WASHINGTON — Former Rangers defenseman Mark Hardy was charged Friday with sexual abuse after a woman said he fondled her in a hotel room, according to charging documents.
District of Columbia police arrested Hardy early Friday, shortly after the incident was reported. Earlier reports said the victim was Hardy’s 21-year-old daughter.
According to court documents, Hardy and the woman walked from a bar in northwest Washington to the Mayflower Hotel, where Hardy had been staying since Wednesday. The documents said the woman told police she and Hardy were very intoxicated.
The documents state that the woman fell asleep in a bed in the hotel room and awoke when she was being fondled. The woman ran from the bedroom to the living room area of the suite, then went to the front desk for help. That’s when police were called.
Hardy, 51, made an initial court appearance Friday afternoon in D.C. Superior Court. He declined to comment as he left the court, according to WJLA-TV. A message was left for the public defender assigned to Hardy.
Hardy was ordered to be evaluated for alcohol treatment, according to court documents.
Hardy played in the NHL for 15 years. He began his second stint as an assistant coach for the Kings in 2008.
The Kings said in a statement that they were aware of the charge and had no further comment.
Hardy was known as Harpo during his Rangers days for his curly mop of hair.
“I find it extremely out of character. It’s hard to believe,” said Neil Smith, Rangers GM during Hardy’s stint on the Blueshirts blueline.
Hardy played 284 games for the Rangers, 7-52-59 with 409 penalty minutes, after coming to New York from the North Stars in 1988 and playing on the Rangers’ 1992 Presidents’ Trophy team.
He was a second-round pick by the Kings in 1979, and was dealt back to Los Angeles in 1993, when he went to the Stanley Cup Finals. In 15 NHL seasons, he played 915 games, amassing 1,293 penalty minutes while 62-306-368. He retired after the 1993-94 season, and has been an assistant coach with Chicago.
With Mark Everson