NHL begins mandatory domestic violence and sexual assault prevention training for all teams

The NHL has had a recent uptick in domestic violence and sexual assault accusations among their players. The league has noticed this and has joined the other professional sports leagues in mandating training that should help to educate players about the dangers involved in domestic violence and sexual assault and help educate them about how to prevent them.

In the past three seasons, the league has seen four of its stars directly involved in such cases. Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov was accused of domestic violence in 2013 but the case was dismissed. Kings defenseman Slava Voynov was arrested for domestic violence in October of 2014. He was sentenced to three months in prison on a misdemeanor charge. Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane had rape allegations this summer. He was investigated but he will not be charged with anything. Sabres forward Evander Kane is also facing recent allegations of sexual assault.

It will be interesting to see if there is any part of this program that will address how victims should be treated, especially with Canadiens center Alex Galchenyuk recently being an apparent victim of domestic violence that saw his girlfriend get arrested.