The players had been accused of assaulting the woman, known as EM, in a hotel room in 2018 in London, Ontario, where they had been attending a gala.
They were acquitted in July 2025 when Justice Maria Carroccia said she did not find EM’s evidence “credible or reliable”.
The court heard that the woman had met the players at a bar and later went back to the hotel room to have consensual sex with McLeod. Other players then entered the room and engaged in further sexual acts with her.
The central issue of the trial was whether EM, who was 20 at the time of the incident, had consented to every sexual act in the hotel room that night.
Lawyers for the players contended that EM asked the men to have sex with her and they believed she gave consent.
EM, however, testified that she was intoxicated and felt fearful of the men. While she had initially agreed to have sex with McLeod, she testified that she did not agree to what unfolded afterwards.
Despite the fact that the incident happened eight years ago, the case remains on the minds of many in Canada.
“This case started a national conversation about safe sport and the problematic culture in men’s hockey,” said Adam van Koeverden, Canada’s current secretary of sport, in a statement after the Wednesday’s ruling by the appeals board.
“It is the voices of women and survivors, and the courage and bravery it takes to come forward, that have led to changes we are seeing in toxic culture.”
Van Koeverden said there has been progress at Hockey Canada to “address long-standing systemic failures” and said that national sport organisations must be held accountable.
