The Edmonton Oilers scored two goals on the power play and one shorthanded to register a 5-4 win over the Arizona Coyotes Monday night.

Matias Maccelli put Arizona in front just prior to the game’s four minute mark. It took the Oilers only 50 seconds to respond with Zach Hyman on the scoring end of pretty power play passing. The Coyotes regained the lead on a power play of their own. Barrett Hayton’s backhand from in tight was stopped by Jack Campbell, but the rebound went in of Mattias Ekholm’s skate. Again, the Oilers provided a quick reply, with Evan Bouchard zinging home his fifth of the season 35 seconds later.

Still in the first, Kailer Yamamoto lead an odd-man rush shorthanded and teed up Darnell Nurse for his ninth.

The Oilers dominated the second period and went up 4-2 when Leon Draisaitl slid a shot from the right wing under Karel Vejmelka. It was Draisaitl’s 300th career goal.

“(Draisaitl) gets it off quick. He’s a cerebral player so he’s in right spots. They’re always able to find him on the power-play. 300 goals, a lot of goals for the kid. Many more to come,” Nick Bjugstad said.

The Coyotes came out strong in the third and tied it up with goals 58 seconds apart by Maccelli and Hayton. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins rapped in a loose puck for a power play goal to put Edmonton up 5-4 with 7:55 left.

“We could be harder around our own net. It was just a couple of situations that could be handled better,” head coach Jay Woodcroft said. “For us, as a time that’s trying to tighten the screws on some things, that’s not conducive to how we want to play game 83. This is a tough building to get two points, we found a way.”

Clayton Keller had an assist for the Coyotes to extend his point streak to 13 games.

Campbell made 29 saves for the win.

“I thought we had a strong second and we let it slip away but we were able to get it back and win the game. That’s all that matters but obviously we want to clean that up,” Hyman said.

The Oilers, 42-23-9, will visit the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday (630 CHED, Face-off Show at 6 p.m., game at 8 p.m.)

 

 

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

An 18-year-old woman is dead after being found near a lake on Pimicikamak Cree Nation.

Police received a report on March 24 of the missing teen, who had last been seen on March 21.

After several hours of searching, RCMP received a report of a dead person found near the lake, which turned out to be the 18-year-old. Mounties say the woman had been outside for a period of time.

RCMP continue to investigate and an autopsy will be conducted.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A novice driver on Vancouver Island was issued multiple tickets and had their vehicle impounded for seven days after being clocked speeding nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit last Wednesday.

The BC Highway Patrol said the driver, who had an “N” under B.C.’s graduated licensing, was clocked at 194 km/h in a 100 km/h zone on Highway 18 near Lake Cowichan.

A second officer further down the highway clocked him at 191 km/h.

“The Cowichan Valley Highway (Hwy 18) usually has wildlife, such as elk, on or in close proximity to the roadway that become a visual distraction or something nobody wants to hit, especially in the dark,” Highway Patrol Const. Mike Infanti said in a media release.

“Thankfully this young man did not get to meet one of these animals or any other obstacles prior to police meeting up with him.”

In addition to the fines and the impound, the driver was apprehended under B.C. Mental Health Act and taken to hospital.

Police did not provide details about what prompted the arrest.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

It’s the home stretch for the Montreal Canadiens, with only two weeks left in the season.  A busy week started with road games in Buffalo and tomorrow night in Philadelphia.

The Sabres need every win they can get as they are still in the hunt for a playoff spot, yet their extra hunger didn’t translate into an easy night.

It went to a shootout, with Montreal winning 4-3 in round six.

Wilde Horses 

While there have been more losses than wins this season, it still has been enjoyable to follow the Canadiens this season on most nights. The reason is that organizationally it is exciting to watch this team learn how to play the modern game.

They have the general manager in Kent Hughes who wants to see the modern game and a head coach in Martin St. Louis who can teach it. For so many frustrating years, the club acquired stay-at-home defencemen and then espoused the virtues of this pedestrian style.

Now, the Canadiens are pressuring the puck all over the ice. Defenders are attacking the offensive zone, including leading the rush, as if they are forwards. There is no first forechecker designated anymore. It is simply who is the first one into the zone to lead the forecheck, then the other forwards assume their roles according to the order of their arrival.

The responsibilities of each player can change on each attack into the offensive zone. A defenceman can even be the first forechecker under Martin St. Louis. The goal is attack the puck with speed, and take away time all over the ice and at every opportunity.

It is so engaging to watch these players learn how to play in this manner this season. Half of the team is from Laval, yet the system is so advanced that these players of lesser talent look, at times, like stars playing higher than their station.

Take the first Montreal goal as a strong example of St. Louis’ ‘modern hockey’. Defender Mike Matheson is the first on the rush, so he takes the puck without any fear to the net, then he is pushed wide and takes it behind the net.

Behind the net? A defender? What decade is this?

It’s the 2020s and it is beautiful.

Matheson comes out the other side after he is pushed wide. He dishes the puck off to Jonathan Drouin who looks for an attacker on the other side to complete the play.

He finds there another defenceman rushing up, and uncovered. The hockey is moving so quickly, it is so difficult to defend. Jordan Harris takes the Drouin pass and scores on his own rebound from two feet out. Harris’ check is a Buffalo winger still at the blue line getting a good view of modern hockey from 40 feet away.

The Canadiens opened the scoring with a defender leading the rush and the other defender also rushing toward the goal. It is beautiful. All five players are forwards, and all five players are defenders. The goal is take time and space away, and come in numbers. Always come in numbers.

The Canadiens will finish the season with the fifth-worst record in hockey. Considering Montreal’s injuries this season, often going with half a team from Laval, they should have finished in the basement.

They also should have entertained us about as much as Dominique Ducharme entertained us in the first half of the season last year. It should have been an absolutely dreadful and boring year.

What we got instead was entertainment most nights watching this band of brothers give us much more. Thank Martin St. Louis. He’s the modern day coach for the modern era of hockey.

Mike Matheson isn’t playing the best hockey of his life in a vacuum. Kirby Dach isn’t having a breakout year by accident.  Denis Gurianov isn’t awake suddenly just because. Four forwards from Laval aren’t looking like NHLers, all at the same time, because there is something in the water. Justin Barron isn’t figuring it out all by himself.

They are part of a system that allows them to be their best selves. Imagine what Martin St. Louis can do with his players when the rebuild is complete. Imagine how he can teach a budding superstar in his midst.

With a little bit of good fortune, this could be sensational.

Wilde Goats 

It’s just not been the pattern this season to lament here. This season has been about development — the development of players, and the development of modern hockey top down in the organization.

There simply is nothing to complain about. This is exactly what was hoped for.

Wilde Cards 

Logan Mailloux completed his regular season for the London Knights on Sunday with his 25th goal of the season. That final goal made Mailloux the highest goal scoring defennceman in the Ontario Hockey League.

Mailloux wasn’t the top goal scorer per game, though, as that honour belongs to Brandt Clarke. Clarke was in a league of his own this year, averaging almost two points per game in the short time that he played in the OHL. Mailloux’s season, though, was formidable.

There’s a lot of conjecture how good Mailloux can be with the opinions wide-ranging. However, the Canadiens organization is not hesitant at all to proclaim him as a definite NHL player. Francis Bouillon believes that he has all the tools to be a strong defender. The organization believes that he is one of the best prospects, if not the best Canadiens prospect not in the NHL.

Mailloux will need to be taught how to defend better than he has shown so far, and that’s where Martin St. Louis comes in. He is a teaching genius, and players are saying that they are learning aspects of hockey that they had not even thought of before listening to the Canadiens head coach.

For hockey skills alone, Mailloux has vast amounts. He has a bomb of a slap shot that has been clocked at 102 miles per hour. He also has a wickedly accurate wrist shot. He skates well, and has a nose for offence. He can rush the puck up the ice on his own, and he can feed it quickly up ice as well. He will be a strong point producer from the blue line. He is the modern defender.

Mailloux is also a big player who knows how to use his size to level big hits, and win puck battles. Physically, he is exactly what is required from a blue liner. He is an ominous presence with a mean streak as well.

Where he tops out as an NHLer will be about his decision making. If he plays better defence, it is easy to see him with Mike Matheson on the first pair. The club needs right side help, and he can be the best right side player on the team, if he develops his brain for the game.

The club is thin on the right side in the future. They likely need to draft another right side defender that has top-four potential. Justin Barron is his top competition now, and Mailloux projects with a higher upside at this point. Kaiden Guhle can also be move to the right side, but that is sub-optimal for Guhle to be his best self.

If Mailloux learns only at an average level how to defend, he will still be a second pair defender, and only if he can not figure it out at all defensively will he be a third pair player. He will be an NHL defender, though. He is that good on the offensive side of the puck.

Mailloux is already signed by the Canadiens and next year will activate the first year of his entry level contract. He will finish his time at London in the playoffs starting this week in Ontario, then in the autumn, he will begin his attempt to make the NHL.

Expect him to be on the roster on opening night, if GM Kent Hughes has moved a veteran in the off-season. If Joel Edmundson and David Savard are still on the club, it is 50-50 whether it is Montreal or Laval to start for Mailloux. He could fall victim to a numbers game until some veterans are moved to make way for the next generation.

Without any changes to the roster, nine defenders will fight for six spots.  It’s going to be fascinating.

Brian Wilde, a Montreal-based sports writer, brings you Call of the Wilde on globalnews.ca after each Canadiens game.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Burnaby RCMP is asking for the public’s help to locate a man wanted on a B.C.-wide warrant.

Manveer Singh Dhesi, 28, is facing multiple charges including assault, uttering threats and mischief.

In a Monday media release, police said he is known to live in Surrey and spend time in Burnaby.

Anyone who sees Dhesi is asked to call police immediately, and not to approach him.

Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call Burnaby RCMP at 604-646-9999.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A Canadian Pacific train derailed in rural North Dakota Sunday night and spilled hazardous materials. But local authorities and the railroad said there is no threat to public safety.

There were no injuries and no fire associated with the derailment, which occurred in a rural area outside Wyndmere, a town of several hundred people about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Fargo.

Canadian Pacific spokesperson Andy Cummings said 31 of the 70 cars on the train, including several carrying hazardous materials, left the tracks around 11:15 p.m. Sunday.

Four cars filled with liquid asphalt and two railcars filled with ethylene glycol spilled some of those chemicals in the derailment. And Cummings said a car carrying propylene was punctured and released some vapor.

It wasn’t immediately clear how much of the chemicals were released, but there are no waterways nearby and the chemical spills were contained at the site of the derailment.

The railroad’s hazardous materials experts are working with local first responders to clean up the spill. Several roads in the area were shut down.

Cummings said the railroad believes a broken rail caused the derailment.

Railroad safety has been in the spotlight nationally ever since last month’s fiery derailment of a Norfolk Southern train near East Palestine, Ohio. Roughly half of that town of about 5,000 people near the Pennsylvania border had to be evacuated after officials decided to release and burn toxic chemicals.

Federal regulators and members of Congress have proposed reforms they want railroads to make to prevent future derailments.

© 2023 The Canadian Press

Pride Nights in the NHL have sparked controversy this season with some players — and teams — refusing to take part.

Much of the contention can be traced back to Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Ivan Provorov declining to wear a Pride jersey or participate in warmups on Jan. 17th, citing his religious beliefs.

But in Calgary, players are stepping forward for a cause close to their hearts.

“When the thing first came out in Philly, we wanted someone to speak up and I said, I can do it,” Flames blueliner Rasmus Andersson said. “You know… It’s close. My aunt is gay and my cousin is gay. It’s my family.

“Everybody’s welcome. Especially in Calgary, especially in our organization. Doesn’t matter who you are. Doesn’t matter who you love. You’re welcome to play, and you’re welcome to be part of us.”

Andersson, MacKenzie Weegar and Dillon Dube all stepped forward saying they wanted to model the team’s first-ever Pride jersey, which will be worn for warmups prior to Tuesday’s match against the Los Angeles Kings.

“We’re all equals, we’re all in this together, we’re all supporting everybody,” Dube said. “We just want everyone to come to the game tomorrow and feel welcome and be themselves.”

The design by local artist Megan Parker incorporates the plants and wildlife of Alberta with the colours and pattern of the Pride flag.

The team had previously used Pride tape on Hockey is For Everyone theme nights and participated in the annual Calgary Pride Parade.

It’s expected that all Flames players will wear the uniform and take part in warmups on Tuesday night in hopes of letting LGBTQ2 fans know they have a place in the Saddledome and the game as a whole.

“Oh yeah, they’ll wear them,” Head Coach Darryl Sutter said Monday morning. “I don’t think it’s been a real issue for the team at all.”

“The players talked about it a bit together,” Weegar added. “Everybody was just on the same page and on board.”

Here's a closer look at the Pride Night jerseys the Flames will wear for warmups tomorrow! Gorgeous design by local artist Megan Parker.
Rasmus Andersson, Dillon Dube and MacKenzie Weegar all stepped forward saying they wanted to model the uniform. pic.twitter.com/Uy1GgLYofp

— Cami Kepke (@CamiKepkeGlobal) March 27, 2023

Buffalo Sabres defenceman Ilya Lyubushkin is the most recent player to refuse to wear a Pride-themed warmup jersey, pointing to an anti-gay law passed in his native Russia.

Florida Panthers brothers Marc and Eric Staal cited their religion when boycotting warmups last week- prompting former Flame Matthew Tkachuk to speak out.

“We only have so many of these nights throughout the season, whether it’s ‘Military Night’ or ‘Hockey Fights Cancer Night,’ or whatever,” Tkachuk said post-game.

“A night like tonight, for me, is really about including everybody. In my opinion, it’s by far the greatest game in the world, and everyone’s invited in my locker room and our locker room as an organization.”

It’s a sentiment Tkachuk’s old teammates appreciate.

“It’s a bit disappointing,” Weegar added. “I know it’s people about their beliefs and values, but, you know, I think it’s more just to welcome them in and make it a safe place. Putting the jersey on for 15 minutes can go a long way.”

Sutter and the players Global News spoke with said an out teammate would be welcome in their locker room.

Post-game, the jerseys will be signed and auctioned off in support of the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC) Inclusion Program.

The puck drops against the L.A. Kings on Tuesday, March 28 at 7:00 p.m.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The operator of a group of Vancouver Island daycares says delays and hiccups in the province’s new child care funding model have left staff and parents stressed and facing the fear of unexpected fee hikes next month.

Under the new $3.2-billion program, which took effect in December, the average per-child cost of daycare dropped from $53 to $21, a monthly saving for some families of about $550.

But Alisha Neumann, executive director of the Inquiring Little Minds (ILM) child care facilities, said she was recently forced to tell parents at some of her nine daycares they may be on the hook for full payments, amid uncertainty about funding coming through.

“It’s always a tough time in order to get that all sorted out with the government as they’re trying to get all the contracts approved for the province, so I appreciate they’re having a tough time themselves, but it’s stressful for us because we don’t know what’s going on or when our money is coming in or what that is going to look like for next month,” she said.

Fee subsidy funding for B.C. daycares is renewed annually, with contracts expiring on March 31.

Neumann said spotty communication from the province has left it unclear if all of the ILM daycares are fully approved or funded, with the deadline ticking down to the last contract’s expiry.

That uncertainty has left the company with a shortfall of about $70,000, and scrambling to cover wages for 65 employees.

“It’s a very stressful situation to be in for sure. Most of the time what happens when we’re in a situation like this, I personally use my own personal line of credit to cover for paycheques, for rent, for things we see a shortfall in,” she said.

“But unfortunately we’ve just gotten too big and it’s just too much money that my line of credit doesn’t cover for that anymore.”

BC NDP Minister of State for Childcare Grace Lore said the backlog in applications is clearing, with more than 90 per cent of applicants approved or temporarily approved, with money flowing for April.

“Those approvals are through, providers can submit their pre-claiming for Apr. 1, and with some exception of providers who are requesting beyond the fee cap for Apr. 1, there is going to be no disruption to families savings or to providers,” she said.

“We’re continuing to hear from providers. I spoke to many last week on how we can improve the system going forward, both in terms of communication and ease of the process.”

Neumann only received temporary funding approval for the last of her daycare centres on Saturday, after she had received an earful from stressed and angry parents who’d been informed they may have to find a way to pay substantially higher fees.

She wants to see the province starting the annual application process much earlier to give both operators and government workers more time to process them and to roll out approvals earlier.

“The problem is that this has happened for at least the last four years and there has been no change from the province in the way they deal with our funding,” she said.

“We need to start this process far sooner. We need to have our approvals way before march happens so that way we can give reassurance to the providers and to parents at the same time that everybody can pay their rent and nobody will be late on payments.

“It’s a tough situation we’re all in.”

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A Coquitlam, B.C. family is speaking out after suffering many months in a dilapidated rental home they say their landlord refuses to fix.

Yaser Hamdo, his wife and six children have lived at the Edgar Avenue home for about three years, paying roughly $2,300 per month. In that time, Hamdo said he has raised repair issues with the landlord multiple times, to no avail.

“Dangerous,” he told Global News, pointing to mold on the ceiling above one of his children’s bunk beds.

Global News reached out to the landlord multiple times by phone for comment on this story but did not receive a response. The City of Coquitlam said it had no jurisdiction over landlord-tenant disputes, and did not provide further comment.

The ailing property on Edgar Avenue has mold in multiple places, damp basement flooring, warped ceiling tiles at risk of caving in, broken floor tiles in the kitchen, gaping holes in the balcony floor, and more.

Hamdo said his youngest has already tripped and injured himself on the kitchen floor tiles and he’s worried one will fall through the balcony floor next, if they are not careful.

“It’s unhuman actually to put somebody in this type of squalor,” said Saad Alexan, a friend who is advocating for Hamdo and translating the interview for him.

Hamdo and his family moved to B.C. five years ago as refugees from Syria. Without good English, Alexan said advocating for himself and his family has been difficult.

“He is taking a really very courageous step by stepping forward trying to improve his life and his family’s life,” said Alexan. “It’s becoming unlivable, essentially appalling conditions.”

A development application sign is posted on the Edgar Avenue property lawn.

Speaking through Alexan, Hamdo said he has tried to find other accommodations, but with a small budget and six children, the task has been “next to impossible.”

According to B.C.’s Residential Tenancy Act, landlords must maintain residential property “in a state of decoration and repair that complies with the health, safety and housing standards required by law.”

Tenants are not required to make repairs themselves for reasonable wear and tear, and landlords are required to provide tenants with contact information for the person responsible for emergency repairs.

“I empathize with this family and the difficulties they are having with their landlord. This is certainly not the experience we would want them to have upon their arrival to British Columbia,” said Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon in an emailed statement.

“There are remedies available through the Residential Tenancy Branch and we’re continuing to add resources to the branch to strengthen its ability to respond quickly in cases like this. People deserve safe, and properly maintained accommodation.”

Tenants who need repairs should request them in writing, clearly explaining the problem, and keep a copy of the document, according to the Housing Ministry. If a landlord doesn’t fix the problem in a reasonable timeframe, the tenant can apply for dispute resolution through the Residential Tenancy Branch, requesting for the repairs to be made, money to cover the inconvenience or both.

The B.C. government said it is committing up to $15.6 million over the next three years to improve services and reduce delays at the Residential Tenancy Branch, hiring up to 50 new staff, and doubling the size of the compliance and enforcement unit.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A gymnast says he was abused in his sport and then broken by a Canadian system that failed to address that abuse.

Ryan Sheehan spoke Monday in Ottawa to a parliamentary committee on safe sport.

The 29-year-old from Edmonton joined several athletes who have testified in front of both the Heritage and Status of Women committees in recent months about abuse in Canadian sport.

“There were many nights where I felt broken beyond repair. I was not broken by sport. I was abused in sport and broken by the system,” Sheehan told the Heritage committee.

Sheehan has competed twice at the world trampoline championship.

He and Kim Shore, who has appeared before the Status of Women committee and was also present Monday, are co-founders of Gymnasts For Change Canada

Sheehan said a national team therapist groped him when he was a teenager.

“He put his hand up my gym suit and underwear and groped my genitals twice,” Sheehan said.

When he told a coach and a complaint was lodged in 2019, Sheehan says Gymnastics Canada told him the matter was no longer under its jurisdiction because the therapist was no longer an employee.

The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport ordered GymCan to do an investigation.

Sheehan learned four other individuals had come forward about their experiences with the therapist.

“This man was never sanctioned by GymCan,” Sheehan said.

After recounting his abuse and his despondence over Gymnastics Canada’s handing of it in a social media post in 2021, Sheehan said a conversation with the organization’s welfare officer Gretchen Kerr left him feeling suicidal.

“She claimed I had never filed a formal complaint so I had no reason to be upset, and if I was careful about what I posted there would be an outcome that both she and I would be happy with,” Sheehan said.

“The organization that my family and I entrusted with my physical and mental well-being for two decades, could not even do the bare minimum to investigate my case unless forced and then attempted to silence me.”

Kerr, a University of Toronto professor specializing in maltreatment in sport, appeared at a Heritage committee hearing last week.

Sheehan criticized Kerr’s position that Canada doesn’t need a judicial or national inquiry into abuse in sport.

“Now with an opportunity to support a national inquiry, Gretchen Kerr opposes _ a researcher who doesn’t want anyone else to look more closely at corruption in sport,” Sheehan said.

Kerr didn’t immediately respond to an email Monday requesting comment, but she told MPs last week a judicial inquiry would eat up precious time to make sport safer.

“We’ll lose time and money and we’ll lose progress,” Kerr stated. “We have all the information we need to move forward.”

Shore vehemently disagreed Monday.

“Resistance to a national inquiry needs to be deeply scrutinized,” Shore told assembled MPs.

“Willful blindness, imbalance of power and undeclared conflict of interests need to be uncovered and resolved. Adults need to stop choosing to protect their legacy over protecting children.”

Others questioned Monday by MPs included Paralympic basketball player and AthletesCAN board member Bo Hedges and Western University assistant professor MacIntosh Ross, who represented Scholars Against Abuse in Canadian Sport.

“We cannot move forward with preventing future maltreatment unless all stakeholders in the sports system are educated on what it actually means and the duties that are required for everyone to prevent these forms of behaviour,” Hedges said.

Athletes, coaches, high-performance directors, technical and medical support staff, chief executive officers and board members all need to be better informed and trained in safe sport, he said.

“We cannot solely rely on it being accomplished through e-learnings and resources people can quickly check off their list by clicking a button,” he explained.

“Compliance needs to be guaranteed in all these initiatives moving forward with checks to insure NSOs are accountable. We cannot rely on the honour system any more within sport to ensure of all these actions are taken by all involved.”

The over 100 members of Scholars Against Abuse in Canadian Sport want a national inquiry, said Ross, who issued a plea to Prime Minister Trudeau for it.

“Sport administrators are not equipped to foster the kind of meaningful sustainable change that this system needs,” Ross said. “The current abuse crisis and Canadian sport can’t be solved by existing mechanisms. It’s a human rights issue within sport.

“Both I and the Prime Minister are boxers. I hope that Mr. Trudeau would be in the corner of the Canadian people. Throw in the towel on this sport system and save it from itself. It’s not an act of surrender. It’s not an act of judgment against those involved. It’s an act of love, love for athletes, coaches and officials who need you more now than ever. Throw in the towel.”

© 2023 The Canadian Press