Canucks Virtanen denies sexual assault allegations

Vancouver Canucks forward Jake Virtanen has denied allegations he sexually assaulted a woman in 2017.

A woman identified as M.S. has filed a civil lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court in Kelowna alleging Virtanen sexually assaulted her at a hotel in West Vancouver on Sept. 26, 2017.

In his response filed June 1, Virtanen denied M.S.’S allegations, saying he and the plaintiff had “consensual sexual intercourse.”

He denied forcing her and denied she “expressed any indication, verbal or physical, that she did not want to engage in any sexual activity.”

Virtanen claimed the plaintiff consented to the sexual activity “through her words and conduct.”

The allegations have not been proven in court.

Virtanen and M.S. met at the Calgary Stampede in 2017. According to Virtanen’s response, he was 20 at the time, and he believed M.S. was 18. M.S.’S statement of claim does not provide her age but indicates she was a “youth” at the time of the incident.