The defence lawyer who represented one of two Ottawa Gee-Gees hockey players acquitted of sexual assault this week says his client may have been exonerated in the courtroom, but not in the court of public opinion.

Christian Deslauriers represented Guillaume Donovan during the trial in Thunder Bay, Ont.

Donovan and David Foucher had each pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual assault laid after a February 2014 away game, and on Monday Justice Chantal Brochu acquitted the men, saying they "certainly didn't act like gentlemen," but that she had no reason to disbelieve their testimony that the complainant consented to sex.

Deslauriers told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning on Wednesday that he was "quite frankly not surprised" to hear divided reaction to the verdict, but that "if the public in general wastold court she had met a Gee-Gees player, Donovan's roommate, through an online dating app, and they had arranged to meet at a local bar during the post-game celebration.

The woman and Donovan's roommate then returned to his hotel room and began having consensual sex, she said. The complainant alleged they were interrupted when two of his teammates forced themselves on her in the hotel room. She also described seeing other naked men come into the room.

When he testified in his defence, Donovan said he had returned to his hotel room that night with the intention of going to bed, but had become aroused when he saw his roommate with the woman in the next bed, and approached them.

He said in his testimony the roommate asked the woman if