Sports
Daniel Carcillo, Garrett Taylor Detail Alleged Abuse in Junior Hockey Lawsuit
Jonathan Daniel/Getty ImagesFormer NHL left winger Daniel Carcillo and ex-Western Hockey League player Garrett Taylor have filed a class-action lawsuit against the Canadian Hockey League, the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, alleging that players ages 15-17 were “routinely victims to hazing, bullying, physical and verbal harassment, physical assault,…
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Former NHL left winger Daniel Carcillo and ex-Western Hockey League player Garrett Taylor have filed a class-action lawsuit against the Canadian Hockey League, the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, alleging that players ages 15-17 were “routinely victims to hazing, bullying, physical and verbal harassment, physical assault, sexual harassment, and sexual assault.”
Ken Campbell of The Hockey News summarized the lawsuit's allegations on Thursday:
“According the lawsuit, players in the class were, among other things, forced to masturbate in front of teammates and coaches and forced to sexually assault teammates, to consume saliva, urine, semen and feces of other players and to sexually engage with animals. It is also alleged that players had heavy objects tied to their genitals, had their genitals dipped in irritants and toxic liquids and had objects such as hockey sticks, brooms and food forced into their anuses. It is also alleged that players were forced to consume large amounts of alcohol and illicit drugs.”
A statement of claim was filed Thursday with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, per the Canadian Press.
Koskie Minsky LLP, the law firm representing the two ex-hockey players, stated that the lawsuit “is on behalf of children aged 15-17 who were sexually and physically assaulted, hazed and otherwise abused while away from home and playing for CHL teams.”
The WHL, OHL and QMJHL all fall under the CHL umbrella, which forms Canada's top-tier major junior hockey program.
“We have not been served with any court documents and therefore have no comment at this time,” the CHL stated in an email to the Canadian Press.
Per the Canadian Press, the lawsuit “seeks damages for negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract, and a declaration that the teams and the leagues are vicariously liable for abuse perpetrated by their employees and players.”
Carcillo played for the OHL's Sarnia Sting and Mississauga IceDogs from 2002 through 2005. Taylor was on the WHL's Lethbridge Hurricanes and Prince Albert Raiders from 2008 through 2010.
Carcillo alleges that he was subject to “almost constant and repetitive abuse” and that Sting executives and coaches and officials were aware of the alleged acts, including head coach Jeff Perry and general manager Terry Doran, during the 2002-03 season.
Carcillo claims that “an informal investigation took place by OHL and/or CHL agents, but no findings were released, abusers were not punished and no steps were taken to address the abuse.”
The lawsuit also alleges that Carcillo “suffered severe mental health issues which were not present before the abuse he endured” and that he continues to suffer from them presently.
Carcillo released a statement after the lawsuit went public, noting that he believes “this case will give those who were abused a chance to be heard” and that it will “create real positive change in Canadian junior hockey.”
Daniel Carcillo @CarBombBoom13
If anyone has any questions regarding the class action lawsuit against the @CHLHockey that was filed today, you can reach out to my lawyer James Sayce jsayce@kmlaw.ca
@OHLHockey @TheWHL @QMJHL
#ohl #whl #hockey #abuse #nhl #hazing #accountability https://t.co/chJeMDtJFg
Taylor says he suffered abuse with the 2008-09 Hurricanes and stated team coaches and officials were aware of the situation, including general manager Roy Stasiuk and head coach Mike Dyck.
James Sayce, who is serving as the lead lawyer for the class-action lawsuit, stated the following:
“The focus of the case is a failure to protect, to oversee the children in your care. These are systemic issues that have been in place for quite a while. There has been a good deal of knowledge in the hockey world that abuses are taking place.
“And to this day, we have the leagues being very slow to respond to these types of abuse. And these stories keep coming out. And the reason these stories keep coming out is some survivors are strong enough to tell their stories and go against certain codes, certain practices that are ordinary in hockey.”
The news comes days after former ex-forward Eric Guest said he was locked in a bathroom and forced to do cocaine when he was a member of the OHL's Kitchener Rangers in 2016 when he was 16 years old.
In addition, Carcillo and Taylor's class-action lawsuit arrives weeks after the U.S. Center for SafeSport banned Chicago-area junior hockey coach Tom “Chico” Adrahtas, per Katie Strang of The Athletic.
Multiple ex-junior hockey players allege that Adrahtas sexually abused them when they played under him, per Strang.
As for the Carcillo-Taylor lawsuit, Campbell provided his thoughts on what should happen if the allegations are true.
“If what Daniel Carcillo and another former junior player are alleging in a class-action lawsuit against the CHL are true, nothing short of a complete overhaul of the junior game in Canada is in order,” Campbell tweeted.
Carcillo played nine NHL seasons with the Phoenix Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. The two-time Stanley Cup winner retired in 2015.
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