The Ontario Hockey League will be forced to defend allegations of conspiracy, negligence and breach of contract after a three-judge panel in Ontario reinstated those claims against the league in its legal battle against former players over minimum wage.
The judges also ordered the OHL to immediately pay roughly $500,000 worth of legal fees to the plaintiffs, in addition to another $700,000 in legal fees that must be paid if the OHL loses the lawsuit. Yet as major junior hockey has flourished, the plaintiffs say players have been left behind. They say paying players minimum wage would amount to $287,500 per team per year, or a collective $5.75 million expense for all 20 OHL teams.
The OHL has also said that teams may have to pare back their drug education, anti-doping, concussion management and medical and dental programs if it loses the lawsuit.