Carter Hart found not guilty of sexual assault, but don’t expect to see the goaltender back in Philly

Carter Hart is a free man. The former Flyers net minder and his four ex-Canada teammates were found not guilty of sexual assault Thursday, officially closing the door on the long-running Hockey Canada investigation that’s hovered over the NHL for the last two years. For Hart, it’s the end of a legal saga and likely the start of a whole new NHL chapter.

Carter Hart Verdict: Not Guilty

Breaking: Justice Maria Carroccia has acquitted five former #NHL players – Carter Hart, Dillon Dubé, Alex Formenton, Michael McLeod and Cal Foote – today on charges of sexual assault.

Justice Carroccia opined she found “inconsistencies” in the testimony of a woman who alleged…

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 24, 2025

Carter Hart, now 26, was the closest thing Philly’s had to a franchise goalie since Ron Hextall. That’s not hyperbole. He was drafted in 2016, made his NHL debut in 2018, and was viewed as the goalie of the future for a team that has churned through goaltenders like tissues for decades.

At times, he looked the part. In 2023–24, he posted a respectable .906 save percentage and 2.80 goals-against average and the Flyers were shockingly competitive. That being said, there’s no doubt that Carter Hart will be back in the NHL.

Unfortunately, he just won’t be back with the Flyers. That ship sailed a while ago.

Even if the Flyers wanted to bring back Carter Hart now, they can’t.

They just gave a two-year deal to Dan Vladar ($3.35M a year with a 8-team M-NTC in both years), they’ve still have Sam Ersson for this year (RFA next summer), Ivan Fedotov is still in the organization but will probably end up in the AHL and Yegor Zavagrin is waiting in the shadows like a Bond Villain.

Point being, there’s no cap room or spot in the rotation so there’s really no point. Carter Hart is not coming back to Philly but we’ll see him somewhere. He’s too young, too talented, and too proven to be left unsigned for long.

In the end, Hart gave this city some damn good years. He stabilized the position for the first time in decades. He was a legit top-ten goalie for stretches. He helped lead a playoff run in the bubble and made the Flyers relevant again, even if only briefly.

It didn’t end the way we hoped, but we got some fun out of it, so thanks for the memories, boss. Good luck out there.

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