July 25, 2025 by Jackie Bondurant, a woman who doesn’t stay silent

I hesitated to write this.

Not because I don’t have something to say — I do. Not because I’m unsure of how I feel — I’m furious. But because I know what comes next: the pushback, the condescension, the “not all men” comments, the performative outrage from guys who see any critique of hockey culture as a personal attack.

And this is just an article.

Just an opinion. Just a woman saying what she feels.

Now, imagine I wasn’t writing this. Imagine I was reporting a sexual assault involving five Hockey Canada players. If I’m questioning whether it’s ““”worth it” to even speak out here, imagine what she had to weigh.

The courts have spoken. Not guilty. But for many of us, especially women, that verdict doesn’t feel like clarity. It feels like exhaustion. Like a familiar knot in the stomach that says, of course.

Of course they weren’t convicted.

Of course the system didn’t find enough.

Of course the benefit of the doubt went to the powerful.

This case was never just about five men. It was about the entire culture they came from. A culture that teaches boys that talent makes you untouchable. That silence is loyalty. That women are disposable — unless they’re cheering from the stands.

I love the game of hockey. I grew up with it. I still feel the thrill when the puck drops. But loving the game doesn’t mean defending the rot that lives beneath it. Hockey’s culture — from the juniors to the pros to the boardrooms — needs to change.

Because right now, it protects itself far better than it protects anyone else.

Let’s be honest: the Hockey Canada scandal wasn’t shocking. It was predictable. A woman came forward. The institution circled the wagons. The legal process did what it does — it asked whether the story was airtight, not whether it was true. And now we’re expected to move on, to clear the names, to pretend it never happened.

But women don’t forget. Not her, and not the rest of us.

Because we see the pattern. We live in it.

This verdict will be used as a shield. People will say, “See? It wasn’t true.” But acquittal is not the same as innocence. And in a culture where victims are asked to recall every detail while their abusers are asked for a statement from their agent, what chance did justice ever really have?

This isn’t about vengeance. This is about accountability.

And once again, there is none.

I’ve already heard people say this marks “closure.” That the players can move on. That hockey can get back to normal. But maybe that’s the problem: normal is what got us here. Normal is broken. Normal is what silences women and rewards silence in men.

So no — I don’t feel relief. I feel rage. And disappointment.

And resolve.

Because if this is how hard it is to write an article, how can we possibly expect victims to keep coming forward?

The game I love has a problem. The talent is there. The passion is there. But so is the rot — and until that’s addressed head-on, hockey will keep failing the people it should protect the most.

I still believe the game can be better.

But I’m done pretending that the culture doesn’t need to be burned down and rebuilt.

We deserved more than this.

She deserved more than this.

And the game, if it ever wants to move forward, needs to start with the truth — not just the verdict.