VANCOUVER – Clinching a playoff spot seemed a distant dream for the B.C. Lions early this season.

Sometimes dreams come true.

Despite starting the campaign with a 1-5 record, the Lions have become one of the CFL’s hottest teams in recent weeks. A 41-20 victory over the beleaguered Ottawa Redblacks on Friday marked B.C.’s ninth win in 10 games and punched the club’s playoff ticket.

“It’s big,” defensive linebacker Mathieu Betts said of the milestone. “I mean, it’s step one for sure. We’ve got two weeks to get the best seed as possible. We’re well aware of that.”

The Redblacks (0-16) tested the surging Lions (10-6) at times, cutting the home side’s lead to just three points in the third quarter, but ultimately couldn’t complete the comeback and suffered the team’s 22nd straight loss dating back to last season.

“We just didn’t make enough plays,” said Ottawa’s head coach Ryan Dinwiddie. “Offensively, we had some opportunities and just didn’t make them.”

Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke threw for 360 yards, connecting on 25 of his 31 pass attempts with three touchdowns and an interception as his Lions (10-6) stretched their win streak to four games.

B.C. running back Zander Horvath rushed for 89 yards on 14 carries and drove in two majors, while James Butler amassed 76 rushing yards and a TD.

Ottawa’s McLeod Bethel-Thompson went 25 for 35 on his pass attempts, tallying 253 yards with a touchdown toss. He was sacked five times and recorded one interception.

The Lions got off to a hot start Friday, scoring on the first possession of the game.

Rourke orchestrated an eight-play, 84-yard drive that ended with Keon Hatcher Sr. collecting a sharp pass directly under the uprights for B.C.’s first major of the night less than five minutes into the opening quarter.

The home side padded its lead midway through the first. Running back Zander Horvath took the ball on a short-yardage play and darted over the goal line. Sean Whyte’s single-point convert gave the Lions an early 14-0 advantage.

Ottawa responded when QB Bethel-Thompson found Daniel Adeboboye on a short pass, and the Canadian running back sprinted 18 yards upfield and into the end zone. The Redblacks settled for six points when Paul Geelen’s single-point convert went wide.

The visitors added another three points early in the second, thanks to Paul Geelen’s 38-yard field goal.

B.C. regained a double-digit cushion before halftime when Rourke sailed a 26-yard pass to Stanley Berryhill.

With less than a minute left in the first half, the Redblacks gained some momentum when Alonzo Addae picked off Rourke’s pass at midfield. The play marked the first time the Canadian quarterback was intercepted in 131 attempts over four games.

Ottawa worked the ball into B.C. territory, and Geelen booted a 24-yard field goal to trim the Lions’ lead to 21-12 going into halftime.

He put a 52-yard kick through the uprights early in the third quarter to bring the visitors within six points.

The Redblacks forced a turnover minutes later after Rourke sent a short pass toward Hatcher at Ottawa’s 36-yard line. Amani Bledsoe levelled Hatcher and came up from a dog pile with the ball, putting his team back on offence.

Bethel-Thompson capitalized on the possession, firing a rocket upfield to Justin Hardy for a 37-yard gain. An unnecessary roughness call on B.C. linebacker Darnell Sankey further improved Ottawa’s position, but the Redblacks settled for an 18-yard field goal from Geelen that cut their deficit to 21-18.

The Lions refused to relent.

“I think we’ve faced a lot of adversity, and certainly know how to respond when our back is up against the wall,” Rourke said.

“Look, I think if anyone came into this game thinking that Ottawa wasn’t going to play well and put some points up and make it close … I think they were dead wrong. And so we weren’t surprised by any means that they played good football.”

Horvath sparked the next scoring drive, plowing his way toward the Ottawa end zone for a 33-yard gain. He finished the drive by diving over a pile on the goal line for his second touchdown of the night and 21st of the season. Whyte’s convert put the Lions up 28-18.

It took B.C. just moments to regain possession. Casey Sayles sacked Bethel-Thompson, and Sankey jumped on the loose ball, turning it over.

His teammates took advantage, with Rourke tossing an eight-yard dart to Jevon Cottoy for a touchdown. Whyte’s convert attempt sailed wide of the uprights and into the hands of Ottawa’s Kalil Pimpleton.

Pimpleton sprinted up the field, evading several tackles, and ending his run in the Lions’ end zone for two points.

The adjustments B.C. made in the third came as little surprise to head coach Buck Pierce.

“I think the way our defence is able to adapt and communicate and just kind of continue to grow and get better as the game goes on – that’s what you want from your team, right?” he said. “You want them to be able to make the adjustments, look at reality and what’s happening, and then go out and fix those things. And that’s what they’ve been doing all year.”

The Lions pulled away midway through the fourth quarter on two big runs by Butler.

The speedster took the ball from Rourke and took off, getting 55 yards up the field before being felled by Kahzir Brown. Butler later accepted another handoff from his QB and dashed 14 yards for a touchdown. This time, Whyte made the convert and B.C. took a 41-20 lead.

Pierce liked the way his team didn’t panic when Friday’s game grew close.

Instead, they rallied.

“I think the group believes the next time they take the field that they’re gonna be able to accomplish something great,” the coach said. “And if you walk up and down our sidelines, you’re with those guys in meetings and throughout the course of the week, they’re able to continue to believe if they get another opportunity, then we’re going to be successful.”

UP NEXT

Redblacks: Host the Toronto Argonauts on Friday, Oct. 16.

Lions: Visit the Calgary Stampeders on Saturday, Oct. 17.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 9, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Coming off a last-minute win over the Colorado Avalanche, the Winnipeg Jets were hoping to keep proving the doubters wrong against Anaheim Friday night.

Instead, they looked slow.

Their power play lacked danger without the injured Josh Morrissey, and it all resulted in a 5-1 loss to the Ducks at Canada Life Centre that dropped Winnipeg’s record to 3-1-1 on the season.

The Jets controlled the play in the first period and held the Ducks to single digit shot totals in all three frames but still saw both their three-game win streak, and their season-opening four-game point streak come to a close.

“The second period – it just seemed like when they got that second one we got scrambly,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “We were aggressive and up on our toes in that first part. We backed off a little bit when their speed was coming. Our execution wasn’t great.

“I think the chances were 6-3 for Anaheim after two periods. We weren’t getting inside.”

The two teams combined for only 33 shots as the Ducks outshot the Jets 17-16.

Kyle Connor in his 700th career game had the lone marker for Winnipeg, but it came trailing by three goals with only nine minutes left in the third period. His sixth goal of the season tied him for the league lead in goal scoring.

The Jets were 0-for-4 on the power play without their quarterback in Morrissey.

“I thought there was some good chances,” Connor said. “We found the slot a couple times. It would have been great to get one in, a little sloppy. We could have beared down better on the faceoffs and you get that many chances, you know three, four. It doesn’t happen often, especially in a row there. Big chances turn the game and yeah, we didn’t do it.”

The Jets now get a rare three straight days off after playing five games in eight days to start the season.

“We got four out of our next five against the Central (Division),” Arniel said. “So, these three days, we don’t have another until a week before Christmas. So, we’re going to take advantage of it. We had a lot of guys that played a lot of hockey here. We need some guys to kinda recuperate and get some rest.”

It was the first time this season the Jets didn’t score three goals in a game. Cole Perfetti was kept off the scoresheet for the first time this season, ending his four-game point streak.

The game began with a great flow of play with just one whistle over the first ten minutes, though neither team generated much of an attack during that time.

Shots on goal were 7-1 in favour of the Jets with just over five minutes to go in the first when Anaheim scored on a counterattack.

The play began in the Ducks’ end when Brad Lambert was erased along the boards and had the puck taken away by Tim Washe, kickstarting a 3-on-2 up the ice.

Washe dished it to Judd Caulfield in the neutral zone, who then slid the puck to Jeff Malott as he burned past Neal Pionk to go in alone on Clay Stevenson. Stevenson stopped Malott’s deke but the rebound came to an unmarked Caulfield in front, who rammed it home before sliding into the net himself.

It was the first NHL goal for Caulfield in his fourth career game, coming at the 14:41 mark of the first.

Winnipeg did not generate another shot on goal in the period but in the final seconds, Adam Lowry laid out A.J. Greer with a big hit along the boards. Travis Mitchell didn’t like that, so he and Lowry dropped the gloves with the Jets’ captain earning a decisive win.

Mitchell was also given an extra two minutes for instigating, giving the Jets 1:46 of power play time to start the second period but they were unable to cash in.

The Jets wound up outshooting the Ducks 7-4 in the first and shots were hard to come by in the second as well, but once again Anaheim’s fourth line found the back of the net on a counterattack.

After a turnover in the Ducks end, they once again broke up the ice on a 3-on-2. Malott carried the puck across the blue line with Tyrel Bauer slightly out of position, then dished it over to Washe.

Washe had blown past several Jets, including a backchecking Lambert, to get free in front to finish off the Malott pass, making it 2-0 at the 5:20 mark of the period.

Anaheim had a golden chance to make it 3-0 just past the halfway point. After a turnover and a bad line change, Ryan Poehling got a long breakaway on Stevenson and had Greer behind him if he wanted to pass. Instead, he nearly fumbled the puck as he got in close on goal before missing the net entirely with his shot.

Winnipeg earned their third power play look of the game with just under seven minutes left in the second and failed to convert, then got another look with just under three minutes to go but didn’t get a shot on goal.

In total, the Jets got three shots on goal in 7:46 of power play time in the second, and overall, the shots were 6-5 Winnipeg in the period.

The Ducks appeared to put the nail in the coffin early in the third, once again leaving the Jets in the dust in transition, though this time it was their top line doing the damage against Winnipeg’s top line.

The play began with a bad pass from Mark Scheifele in the Anaheim end, leading to a 3-on-2. Sam Colangelo passed it to his left to Beckett Sennecke as they crossed into the Winnipeg zone, then Sennecke drove it down low before sliding a pass back to Colangelo in front of the net. The Jets defenders did a poor job covering Colangelo, allowing him a tap-in to make it 3-0 with 15:35 remaining.

It took Winnipeg 10:36 to get a shot on goal in the third, but it found the back of the net to cut into Anaheim’s lead.

Dylan DeMelo disrupted an Anaheim pass at the Winnipeg blue line, sending the puck skittering into the neutral zone where Scheifele got to it and sent a cross-ice pass to Connor, springing the sniper on a partial breakaway. He made no mistake as he buried it high past Lukas Dostal for his sixth of the season.

The goal moved Connor, who was playing in his 700th NHL game, into third place on the franchise goal scoring list with his 329th goal, breaking a tie with Ilya Kovalchuk.

But any hopes of a late rally were extinguished with 5:54 to go when Anaheim captain Mikael Granlund beat Stevenson with a long wrist shot that appeared to be deflected.

Winnipeg pulled the goalie out of desperation with over four minutes remaining but very little happened before Nikita Nesterenko put the puck into the empty net with 40 seconds to go.

Anaheim wound up outshooting the Jets 8-3 in the third.

The Jets don’t play again until Tuesday night when they host the Minnesota Wild at 7:15 p.m.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

A second crossing connecting Kelowna and West Kelowna is once again emerging as an election issue, with local candidates offering different views on how to address growing traffic congestion on and around the W.A.C Bennett Bridge.

Calls for another bridge have persisted for years, as commuters regularly face delays on the existing crossing on Okanagan Lake.

“I think bridge traffic in the morning can be a bit much,” says Ryan Burley, who uses the bridge regularly.

The issue was highlighted earlier this month again when an accident forced the closure of all three southbound lanes for several hours, creating significant traffic backlogs.

BC NDP candidate for Kelowna Centre, Loyal Wooldridge, recently took a humorous approach to the issue, posting a social media video of himself attempting to cross the lake in a small dinghy.

But while Wooldridge is using humour to draw attention to the problem, he says building a second crossing is a long-term prospect and improving the existing bridge should be the immediate priority.

“There’s actually a plan on the books to improve traffic flow without the time and cost it would take, which would be billions of dollars to build a second crossing,” Wooldridge said.

Asked why improvements have not moved forward despite the BC NDP being in government for nearly a decade, Wooldridge pointed to the need for stronger advocacy locally.

“My commitment is that I’m going to advocate for Kelowna,” he said. “This is a province-approved plan that needs advocacy locally for both Kelowna, WFN (Westbank First Nation) and West Kelowna to improve traffic flow by increasing capacity at the bridge, also improving the intersections right when you get off the bridge into Kelowna and it’s done by adding another lane to the existing bridge itself.”

During the 2024 provincial election campaign, the BC Conservatives, then led by John Rustad, promised to build a second crossing by 2032 if elected.

That timeline is no longer being reaffirmed under the party’s new leadership.

BC Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson has not ruled out another crossing but says he wants to hear from British Columbians before making commitments.

“Right now I am all ears. I’m listening to British Columbians, visiting British Columbians, and I absolutely, of course, want to look at everything,” Doerkson said.

Locally, BC Conservative candidate for Kelowna Centre Kristina Loewen maintained the party has not abandoned the idea.

“I don’t feel like we’re backtracking on that promise exactly. I would say that we’re continuing to look at it,” Loewen said. “We haven’t really had the chance and the opportunity in the opposition to look at building a bridge, and we’d like to.”

Loewen added she wants planning for a second crossing to start.

“We need to start planning for it in a way that works together with the city, works with multiple levels of government and reopens the studies that have been done on it,” Loewen said. “We need to start building the infrastructure, at least in and around the bridge.”

BC Green Party candidate Saoirse MacKinnon was unavailable for comment on the issue Friday.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The Curator independently decides what topics and products we feature. When you purchase an item through our links, we may earn a commission. Promotions and products are subject to availability and retailer terms.

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© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

HAMILTON – Cody Fajardo and the Edmonton Elks are bringing playoff football back to Commonwealth Stadium.

Fajardo, Zach Mathis and ShunDerrick Powell scored fourth-quarter touchdowns to power Edmonton past the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 27-12 on Friday night. That clinched the Elks (12-4) a CFL home playoff game, which will be their first since 2015.

Edmonton defeated the Calgary Stampeders 45-31 in the ’15 West Division final, then beat Ottawa in the Grey Cup. The Elks were last in the playoffs in 2019.

“We have an end goal that’s bigger than just hosting a playoff game,” Fajardo said. “We’ve got to find a way like we did tonight.

“That’s a good Hamilton team, their record doesn’t show how good they are. We had an uphill battle offensively but we made the plays when we had to and our defence did a great job.”

Edmonton remains first in the West ahead of the B.C. Lions (10-6), who defeated the Ottawa Redblacks (0-16) 41-20 on Friday night. Edmonton can clinch first place by winning one of its final two games versus Winnipeg (next Friday) and Saskatchewan (Oct. 24), respectively.

Mathis, a second-year receiver, delivered the game’s biggest play, scoring on a 48-yard interception return at 10:43. He picked off punter Nik Constantinou’s pass to Tyler Ternowski.

Isaiah Wooden pulled Hamilton to within 21-12 with an 87-yard kickoff return TD at 11:22. However, Harrison Frost’s pass to Kiondre Smith for the two-point convert was incomplete, an interesting decision given a one-point convert would’ve made it a one-score game.

Powell completed the scoring with a five-yard TD run at 14:36. It came after Hamilton turned the ball over on downs at its 26-yard line.

Marc Liegghio’s 37-yard field goal at 6:56 pulled Hamilton to within 14-6. It followed Fajardo’s one-yard TD run at 4:47.

“I don’t think I’ve been part of two plays that have been so high and then so low in all my years playing football,” Fajardo said of the pick-six and kickoff return TD. “We’ve got to clean some things up at the end of the game to really put the game away.

“People can poke holes in it all they want and figure out, ‘They didn’t play this, that and the other.’ But we’re winning games and we’re 12-4. We’re a damn good football team and we know when things get close, we can win football games.”

Fajardo said there are definite benefits to Edmonton winning its final two regular-season games.

“The reason why is I don’t think we’re playing our best football,” he said. “We’re winning games but I told the guys going into this week it’s not about the team with the best record at the end of the year.

“It’s about the team playing the best football and so we have two games to do that.”

Edmonton earned a second straight win over Hamilton after a 37-35 double overtime home decision Sept. 26. Vincent Blanchard kicked a CFL-record nine field goals.

That loss eliminated Hamilton (5-12) from playoff contention.

Edmonton last swept a two-game series with Hamilton in 2017. And the Elks did so emphatically, outscoring the Ticats 20-9 in the fourth quarter.

“That’s kind of been a calling card of our football team this year,” said sophomore head coach Mark Kilam. “We’ve been finding ways to make plays late in the game and that’s something we take pride in.”

Edmonton’s stellar ’26 campaign comes after it finished last in the West Division last season with a 7-11 record.

“It’s reflective of the hard work of a lot of people in that organization, not just the football team,” Kilam said. “We have our sights set higher.”

The contest was hardly an offensive masterpiece as the two teams combined for 18 punts (10 by Edmonton). Fajardo finished 16-of-25 passing for 229 yards, while Frost was 21-of-36 for 221 yards.

“It felt like we got whipped in the first half,” said Hamilton head coach Scott Milanovich. “We struggled to establish the run game, I didn’t think we gave the quarterback a lot of time to throw.

“Obviously we made some adjustments at halftime … but that’s a good team and we didn’t play very well offensively or on special teams.”

Blanchard had two field goals, a single and two converts.

Lieggho kicked two field goals.

Liegghio’s 18-yard field goal at 11:58 cut Edmonton’s lead to 7-3. It capped a 13-play, 94-yard march after Hamilton had accumulated 49 net offensive yards to that point.

Blanchard’s single to end the second quarter gave Edmonton a 7-0 halftime lead. Defensive lineman Mario Kendricks Jr. got a hand on Blanchard’s 47-yard field goal try and Isaiah Wooden Sr. couldn’t return the ball out of the end zone.

Brad Hladik’s recovery of Wooden’s fumble on a punt return gave Edmonton possession at Hamilton’s 48-yard line.

Blanchard’s 26-yard boot at 12:43 earned Edmonton a 6-0 advantage. It followed Malik Carney’s sack — his third of the first half — of Frost at the Ticats’ 46-yard line on a third-and-five gamble.

Vincent’s 13-yard boot at 13:38 of the first opened the scoring.

At halftime, Hamilton added running back Troy Davis to its Wall of Honour. Davis spent five seasons with the Ticats (2001-2005) and is their all-time leader in carries (1,053), yards (5,296), and 100-yard games (18).

In 2004, Davis set franchise records for carries (324) and yards (1,628) while scoring 10 touchdowns.

UP NEXT

Elks: Host the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday, Oct. 16.

Tiger-Cats: Have a bye week, host the Ottawa Redblacks on Saturday, Oct. 24.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 9, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Tensions ramped up between the City of Edmonton and the Alberta government after the province ordered the municipality to roll back zoning rules aimed at encouraging higher-density housing in established neighbourhoods.

Asked Friday whether he was surprised by the province’s decision, Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack said he was.

“Yes, because I think governance should actually mean something,” Knack said when speaking on Global News Morning Edmonton.

“This is going have a direct impact on people’s ability to make housing choices for themselves. This will have an impact and create chaos in investment attraction and retention.”

Knack added the premier’s decision on Thursday has ramifications across the entire province.

Calgary’s mayor also weighed in, saying the move threatens local democracy and sets a dangerous precedent for the province working to influence city councillors in the future.

“Just because the premier agrees with how I voted yesterday, does not mean that she gets to decide how I vote tomorrow,” Jeromy Farkas told reporters outside of Calgary city council chambers on Friday.

Farkas says city council has an obligation to listen to citizens on important issues in public hearings as evidence for their decisions, but being forced to follow directions from a higher government undermines that process.

“You can’t order me to vote a certain way at city council, and if I don’t adhere to your order — are you actually going to fire me as the mayor of the City of Calgary?” Farkas questioned.

On Thursday, Premier Danielle Smith announced the province would require Edmonton to reverse key aspects of its zoning bylaw, which has largely been in place since 2024 and was designed to allow more infill housing development across the city.

The province has directed Edmonton to return to earlier rules governing housing types, density and building heights, while also restoring minimum on-site parking requirements that existed before 2020.

City council has three months to comply.

The mayor argues restricting infill development will make housing less affordable and push growth to the city’s outskirts, where adding new infrastructure and services increases long-term costs.

Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Williams described the decision announced on Thursday as an extraordinary circumstance and said he hopes to have constructive discussions with Edmonton.

“This is really giving Edmonton a lot of options, in terms of what they can do moving forward,” Williams said.

“I think Edmontonians and Albertans generally want to see a constructive relationship. This is not a dictate or an ultimatum, this is a conversation.”

Knack criticized the province’s approach, saying Edmonton was not consulted before the announcement.

“At the end of the day I would have preferred to work with the provincial government, but they didn’t give us the courtesy of even a five-minute phone call before deciding to make changes,” he said.

When asked whether the city would consider challenging the directive, Knack said council will “have to examine all the legal options.”

A statement from Edmonton’s urban planning team said the city is still reviewing and assessing the province’s announcement.

A special city council meeting is scheduled for Oct. 16 to discuss the province’s directive and possible next steps.

Ward tastawiyiniwak Councillor Karen Principe said some of the reaction at city hall has framed the dispute as a battle between Edmonton and the province.

“They see it as war,” Principe said, referring to some of her council colleagues.

“When you go in with a frame of mind of ‘it’s us against them,’ I don’t think anyone wins. We have a job to do. We need to work with other levels of government and it’s just the reality.

“We need to pull up our socks and get to work and figure this out.”

Jan Hardstaff of the Residential Infill Working Group said she hopes the province’s intervention will reset relations between the two governments.

“I think we need to start having a conversation instead of a confrontation with the city,” Hardstaff said.

“I think city council needs to stop looking at this as a kind of doom-and-gloom scenario. Instead, I think we need to see this as an opportunity to reset.”

The province said the changes will remain in place while Edmonton undertakes a broader review of its land-use rules, including public consultation and discussions with industry. The city will have 18 months to complete that review.

With files from Dayne Patterson, The Canadian Press

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Ahead of a weekend dedicated to showing gratitude, this is a story nearly 30 years in the making.

In the late 1990s, a family from central America travelled some 6,000 kilometres north, seeking a life-saving surgery for their young son.

They’ve now returned to say thank you to the community.

Baby Jose Moran Robles, born in Panama in 1996, has Down syndrome and was born with a life-threatening condition.

“He had a defect that was called atrioventricular septal defect,” lead surgeon Dr. Ivan Rebeyka told Global News in 2020.

Atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD) is a congenital heart condition from birth where there are holes in the walls between the heart’s chambers and abnormal formation of the valves.

“Basically, the central portion of the heart didn’t come together.”

Left untreated, over time AVSD stresses and can enlarge the heart, and may lead to pulmonary hypertension, heart rhythm abnormalities or heart failure.

When the life-saving surgery he needed was not available in Panama, the Robles family turned to Inclusion Alberta (formerly the Alberta Association for Community Living) for aid, after hearing it had helped another family near them.

The Edmonton organization advocates on behalf of children and adults with developmental disabilities.

“We received a call from the Robles family… I think he was about one year old at the time, asking if there was any way that we could help them bring their family, bring Jose, to Canada,” said Bev Ray in 2020. She worked as a family support advocate at the time of the surgery.

Through the generosity of Edmontonians, the Robles family was able to come to the city in 1998 when Jose was 14-months-old, and the surgery was a success.

Jose and the Robles stayed for a few more weeks while the 14-month-old recovered. They returned to Panama and haven’t been to Edmonton since then…until now.

“I’m grateful to my Lord to allow us to come back here to this country that gave Jose a new life,” Jose’s mother, Sadia Robles, said via an interpreter on Friday.

“We always wanted the people, the city, to know, to see that our fight from 29 years ago had good, positive results.”

Jose is now 30 and enjoys a full, healthy life spending time with his family, making art, horseback riding, dancing and drumming in a marching band.

A decade ago, his family told Global News that Jose has also represented Panama in the Para Central American Games.

“Given his conditions, he is very independent and has a lot of dreams and a lot of aspirations,” Sadia said.

The Robles family arrived in the city earlier this week.

They visited West Edmonton Mall, got a tour of the Ronald McDonald House where they stayed 28 years ago, and met with one of the doctors from Jose’s team.

“I was happy to see him, and I hugged him very warmly with a lot of love,” said Jose.

Bruce Uditsky was part of the Inclusion Alberta team, which at the time was named Alberta Association for Community Living, that helped bring the Robles to Edmonton in 1998.

“It’s literally amazing to see not just what Inclusion Alberta did at the time, but the entire city rallied around Jose and his family, and to see how he’s thriving, the good life that he’s living….To have contributed to that is actually a bit beyond my abilities to express,” said Uditsky, CEO of Meritus at Inclusion Alberta.

Though Uditsky says nearly 30 years later, there are still barriers for people with disabilities to get care.

“Relatively speaking, we’ve made a lot of progress. We still have some work to do so that people with intellectual, developmental disabilities can have equivalent access to healthcare irrespective of the nature of their disability.”

Global News spoke with the Robles’ in 2020 for an update on Jose and the rest of the family.

They told us how they have kept in contact with the people who helped bring them to Edmonton in 1998 and hoped to see them all again one day.

This trip made that possible; Sadia called it a ‘life goal’ for the family. The Robles say they will be forever grateful to the people of Edmonton for giving Jose a chance at life.

“Our main goal to come back here to this city is to say thank you and to let them know that in this life, everything can be possible,” Sadia said.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Another whale shipped out of Marineland has died at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

The aquarium says Caspian, a 27-year-old female beluga, died on Wednesday despite efforts to save her.

It’s the sixth animal from the closed Niagara Falls, Ont., theme park to die after a massive relocation of whales and dolphins over the summer.

Four other belugas and one dolphin from Marineland have died since they were moved out of the former tourist attraction.

Shedd says Caspian had not been eating properly and blood samples showed abnormalities in her electrolyte levels. The park added that her blood had become “dangerously acidic.”

The aquarium says those findings helped the veterinary care team understand how sick the beluga was, but they did not establish a cause of death.

Shedd says Caspian was on life support for nearly four hours before she died.

Shedd recently performed necropsies on Peekachu and Rain, two other Marineland whales that died there, and concluded that they had chronic, pre-existing diseases.

Shedd and four other aquariums in the United States and Spain helped Marineland relocate all 30 of its belugas and four dolphins over the course of six weeks this summer.

Marineland had said it was running out of money and could no longer care for the last captive whales and dolphins in Canada.

A beluga named Jelly Bean and a dolphin named Echo died at Oceanografic Valencia in Spain after the move.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

A classic cocktail bar in Vancouver is closing after 47 years of being in business.

The Bayside Lounge has been a West End staple, supporting local musicians and artists and welcoming visitors from around the world.

“When I found out we were closing, firstly, just pure shock,” general manager Danica Walker told Global News.

“I think a lot of people thought this place would be here forever and it’s been devastating.”

A petition to save the lounge has been launched online, saying rising rental costs and redevelopment pressures are forcing the business to close.

Creator David Millington said the goal of the petition is to show the owner of the building that there is lots of community interest in keeping the Bayside open so they will reconsider the lease agreement.

In a social media post, lounge staff invite anyone to come for one last drink and make a memory before it closes.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Quebec premier-designate Paul St-Pierre Plamondon asked his team on Friday to stay mobilized as the party is set to form a minority government.

St-Pierre Plamondon and his fellow elected members of the Parti Québécois will be sworn in on Oct. 15, and his cabinet will be announced on Oct. 21.

St-Pierre Plamondon invited all of his party’s 127 candidates to a postelection meeting at a hotel in Drummondville, Que.

The goal of the meeting was to take stock of the latest campaign and to hear from both the winning and defeated candidates.

The PQ leader said he planned to take a collaborative approach to governing.

“Will this olive branch be accepted by the other parties? That’s not within our control,” he said.

“It also gives us the obligation to remain mobilized for an election campaign — not in the short term, but eventually.”

The average length of a minority government is between 18 and 24 months.

On Monday, the party won a minority mandate by winning 59 seats, compared to 40 for the Quebec Liberal Party, 19 for the Quebec Conservative Party, and nine for Québec solidaire.

The Coalition Avenir Québec was completely wiped off the map after failing to elect a single member.

There were questions on Friday about whether high-profile candidates Alex Boissonneault and Pascal Paradis could be assigned special tasks, after both were defeated in their ridings.

The party must also figure out the best way to represent the Quebec City region, where the party failed to win a seat.

François Gariépy, who was defeated in the Charlevoix—Côte-de-Beaupré riding northeast of the city, said he believed the party was punished for its refusal to commit to building a third road link between Quebec City and its south shore in its first term.

© 2026 The Canadian Press