NHL players charged with sexual assault in '18 case

NHL players Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers, Michael Mcleod and Cal Foote of the New Jersey Devils and Dillon Dube of the Calgary Flames have been charged with sexual assault in connection with an alleged assault by several members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team.

Attorneys representing Hart, Mcleod, Foote and Dube said Tuesday that each player has been charged with sexual assault by police in London, Ontario. They denied any wrongdoing on behalf of their clients.

Hart’s lawyers, Megan Savard and Riaz Sayani, said their client is facing one count of sexual assault, adding, “He is innocent and will provide a full response to this false accusation in the proper forum, a court of law.”

Legal teams representing Mcleod and Dube said they would be pleading not guilty.

Dube’s lawyers, Louis Strezos and Kayleigh Davidson, said he “maintains his innocence (and) will defend the allegations in court.”

Foote’s lawyer, Julianna Greenspan, said her client was “innocent of the charge and will defend himself against this allegation to clear his name.”

Messages sent to the Flyers and Flames seeking comment were not immediately returned. A Devils spokesperson said the organization is aware of the reports and have been told to refer all inquiries to the league.

The NHL was not expected to address the situation Tuesday.

The latest developments in the case come two days after former NHL player Alex Formenton surrendered to police to face charges. Attorney Daniel Brown said Formenton is innocent “and asks that people not rush to judgment without hearing all of the evidence.”

All five players have taken leave from their current clubs over the past 10 days.

GOLF Mcilroy wants harmony on tour

Rory Mcilroy wants golf put back together again as quickly as possible, saying Tuesday that even winning one of the PGA Tour’s signature events would feel cheapened because it didn’t have all the best players in the world.

Mcilroy also said he would be opposed to any form of punishment for players who left the tour for the Saudi riches of LIV Golf and wanted to come back.

“I think it’s hard to punish people,” Mcilroy said at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am. “I don’t think there should be a punishment. Obviously, I’ve changed my tune on that because I see where golf is and I see that having a diminished PGA Tour and having a diminished LIV Tour or anything else is bad for both parties.

“It would be much better being together and moving forward together for the good of the game. That’s my opinion of it. So to me, the faster that we can all get back together and start to play and start to have the strongest fields possible, I think, is great for golf.”

Pebble Beach has a $20 million purse as a signature event, the same for the individual play of LIV Golf when it begins its third year on Friday in Mexico.

• LIV announced Tyrrell Hatton is the latest PGA Tour member to join, having snagged Masters champion Jon Rahm nearly two months ago.

• Pebble Beach has 45 of the top 50 in the world — the other five are with LIV Golf, which does not get world ranking points — and is one of eight signature events with $20 million purses.

FOOTBALL Morris brings Rams coaches to Atlanta

Falcons coach Raheem Morris began assembling his staff, appointing Zac Robinson as offensive coordinator and Jimmy Lake to run the defense. Both assistants followed Morris from the Rams, where the new Atlanta coach served as defensive coordinator before he landed the Falcons’ job last week.

• The Steelers are nearing an agreement to make former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith their new offensive coordinator, hoping he can turn around one of the NFL’S most underachieving offenses.

• Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has decided to stay with the team and turn down potential opportunities to be an NFL head coach next season, leading the Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks to turn to other candidates.