Carter Hart has narrowed the list of teams he’s considering signing with down to three or four, TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston reports.
Johnston wrote in The Athletic Monday that Hart, who can agree to a contract as of Oct. 1, is still considering the Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes and one or two more unnamed teams to make his NHL return with.
Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Briere said last week that Hart’s agent had informed the team that the goaltender was seeking a “fresh start” and would not be rejoining the franchise.
Edmonton Oilers general manager Stan Bowman also ruled out signing Hart last week, while Johnston reports the Utah Mammoth had internal discussions on potentially adding him, but are no longer part of the process.
The NHL announced earlier this month that it was reinstating the five players who were acquitted of sexual assault charges stemming from an incident in 2018 when they were members of Canada’s world junior team, and that they will be eligible to sign a contract Oct. 15 and take part in games Dec. 1.
Hart, Dillon Dube, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote and Alex Formenton were all found not guilty by a judge this summer in their high-profile trial in London, Ont. The National Hockey League said in a statement following the verdict on July 24 by Justice Maria Carroccia that even though the players were found not guilty, their actions were “unacceptable”, and the players were ineligible to return to the league while it reviewed the decision.
Four of the players (Dube, Foote, Hart and McLeod) were playing in the NHL until charges were announced during the 2023-24 season and are currently unrestricted free agents. Formenton has been out of the league since 2022 and rejoined Swiss club HC Ambri-Piotta earlier in September.
Hart, 27, had a 12-9-3 record with the Flyers with a .906 save percentage and a 2.80 goals-against average in 26 games during the 2023-24 season.
He carried a cap hit of $3.98 million on his most recent contract, which expired in 2024.
In 227 career NHL games, all with the Flyers, Hart has a 96-93-29 record with a 2.94 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage. He was selected 48th overall in the 2016 draft.