Early in January 2024, the Philadelphia Flyers looked like a team ready to punch above their weight and make a serious push toward the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Their 7–4 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Jan. 20 read like nothing more than a mid-season stumble on the schedule.
For Carter Hart, it became something far different. That night marked his final appearance before a 22-month disappearance from professional hockey, the beginning of an absence related to his involvement in the 2018 Canada’s World Juniors investigation.
“I haven’t played a game in a long time, so everything kind of felt different, but then once I started going a little bit, I started to get back into some certain routines that I haven’t done for a long time,” Hart said. “It’s just like riding a bike.”
Hart, one of five former players charged in connection with the case, was found not guilty at trial in July 2025. Three months later, he resurfaced in the NHL landscape, signing a two-year, $4 million contract with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Since then, the Golden Knights took the next step on Nov. 15, sending him on a conditioning stint with the Henderson Silver Knights.
On Sunday night at Lee’s Family Forum, the wait ended, with Hart returning to professional hockey, earning the 12-save 5-2 win alongside head coach Ryan Craig and company against the Calgary Wranglers.
“I thought Carter played a good game,” Craig said. “The team in front of him played good. That was just important for our overall team. That’s how we want to build our game here, no matter who’s in net.”
Under the terms of his reinstatement, Hart cannot appear in NHL games until Dec. 1, but he is cleared to play in the AHL. Henderson has four more games on the schedule in which he could start for the Silver Knights before Dec. 1.
As players trotted out through the tunnel for warm-ups, all attention drew towards the Silver Knights bench, led by Hart, a good sign that he’d be starting, and that held.
“I was probably more excited than anything,” Hart said. “I haven’t played a game in a long time, so I just (felt) good to be back out there, competing.”
It wasn’t just Hart, though, with four of the five goals on the night coming from defenseman. Jeremy Davies, Jaycob Megna, Lukas Cormier, and Lucas Johansen all got on the scoresheet.
“Yeah, I thought we were strong,” Megna said. “I think last night we were upset we didn’t help Vic (Jesper Vikman) enough. We came out pretty determined.”
With only 14 shots on net, Hart didn’t face a ton of action, but he stayed prepared and steady throughout the game.
“There wasn’t a lot of shots, so I had to kind of find different ways to get into the game, get as many touches as I could,” Hart said. “Get behind the net, stop as many pucks as I could.”
The Silver Knights haven’t won on home ice since Oct. 29; this win against the Wranglers snaps that streak, along with a four-game skid they’ve been on.
“It’s good,” Craig said. “That’s two in a row we had lost at home, so we want to make sure this is a place that it feels like tonight, that it’s a hard place to play.”
The Silver Knights will return to action this weekend against the Milwaukee Admirals, with Hart likely to get more reps in net as he nears his NHL comeback.
Sep 19, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Mark Leiter Jr. (56) throws during the eighth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images
To tender or not to tender, that is the question facing New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman. According to CBS Sports’ R.J. Anderson, Cashman has until Friday to tender contracts for the 2026 season to players not already under guaranteed deals.
On the other hand, Cashman can cut ties with those players and make them immediate free agents, which is likely to happen for several arbitration-eligible players.
That could include right-hander Mark Leiter Jr., who went 6-7 with a 4.84 ERA in 59 appearances last season for the Yankees.
“Leiter is a better pitcher than his bloated 4.84 ERA indicates. Need evidence? He ranked in the 92nd percentile in average exit velocity and he struck out roughly a quarter of the batters he faced,” Anderson notes.
“Unfortunately, that lead-in sentiment has applied for most of his career — and that’s not a good sign when you’re talking about a right-handed reliever nearing his age-35 campaign,” Anderson adds. “The Yankees are skilled enough at finding cheap relief arms that I think they part ways here. Prediction: Non-tendered.”
The Yankees acquired Leiter from the Chicago Cubs before the 2024 MLB trade deadline. He made six postseason appearances for New York over the last two seasons, going 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA.
Leiter, who went to high school in Toms River, N.J. and attended New Jersey Insititute of Technology, comes from a long line of Leiters to take a big-league mound.
His father, Mark Leiter, spent 11 seasons in the majors and pitched for the Yankees in 1990.
His uncle, Al Leiter, was a two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, winning titles in 1993 with the Toronto Blue Jays and in 1997 with the Florida Marlins. Leiter made his MLB debut in 1987 with the Yankees and later pitched for the New York Mets from 1998 to 2004. Leiter finished his 19-year career with the Yankees in 2005.
Al Leiter’s son, Jack Leiter , currently is a starting pitcher for the Texas Rangers. Jack Leiter attended Delbarton School in Morristown, N.J. with current Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe.
The Yankees selected Jack Leiter in the 20th round of the 2019 MLB Draft, but the right-hander opted to honor his commitment to Vanderbilt University. The Rangers selected Leiter with the No. 2 pick overall in 2021.
Leiter made his MLB debut in 2024 and became a rotation mainstay for Texas in 2025, going 10-10 with a 3.86 ERA in 29 starts.
As for Mark Leiter Jr., MLB Trade Rumors projects he will make $3 million if he goes to arbitration.