Ex-NHL Forward Reid Boucher Pleads Guilt to Assault Against a Minor

Warning: This article contains mentions of sexual assault that may be upsetting to some readers. Reader discretion is advised. 

According to a report from the Detroit Free Press, former Vancouver Canucks forward Reid Boucher pled guilty to third-degree criminal sexual assault against a minor, stemming from two incidents that occurred back in 2011. 

As the charges illustrate, Boucher, who was 17 at the time and a member of the United States National Development Program, forced his then-12-year-old billet sister to perform oral sex on him on two occasions, doing so by threatening to blackmail her with a video initially, and then later threatening to tell people about their first (non-consensual) encounter. 

While the charge he ultimately pled guilty to in December is in the third degree, Boucher was initially charged with first-degree sexual misconduct against a minor, which, if convicted, would have carried a sentence of up to 25 years in prison. 

The impact that Boucher's assault left on his victim has been catastrophic. In an interview with the Free Press, the victim described the trauma that Boucher's acts against her have caused in vivid detail, explaining how, in the years since, she has struggled with substance abuse, eating disorders, and self-harm in order to cope with the pain. 

Boucher, meanwhile, was allowed by the judge overseeing this case to enter a plea that will result in him serving no up-front jail time. And, if Boucher successfully completes his sentence, the charge will not appear on his criminal record. 

While Boucher's victim was left to deal with the trauma created by his acts against her, Boucher himself only continued to move up in the hockey world, playing 48 games with the Canucks from 2016-2019 before signing with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, where he plays today.