A sports lawyer says NHL teams will weigh talent against potential backlash when deciding whether to sign one of the five players acquitted in the 2018 London, Ont., sexual assault trial.

The league announced Thursday that Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton and Carter Hart – who are all free agents – can return to play Dec. 1, but will be eligible to sign with teams starting Oct. 15 while awaiting full reinstatement.

McLeod, Dube, Foote, Formenton and Hart were all charged with one count of sexual assault stemming from an encounter with a woman after a 2018 gala celebrating the Canadian world junior team's gold medal. McLeod was also charged with one count of being a party to the offence.

All five players were acquitted of all charges on July 24 in London, Ont., afte

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