Ben Johnson was former NHL Draft pick from 2012 who was selected by the New Jersey Devils, however, his NHL career quickly went away and for good reason.
In 2013, Johnson was charged with rape after being accused of assaulting a 16-year-old while at the Windsor Spitfires end-of-year party. These were shocking allegations that ultimately led to his conviction in 2016. He got three years in prison for his crime, yet was somehow able to continue his hockey career.
Johnson has bounced around in the ECHL, most recently playing for the Kansas City Mavericks in 2022. Now, Johnson is shockingly getting another opportunity overseas. After two years with Nove Zamky Mikron HC in the Slovakian league, Johnson is now going to Dukla Michalovce.
As you can imagine, fans are pretty shocked and disappointed about this decision. However, other teams had been giving him opportunities for quite some time now, so it should not be all that surprising. Either way, it is easy to understand why hockey fans are outraged, regardless. There are hundreds upon thousands of players who would deserve the opportunity a whole lot more.