Convicted NHL Draft pick Logan Mailloux speaks out: ‘I caused a lot of harm’

Logan Mailloux, the controversial first-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens at the NHL Draft on Friday night, spoke out Saturday.

Logan Mailloux, the controversial first-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens at the NHL draft on Friday night, offered a public apology and said that he must “earn the trust of the fans” after his criminal conviction in Sweden last year for sharing an explicit photo of a woman performing a sex act without her consent.

“It’s definitely something I think I have to earn and that’s definitely something I am going to try to do,” the 18-year-old hockey player said Saturday on a Zoom call.

Mailloux, a defenseman for the London Knights in the Ontario Hockey League, had asked NHL teams not to select him in a social-media post earlier this week, writing: “I don’t feel I have demonstrated strong enough maturity or character” to be drafted this year.

He added Saturday that he hadn’t spoken since to any NHL team, including the Canadiens, before they chose him with the 31st overall selection of the first round.

Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin said Friday that the organization “will work closely with [Mailloux] and give him the support he needs,” calling the criminal incident “very unacceptable and a serious mistake in judgment” and one “we truly don’t agree with in all senses of the word.”

Mailloux was on loan to Sweden’s SK Lejon when he received a fine for “Kränkande fotografering” (offensive photography constituting an invasion of privacy) and “Förtal” (defamation) on Nov. 7, 2020 in the northern town of Skelleftea, the Daily Faceoff reported.

The victim told The Athletic’s Katie Strang in an email earlier this week that she did not believe “that [Mailloux] has understood the seriousness of his behavior,” adding “All I wanted was a heartfelt apology for his behavior. The woman wrote that she did receive an apology from him via text message, but it was “no longer than three sentences.”

Mailloux said Saturday he hopes the victim understands how “sincerely sorry” he is and said he has been undergoing therapy for several months.

“It was totally irresponsible and a stupid act that I committed without thinking twice. For that lack of judgment on my part, I was fined by Swedish law,” Mailloux said. “I know I caused a lot of harm to this person and her family, and I regret doing this stupid and egotistical act. I deeply regret it.

“What I did now is, unfortunately, a part of both her life and mine. I’ve apologized to her, but nonetheless, this will follow her for the rest of her life. And for that, I deeply and sincerely regret it… I promise I won’t let anybody down and I want to use my personal story to be a part of the solution moving forward.”

This story originally appeared on: NyPost - Author:Peter Botte