Carter Hart is joining the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Golden Knights made the announcement in a statement on Thursday. Hart will be signing a professional tryout contract, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports.
"Following the reinstatement decision agreed on by the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association, goaltender Carter Hart will be joining the Vegas Golden Knights organization," the Golden Knights said. "The Golden Knights are aligned with the process and assessment the NHL and NHLPA made in their decision. We remain committed to the core values that have defined our organization from its inception and expect that our players will continue to meet these standards moving forward."
Hart, formerly of the Philadelphia Flyers, took an indefinite leave of absence in January 2024 after he was charged with one count of sexual assault after a London Police Service investigation into events involving the 2018 Canadian world junior team.
Hart, along with the other four players charged, was acquitted on July 24 but was later suspended by the NHL until Dec. 1.
He told reporters at the Golden Knights’ facility in Las Vegas that he wanted “to show the community my true character and who I am and what I’m about."
“I’m beyond grateful, excited and honoured to be a part of the Golden Knights,” Hart said in Vegas on Thursday, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “It’s been a long road to get back to this point, to get back to the game of hockey, the game that I love.”
Drafted 48th overall in 2016 by the Flyers, Hart played six seasons in Philadelphia. A native of Sherwood Park, Alta., Hart made 26 appearances in 2024, recording a 2.80 goals-against average and .906 save percentage.
Captain Mark Stone told reporters that the front office talked to the team before adding Hart.
“(Management) put a lot of time and effort into it,” Stone said. “We’re looking forward to having him here, looking forward to where our team is going.”
Signing Hart is another example of the lengths the Golden Knights will go to try to win the Stanley Cup. It's an organization that will take big chances, and many have worked in its favour.
This is certainly a gamble. If Hart doesn't produce, the Golden Knights will have put the organization through a lot of unneeded headaches. But if he plays well and the team wins, it's likely the Golden Knights will make this less of a story as they chase the Cup.
“We know how the guys upstairs work," Jack Eichel said. "They know what they’re doing. I think when you speak to people who know Carter, they have a lot of good things to say about his character and who he is as a person. We’re really looking forward to having him and moving forward.”
--with files from The Associated Press
