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Rangers' Star Settles With Team Employee After Sexual Assault Allegation

New York Rangers star Artemi Panarin is the subject of some troubling off-ice accusations.

Jon Alfano

New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin skates across the blue against the New York Islanders.
New York Rangers left wing Artemi Panarin skates across the blue against the New York Islanders. / Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images
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New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin and Madison Square Garden Sports, the team's parent company, paid settlements to a former employee last year after she alleged that he sexually assaulted her, The Athletic's Katie Stang reports.

The alleged assault took place during a Rangers road trip in December of 2023. Panarin allegedly took the woman's phone during a postgame gathering with around a dozen other players and staff members, and said he would only give it back if she came to his room. Once she went to his room, he allegedly pinned her down on the bed before she pushed him off and left.

In August, the woman left the Rangers organization after reaching multiple agreements, which included non-disclosure and no admission of wrongdoing clauses. She reached separate settlements with Panarin and MSG Sports.

The woman reportedly didn't alert the team until roughly three months later, when it began investigating a separate incident that she had shared anti-anxiety medications that helped her on flights with a player battling a similar issue. The team placed her on paid leave pending the outcome of that investigation. There is also reportedly no record of her reporting the incident to law enforcement.

While the woman was on leave, an MSG Sports executive reportedly led a meeting where he told employees to not discuss the situation.

Both the woman and an MSG Sports spokesperson responded to The Athletic's request for comment by simply saying "the matter has been resolved." Neither Panarin nor his agent responded to a request for comment.

In an email, the NHL told Strang: “The Club retained an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation, which the League was fully apprised of. We consider the matter closed.”

Panarin previously took a leave of absence February of 2021, when a Russian newspaper claimed that he was involved in a physical altercation with a woman in Latvia that same year. The Rangers dismissed those claims as an "intimidation tactic" against him in response to his previous comments concerning Russian politics.

The Rangers named Panarin as the team's MVP for this season on Wednesday night. New York, which will miss the postseason for the first time since 2021, closes out the season at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.

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Jon Alfano
JON ALFANO

Jon is a lead writer for Baltimore Ravens On SI and contributes to other sites around the network as well. The Tampa native previously worked with sites such as ClutchPoints and GiveMeSport and earned his journalism degree at the University of Central Florida.

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