with the 2018 Hockey Canada sexual assault incident; that charge has not been proven in court.
Hart’s legal representation, Savard Foy LLP, released the following statement on Jan. 30: “We act for Carter Hart and confirm he has been charged with one count of sexual assault. He is innocent and will provide a full response to this false allegation in the proper forum, a court of law. Until then, we have no comment.”
Defenseman Cal Foote and forwards Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, and Michael McLeod are the other four players who were charged in connection to the Hockey Canada case, and Dube, who last played for the Calgary Flames on Jan. 18, is apparently continuing his professional career in the KHL.
HC Dinamo Minsk, a Belarusian KHL club, announced that it had agreed to a contract with Dube on July 1. The contract was subsequently registered by the KHL, making the move official for the 25-year-old forward.
Dinamo’s press release did not make any mention of the sexual assault charge levied against Dube.
It’s unclear if there are any extraneous circumstances that would have allowed Dube to leave Canada before facing trial, but if there aren’t any, Hart would reasonably be able to do the same and continue his professional career in the KHL as well.
The only factor working against Hart at the moment is, apparently, that Russian KHL clubs are only permitted to have five foreign players in their lineups at any given time. Therefore, clubs with more established journeymen from other countries would likely not be suitable for the former Flyers goaltender.
Hart last played for the Flyers on Jan. 20, surrendering five goals on 15 shots against in a 7-4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche. In 26 appearances for the Flyers in the 2023-24 season, Hart compiled a record of 12-9-3 and posted a 2.80 GAA, a .906 save percentage, and one shutout.
