Carolina Hurricanes fans weren’t about to let Carter Hart off easy during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final on Tuesday night.
The Vegas Golden Knights goaltender, who was acquitted last year of sexual assault, had a chant of “No means no” directed at him during the opening game of the Cup final in Raleigh, N.C.
Hart and four other members of the 2018 Canadian world junior hockey team were accused of sexually assaulting a woman in London, Ont., during a party.
After a long, controversial and highly publicized trial, the five players were acquitted by Justice Maria Carroccia and had their suspensions lifted by the NHL as of Dec. 1, 2025.
Hart is the lone player of the five accused – which also included Dillon Dube, Alex Formenton, Cal Foote and Michael McLeod – to have re-signed with an NHL team, having officially signed with Vegas on Oct. 24, 2025.
Foote signed with the Carolina Hurricanes’ AHL team, the Chicago Wolves, in December 2025.
Why was Hart’s press conference cut short?
The chant wasn’t the only piece of controversy surrounding Hart at the Stanley Cup final.
The goaltender reportedly had a press conference cut short on Monday after answering a question relating to the Hockey Canada trial.
“On Monday, as part of the NHL’s pre-Final media day, Hart was asked one such question by The Athletic, about what he meant in October when he mentioned learning and growth since the verdict, and whether that had continued in the ensuing months,” The Athletic’s Sean Gentile reported.
“I’ve learned a lot,” Hart responded. “I’ve grown a lot since then. And I’ve been able to meet a lot of good people in the community, and I think the Vegas Golden Knights Foundation has done a really good job of making it easy for me to integrate into the community and meet a lot of cool people and – just really fortunate to be here in Vegas.”
According to the outlet, a Golden Knights staff member then immediately ended Hart’s availability after the question, preventing any follow-ups.
What about the Free Alberta shirt?
Hart stirred up controversy on a different front last month when he appeared in a post that went viral on social media.
In an image posted on X, Hart is seen giving one of his sticks to a young student who made his way from Chicago to Sin City with a sign saying he just passed high-school finals.
Of course, the otherwise touching moment was spoiled by Hart — a native of Sherwood Park, Alta. — taking the opportunity to also give his nation the shaft by promoting the controversial slogan.
Free Alberta would appear to be aligned with the movement promoting Alberta separatism, while recent polls indicate two-thirds of Albertans oppose the idea of independence.
What happened in the game?
Hart and the Golden Knights didn’t seem to be too flustered by the chants or the overwhelming crowd in Carolina on Tuesday night.
After going down 2-0 in the first period, Vegas bounced back to score a 5-4 win and draw first blood in the final.
Hart made 23 saves on 27 shots to pick up the win.
He has played well since joining Vegas, posting a record of 11-3-3 in the regular season with a 2.71 GAA.
During the playoffs, he has gone 13-4 while improving his GAA to 2.33 and his save percentage to an outstanding .918.
Game 2 of the series is set for Thursday night in Raleigh before heading to Vegas for Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Tuesday, June 9.
— With Gerry Moddejonge files