Connor McDavid scored his 15th career hat trick and finished with five points Wednesday night, leading the Edmonton Oilers to a 5-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks that moved them into sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division.

McDavid controlled the game almost from the start, scoring on a power play in the first period and then twice in the second to make it 5-2. He also assisted on power-play goals by Vasily Podkolzin and Jack Roslovic to extend his NHL-leading point total to 133. The star center needs three goals in the final three games for his second career 50-goal season.

Connor Ingram made eight saves on 10 shots in two periods for Edmonton. Tristan Jarry stopped all four shots he faced in the third.

The win gave the Oilers 90 points, two more than Vegas in the division race. The Golden Knights have one game in hand.

Macklin Celebrini scored his 42nd goal for San Jose to give him 108 points this season, the third-most for a teenager behind Wayne Gretzky’s 137 and Sidney Crosby’s 120.

Kiefer Sherwood also scored for the Sharks, whose playoff hopes were dealt a big blow with the regulation loss. San Jose remains three points behind Nashville and two behind Los Angeles in the race for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Sharks have four games remaining with one game in hand over the Predators.

Alex Nedeljkovic made 21 saves for San Jose.

The Oilers scored on all three power-play chances in the best performance for that unit since Leon Draisaitl went down with a lower-body injury on March 15 after scoring with the man advantage early in that game. Edmonton had been 3 for 27 on the power play in 10-plus games since Draisaitl’s injury.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Nearly  three years after her family last heard from her, the remains of Leah Keeper have been found.

Police discovered partial human remains on Selkirk Avenue in November 2025, and recently identified them as Keeper through DNA.

Keeper was reported missing in November 2023, after her family hadn’t heard from her in several months. She was 32 at the time she went missing, and had two young children.

Police are investigating her death as suspicious, but Marilyn Courchene, Keeper’s aunt, says the family is still looking for more details.

“I want answers. What happened within those three years, what happened with the remains, where did they find the remains?” says Courchene.

“Who’s there, who played the roles in finding her? We don’t know any of that.”

Watch the video above for the full story.

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

B.C. Premier David Eby has announced nearly $7 million in funding for several manufacturers across the Interior.

“This is an incredibly unstable and challenging time globally and certainly British Columbians are feeling that,” Eby said while making the announcement in Kelowna Wednesday.

“One of the key responses that we’ve had as a province to the challenges that we face globally and nationally is to find ways to create jobs and opportunity here in the province that are resilient to outside shocks.”

The four manufacturers include Good Way Homes in Malakwa, which builds prefabricated homes; Dinoflex in Salmon Arm, which produces recycled rubber flooring; Penticton-based Kinetic Custom Trailers, which manufactures custom heavy-duty industrial trailers; and Mako Wood Furniture, a Surrey company building a new facility in Merritt.

“By creating opportunities to get more value out of the resources we can produce here, we’ll be creating opportunities for all British Columbians,” Eby said.

Eby made the announcement at Farming Karma Fruit Company, which produces sparkling fruit soda.

The farming operation has seen tremendous growth over the past year since it received $2 million in funding last year.

“We were able to really accelerate our growth and almost double our beverage production, and it’s still going up,” said Binny Boparai-Gill, co-founder and president of Farming Karma.

The money is part of the province’s $180 million B.C. Manufacturing Jobs Fund for companies meeting certain criteria.

“The quality of jobs that it creates, the additional economic investments that we can see come to the region,” said Ravi Kahlon, B.C.’s minister of jobs and economic growth.”As well as how does it align with our Look West Economic Strategy around making sure that British Columbia is resilient, that British Columbia is strong.”

In Farming Karma’s case, the funding allowed the family-owned business to create 20 additional jobs in the past year and purchase more advanced equipment to ramp up production.

“Right now, we’re producing over five million cans a year, whereas before, it was less than half of that,”  Boparai-Gill said. “But the current equipment that we have, it can actually produce up to 20 times the volume we originally used to produce, so there’s lots of room for growth.”

The company is now getting its product into major retailers, including Walmart and Costco and continuously tapping into new markets across the country.

“We really should be always looking at local manufacturing, because it keeps the dollars within B.C., within Canada,” Boparai-Gill said.

According to Eby, the $7 million investment is expected to create about 100 new jobs.

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

TORONTO – Logan Thompson made 21 saves to register his third shutout of the season as the Washington Capitals breathed life into their fading playoff hopes with a 4-0 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday.

Dylan Strome and Martin Fehérváry, with a goal and an assist each, Ryan Leonard and Cole Hutson, into the empty net, scored for Washington (40-30-9), which sits three points back of the Eastern Conference’s final wild-card spot with three games left on the schedule.

Anthony Stolarz suffered a lower-body injury early in the first period after stopping the second of two shots he faced for Toronto (32-32-14).

Joseph Woll finished with 14 saves in just over 57 minutes of work for the Maple Leafs, who are set to miss the post-season for the first time since 2016.

Alex Ovechkin — Washington’s leader with 31 goals and 61 points — announced Wednesday he won’t make a decision on his playing future until after the season.

The 40-year-old broke Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal mark of 894 last April and has found the back of the net at least 30 times in 20 of his 21 NHL campaigns.

TAKEAWAYS

Capitals: Rookie forward Ilya Protas made his NHL debut on a line with older brother Aliaksei and Tom Wilson. The bruising trio — Wilson is the smallest at six-foot-four, while the siblings each stand six-foot-six — tips the scales at a combined 700 pounds.

Maple Leafs: Oliver Ekman-Larsson returned to the lineup after missing Saturday’s overtime loss in Los Angeles with a lower-body injury. The veteran defenceman is the club’s nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy, as voted by the Toronto chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, awarded annually to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

KEY MOMENT

Washington turned a one-goal lead into a 3-0 advantage early in the second period. Leonard ripped his 18th goal of the season 40 seconds after the restart before Fehérváry added his fifth just over two minutes later.

KEY STAT

Ovechkin has 45 goals and 35 assists for 80 points across 64 regular-season games against Toronto.

UP NEXT

Maple Leafs: Visit the New York Islanders on Thursday.

Capitals: Visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

The family of a B.C. boy with a rare neurodegenerative condition is calling on the government to help them access potential gene therapy treatment.

Navpreet and Stalin Gill told Global News that they began to notice their now three-year-old son, Gurmoh, having mobility issues around age one.

It wasn’t until he was about three that Gurmoh was diagnosed with Spastic Paraplegia Type 4, which causes stiffness and weakness in the legs.

Their five-year-old daughter does not have the condition and Gurmoh is believed to be the only case in Canada.

Stalin said it was devastating news.

“Having a child in your life is the best feeling,” he said. “And, you know, like having the worst diagnosis that you can think of, you know, when you receive it, it just kills you inside … it just breaks you. It’s terrible.”

Stalin said it has shattered them to know that their son is going to be in pain.

“When he was born, we were thinking about what’s going to happen when he’s going to be three, or when are we going to take him to Disney?” he said.

Stalin said that now the question is when they have to go to the hospital next.

“He’s not able to play with his peers, with similar age kids, because he cannot run that fast, he cannot walk, he stumbles, he falls down,” he added

“And it’s a neurodegenerative disease. It’s progressive. So it’s not something that, oh, it stops. It just gets worse with every minute, every second, every day. It’s a suffering. It’s emotional suffering.”

Navpreet said that as parents, you have dreams for your child and you wonder what sport they might play or if they enjoy dancing or running, but she said that has all been taken from Gurmoh.

“The specific mutation that he has, it’s considered the most aggressive out of, you know, that category, and it’s considered to be more of a complex presentation,” she said.

“What that means is, in addition to the legs, he could end up losing the abilities in his arms, speech, mental capacity, so pretty much like it’s going to take everything away from him.”

Stalin said they are now racing against time to get gene therapy, but they are being met with opposition at every turn.

They are also out thousands of dollars for tests, treatments and travel.

He said they have reached out to the B.C. government, which said they cannot help, so they reached out to the federal government.

A team of researchers at McGill University in Montreal has agreed to help treat this condition, as they have treated a similar condition, and to develop gene therapy.

But the cost is anticipated to be around $8 million.

The federal government does have a national strategy for drugs for rare diseases, where it has made “up to $1.4 billion in funding available to provinces and territories through three-year agreements, to help them provide better coverage and access to elected new drugs for rare diseases on the common list, other new and existing drugs for rare diseases and screening and diagnostics services.”

Global News has reached out to the federal government to find out more about the funding and how it’s being used.

“We’re fighting with the disease,” Stalin said. “We’re fighting with the system, you know, the system that should be supporting us, the system that should be spending money on developing these therapies, making it easier.”

He said it is hard to open up their lives and their struggles, but they want to help change the system.

“(We want) everybody to understand how difficult it is, for patients, for their families, for the grandparents, for their uncles, aunts,” Stalin added.

“It’s not us involved in this. It’s our whole friend circle, whole family, who’s helping us out with this. It’s terrible.”

The family has started a GoFundMe to try and raise money, which will go live on Friday, April 10.

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

The B.C. government has cleared a homeless encampment that has been at an Abbotsford rest stop for the past three years.

Dozens of people used to live at the Whatcom Road Park and Ride, which sits on provincial land.

Crews used heavy machinery to start moving structures and debris after erecting yellow fencing around the area on Tuesday.

Abbotsford police said they had been called to the encampment more than 200 times in the last year.

A 69-year-old man was shot and killed at the camp in March in what police said was a targeted shooting.

Then, a fire broke out at one of the RVs used for housing a few days later.

“We continue to call on the provincial government and other bodies to work through the situation, work through to support a clean environment down here, get some law and order, some safety order on a regular basis, and not make this park and ride what it currently is, which is out of sight, out of mind for the different levels that need to take and fix this,” Sgt. Paul Walker with the Abbotsford police said in late March.

The provincial government says that over the last month, 20 of the roughly 30 people living at the Cole Road rest stop were supported by outreach teams in finding alternative housing.

Bruce Banman, Conservative MLA for Abbotsford South, told Global News that the encampment was a “blight” on the neighbourhood.

“These neighbours here have been screaming for years to have this cleaned up. It should not take years, it should take weeks,” he said.

“People should not live like this, and if you let people live like this, they will live like this.”

In Abbotsford, there are currently more than 300 supportive homes open or underway, the government said in a statement.

There are 145 shelter spaces funded through the Homeless Encampment Action Response Temporary Housing (HEARTH) initiative, and 89 permanent shelter spaces, along with the 10 temporary winter shelter spaces.

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

Prime Minister Mark Carney praised astronaut Jeremy Hansen during a call with the Artemis II crew, saying he was proud to see a Canadian in space and to hear French spoken.

Carney called the mission “hugely inspiring” and said Canadians “couldn’t be more proud” of Hansen and the collaboration with the United States.

“We look forward to seeing you here in Canada, for maple syrup on pancakes,” the prime minister said from Ottawa.

The call marked the third and final space-to-Earth connection organized by the Canadian Space Agency, livestreamed from the John H. Chapman Space Centre in Longueuil, Que., and co-ordinated by astronaut Joshua Kutryk.

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly attended in person, addressing Hansen after Carney spoke.

“I’ve heard, time and time again, people from across the country saying, ‘We’re not only proud, but it’s good news. We’re following because they’re providing hope. Jeremy is actually helping us go through our days,’” Joly said.

She asked Hansen if the mission had changed his perspective on humanity.

“I launched with the expectation that I would see the proof (of humanity’s purpose) with my own eyes, and I definitely have,” he said. “I think that’s really reassuring.”

Elder Bryan Akwirente Deer of the Mohawk Nation of Kahnawake delivered a prayer of thanksgiving to open the event.

Students from across Canada were also able to ask questions, including via pre-recorded messages.

When asked how missions like Artemis II could shape life on Earth in the next 20 to 30 years, Hansen said, “Space exploration pushes innovation, and when we set really big goals, it focuses us on getting things done, creating technologies that help us live better together.”

Hansen also reflected on Indigenous teachings, saying, “Sit with your elders and ask questions. Every time I’ve listened, I’ve learned amazing things.”

Hansen described how his mission patch reflects seven attributes —courage, humility, respect, love, honesty, wisdom and truth — that guide him in life and in space.

His patch was designed by Manitoba artist Henry Guimond of Sagkeeng First Nation.

Hansen and his three American crewmates are returning to Earth after completing a six-hour lunar flyby on Monday, going farther into space than any humans before and breaking Apollo 13’s distance record from 1970.

It’s a step toward landing boot prints near the moon’s south pole in just two years.

Carney has said that, with Artemis II, Canada became the second country in the world ever to send an astronaut on a lunar mission, and that it’s a testament to Hansen’s “exceptional skill.”

The crew, after capturing images and other geological observations of the moon, is set to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

There is mounting support for a proposed bill in Quebec aimed at keeping children out of the custody of an abusive parent.

Dozens of organizations and experts have signed an open letter backing the initiative launched by Québec solidaire MNA Christine Labrie, saying the legislation would put the best interests of children at the centre of custody decisions.

The bill, recently tabled at the National Assembly, would amend the Civil Code to help keep children away from abusive parents.

Labrie says since entering politics in 2018, she has repeatedly heard stories of abusive parents gaining partial or even full custody of their children.

Under the proposed changes, the burden of proof would shift to an abusive parent to demonstrate they are fit to care for a child, rather than victims having to convince the court their abuser should be kept away.

Child protection experts, lawyers and women’s shelters are among about 60 individuals and groups who have signed the open letter supporting the initiative.

The legislation would also introduce new protections for victims reporting abuse, who sometimes fear that speaking out could harm their custody claims.

Supporters say the bill would not automatically bar abusive parents from seeing their children, but argue more emphasis is needed on the needs of the child.

“The problem is that the (legal system) looks at domestic violence as a problem between two adults. And (it) takes children out of the portrait,” said André Lebon, former vice-president of the Special Youth Protection Commission.

“What we see is that in the last decades, there was a tradition to keep contact with both parents, and what the (evidence) says is that it’s not always in the interest of the child to do this,” Labrie said.

“The victim won’t have to prove that domestic violence has an impact on the child. There is always an impact of the child,” said youth protection lawyer Charlie Dudemaine.

Labrie hopes the bill will pass by the end of the National Assembly session in June, but will need the support of the CAQ majority.

The party is set to elect a new leader Sunday. Labrie says both leadership candidates have shown interest in child protection and she expects they will support the proposed legislation.

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

Parks Canada is lifting a ban on motorized boats in a western Manitoba lake popular with tourists.

The department has had the ban in place for the last two years at Clear Lake in Riding Mountain National Park.

The ban was aimed at stopping the spread of zebra mussels, an invasive species that can disrupt the food chain and damage drinking water infrastructure.

Parks Canada says lifting the ban will be done in a way that protects bodies of water while allowing visitors to resume boating activities.

It says there will be new measures, including an expanded no-wake zone to help protect shorelines and two non-motorized days every week.

That is in addition to ongoing rules that require all watercraft to be cleaned, dried and subject to inspection.

“Complete program details are currently being finalized and will be shared with visitors and stakeholders before the operating season in May,” Parks Canada said in a news release Wednesday.

“Parks Canada also intends to introduce a launch fee structure to support the implementation of lake management activities in the future.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Spring hasn’t quite sprung yet in Saskatchewan and the snow is back, with some areas of the province seeing more than 30 cm of accumulation, according to Environment Canada.

The Meadow Lake, Sask., area seemed to be hit the worst, seeing about 37 cm.

Saskatoon was hit with 16-20 cm, and Regina saw a light snowfall, with only a centimetre.

But with nice weather approaching, don’t expect it to last.

“We are going to see this snow melt as daytime highs get into upper single digits, maybe even approaching double digits at times. So, lots of puddles and then at night we re-freeze.” said Peter Quinlan, Global News meteorologist.

“A little slippery and icy in the morning — you’ll need to take it easy — and then in the afternoons you’ll see that melting and ponding and pooling.”

The morning saw the worst of it, with thick snow on major roads in Saskatoon as people were driving to work.

The city did not declare a snow event as they say there was around five cm in some areas and snow on priority streets was already melting off with sun and salt.

Saskatchewan RCMP reported 78 incidents on roads across the province from when snowfall started Tuesday until noon Wednesday. Saskatoon police, meanwhile, tallied 38 collisions.

RCMP say even though spring is technically here, drivers need to remember winter driving.

Watch the video above for more on what residents in Saskatoon are saying about the big snowfall.

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