A Canadian documentary about one of ice hockey’s most controversial sexual assault cases is now reaching audiences beyond Canada. Code of Misconduct, which examines the 2018 Canadian World Junior hockey team scandal, has arrived at a moment of heightened attention, with one of the men at the centre of the case currently competing in the Stanley Cup Final.
The documentary is directed by Quebec filmmaker Sébastien Trahan and written by Trahan and Laurel Baker. Its runtime is for 88 minutes and was released in Canada on April 26, 2026. The film also premiered at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in Toronto.
What the documentary is about
The film follows TSN journalist Rick Westhead, who is also the author of the book We Breed Lions: Confronting Canada’s Troubled Hockey Culture. Westhead broke the story of the complainant’s civil lawsuit and continued reporting throughout the trial.
In 2025, five members of the 2018 Canadian World Junior hockey team were acquitted after being charged in relation to a June 2018 incident with a then-20-year-old woman, known only as E.M., in a London, Ontario hotel room. The five players were Michael McLeod, Dillon Dubé, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton and Carter Hart. It took seven years for the players to face trial, due to a saga involving two mistrials. All five men were acquitted on all charges in July 2025.
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Writing in The Grind Magazine’s June/July 2026 issue, reviewer described the documentary as making firm points about “how our defective justice system works to crush survivors of sexual assault” and exploring how “male sports culture, if left to its current form, breeds toxicity and psychopathy.”
Where to watch it
Code of Misconduct is streaming in Canada on Super Channel Fuse and Super Channel On Demand. It is also available on the Super Channel Amazon Prime Video channel.
The documentary is not available in the United States at present. It remains unclear whether or when it would become available on major US streaming platforms such as Netflix or Hulu. However, there is a workaround available for the interested viewers. US viewers have the option of using a VPN set to a Canadian server allows access to Canadian streaming platforms where the film is hosted.
The documentary’s release has coincided with Carter Hart playing for the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final against the Carolina Hurricanes. Hart returned to the NHL on a reported $4 million contract in 2025. During Game 1 of the Final, Hurricanes fans were heard chanting towards the Golden Knights as they took the ice.
Hart has largely avoided discussing the case publicly since the acquittal and does not maintain any public social media accounts.