TORONTO – Thomas Chabot and the Senators watched every other team raise the curtain on the NHL season.

The wait turned out to be well worth it.

Chabot had a goal and an assist in his first game as captain in Ottawa’s grinding 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.

“It’s fun to be back home and watch some hockey at 7 p.m. on TV, but you want to be the team out there,” said the defenceman now wearing the “C” in the nation’s capital after Brady Tkachuk was shipped to the Florida Panthers in June after demanding a trade. “The week was long, but I thought we put in some good work.”

“Pretty boring” added Ottawa goaltender Linus Ullmark, who made 27 saves. “Camp was short … we’ll see if there’s a little blessing in disguise.”

The victory, however, was tainted by the loss of No. 1 blueliner Jake Sanderson in the first period when he re-aggravated a lower-body injury.

“We’ll know more in the next few days,” said Senators head coach Travis Green, who is also minus shutdown option Artem Zub. “Sandy was smart enough to pull himself early enough that he didn’t re-aggravate it too badly. He just felt that it was coming and took himself out.

“A smart thing to do.”

Chabot said Sanderson was “devastated” on the bench after getting hurt.

“It sucks” he said. “You feel for a guy. Unfortunately, I’ve been on that side of things quite a lot over my career.”

Toronto pushed in the second period with Ottawa down to five defencemen before the visitors steadied themselves to even the score 2-2, and were then rewarded midway through a spotless third when Stephen Halliday swatted home a loose puck just as a power play expired.

The Maple Leafs’ high-flying attack featuring Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Kirill Marchenko looked primed for a late onslaught, but the Senators kept their structure and didn’t allow Toronto to get goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky out of the net for an extra attacker in the final minutes.

“That’s our guys playing their game,” Green said. “We want to be aggressive when we can. When you’ve got the lead, it’s important that you stay aggressive, but also play smart.”

Ullmark made a couple of huge stops along the way, including one he called “90 per cent luck” on Nylander in the second, to go along with some friendly bounces off posts and crossbars.

“Hips aren’t moving the way they should be in the beginning of the season,” he said. “When push comes to shove, I was able to sort it all out.”

After a long runway, so was the rest of the roster on a Saturday night in Toronto.

“If you’re going to wait a week and you had to pick a spot you want to play, it’d probably be here if it wasn’t at home,” Green said. “Any time you play the Leafs in this building, there seems to be a little bit of more emotion.

“It’s probably good that we played here.”

BATTLE OF ONTARIO

Maple Leafs associate coach Daniel Alfredsson, who suited up for 17 of his 18 NHL seasons with the Senators before spending the last three in the nation’s capital as an assistant, held a media availability ahead of facing his former team for the first time.

“It’s different, no question, being on the other side,” Alfredsson said. “We wish them the best and wish us a little bit better.”

ROOKIE LAPPED

Toronto rookie Gavin McKenna had a unique rookie lap in Tuesday’s season-opening game when Bobrovsky stepped on the ice first. First-year players normally get a couple of twirls at the start of warm-ups alone ahead of their first game before being joined by the rest of the team.

“Completely forgot,” Bobrovsky told reporters Friday after practice. “I came to (McKenna) and I also told him … so I pretended that it was my first game, too. But no, I didn’t mean to do that.

“It just happened by accident.”

GREEN PASTURES

Green was behind the bench for his 500th NHL game.

The former NHL forward was asked following the morning skate how he’s changed since first stepping into the coaching limelight.

“Like anything in life, the more you do it, the more comfortable you feel, the more things you learn,” Green said. “A lot different coach today than I was 500 games ago.”

“Time flies when you’re having fun,” he added.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

MONTREAL – Tyson Philpot added three more milestones to an already remarkable season Saturday night.

And it was coupled with the Montreal Alouettes clinching the East Division in a dominant 37-10 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in front of a sellout crowd of 23,035 at Percival Molson Stadium.

“Every night I went to sleep, I envisioned this moment,” said Philpot, who finished the game with 11 catches for a season-high 207 yards. “(Quarterback) Davis (Alexander) gave me the great opportunities, coaches called up great plays and it was a great team win.”

The 26-year-old receiver first broke Terry Evanshen’s single-season record for receiving yards by a Canadian with a 46-yard catch late in the second quarter, surpassing Evanshen’s mark of 1,662 yards set with the Calgary Stampeders in 1967.

The reception was also Philpot’s 113th of the season, setting a new Alouettes franchise record and surpassing the previous mark of 112 shared by Ben Cahoon (2003) and Jamel Richardson (2011).

Philpot added his third record late in the third quarter, catching his ninth pass of the night to move past former Ottawa Redblack Brad Sinopoli for the most receptions by a Canadian in a single CFL season. Sinopoli’s previous record of 116 had stood since 2018.

They are accomplishments Alouettes head coach Jason Maas can only marvel at.

“Since the beginning of training camp to now, when he has had the opportunities, 99 times out of 100, he’s making them,” said Maas. “Sure, there’s a couple plays here and there he would probably love to have back, but the consistency he’s been playing with, the professionalism of coming into the building every single day ready to learn and practice hard and then go out and put it all on the line on the field. … He’s been tremendous.”

For Philpot, setting the Alouettes’ receptions record carried particular significance.

“I remember being six years old tackling my brother in the backyard, envisioning being one of the best ever,” he said. “I’m definitely far from that, but just to be in the conversation of having the most catches in Alouettes history is really a dream come true. There’s no better organization to do it for.”

Philpot’s historic night was part of a dominant offensive performance from Montreal.

Alexander threw for 440 yards and a touchdown in his first career win against the Blue Bombers.

The 27-year-old American finished just one yard short of his career high of 441 yards, achieved against the Argonauts earlier this season.

Alexander, however, was quick to deflect attention away from himself and onto Philpot after the game.

“I’ve been with him since 2022,” said Alexander. “We came in together. I got to watch him play with the great quarterbacks we had before me and I knew the potential was there. He had an unbelievable off-season. He kind of took it to the next level.”

Montreal came out firing early, with Alexander connecting with Philpot for a 52-yard gain on the opening drive before finding Rohan Jones for his first career CFL touchdown. After Winnipeg briefly tied the game on an Ontaria Wilson score, the Alouettes took control and outscored the Blue Bombers 30-3 over the remainder of the contest.

“I said to Davis when there was three minutes left, ‘I think this is the most complete game we’ve played,’ said Philpot. “I feel like we could have finished the game better. We had a couple two and outs at the end, but at the end of the day, we knew what was on hand.”

Caleb Evans scored twice on one-yard runs and Stevie Scott III added a rushing touchdown.

Winnipeg (7-8), meanwhile, dropped their second straight game and currently sit in last place in the crowded West Division standings.

“They beat us pretty good,” added Winnipeg head coach Mike O’Shea. “Philpot makes some great catches, balls were delivered well and he comes up with contested catches. They got on us early with highly skilled plays.”

The Alouettes remain unbeaten at home this season at 8-0 and snapped a four-game regular-season losing streak against Winnipeg dating back to October 2024.

“It definitely meant a lot to us, but most importantly, we wanted to find a way to get a win,” Alexander said. “We set out one of our goals. The boys showed up and we were ready tonight.”

The victory, coupled with the Toronto Argonauts 24-17 loss to the B.C. Lions earlier Saturday not only secures the East Division for Montreal, but also guarantees Montreal will host the Eastern Final on Nov. 7.

“We said, by the end of the week, there could be an opportunity for us to finish the week in first place, which is a box you want to check,” said Maas. “When the opportunity arose, our guys went out and played like it. I was so proud of all three phases from start to finish.”

Philpot, however, is already looking beyond the division title.

“The job is not done,” he said. “Our goal is win a Grey Cup and we won’t stop until we do that.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – Stephen Halliday scored the winner in the third period and Linus Ullmark made 27 saves as the Ottawa Senators downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Saturday night.

Thomas Chabot, with a goal and an assist in his first game as captain, and Michael Amadio provided the rest of the offence for Ottawa (1-0-0). Claude Giroux added two assists.

Auston Matthews and Kirill Marchenko replied for Toronto (1-2-0). Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 26 shots.

Chabot opened the scoring with 68 seconds left in an even first period. The Ottawa defenceman joined the rush and fired a rebound past Bobrovsky after Giroux tipped Shane Pinto’s initial shot.

Matthews tied things 33 seconds into the second when he redirected Morgan Rielly’s point shot before Marchenko — acquired a day before the season from the Columbus Blue Jackets in a blockbuster deal — backhanded his first past Ullmark on a power play after taking a pass from Darren Raddysh at 7:06.

Amadio knotted the game again at 12:40 when he finished off a 2-on-1 break with Tim Stutzle before Halliday provided the winning margin at 9:46 third just as a penalty expired.

The Maple Leafs split their first two games of the NHL season — a 3-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens and 2-1 victory over the New York Islanders — while the Senators were the last team to start their schedule.

Ottawa defenceman Jake Sanderson didn’t return after appearing to aggravate a nagging injury in the opening period.

TAKEAWAYS

Senators: Chabot replaced Brady Tkachuk as captain after the bruising forward requested a trade and was dealt to the Florida Panthers in June.

Maple Leafs: Associate coach Daniel Alfredsson, who played 17 seasons in Ottawa and spent the last three campaigns as an assistant, was behind the bench against his former team for the first time.

KEY MOMENT

Halliday swatted home a loose puck in Bobrovsky’s crease midway through the final period just as a Marchenko penalty of high-sticking expired.

KEY STAT

Toronto centre John Tavares donned a Maple Leafs jersey for the 600th time in the regular season. The 36-year-old is the 25th player in franchise history to reach the milestone.

COMING UP

Senators: Visit the Boston Bruins on Monday.

Maple Leafs: Host the Nashville Predators on Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

EDMONTON – Connor McDavid had a goal and an assist to give him nine points through three games as the Edmonton Oilers won their second game in a row, defeating the Seattle Kraken 3-1 on Saturday.

Owen Michaels and Leon Draisaitl also scored for the Oilers (2-0-1).

Devon Levi made 19 stops to earn the win in the Oilers’ net.

Bobby McMann replied for the Kraken (1-1-0) who continued to struggle in Edmonton. Philipp Grubauer recorded 22 saves for Seattle.

After McMann made it a 1-1 game 9:06 into the second period, it was Draisaitl who eventually broke the deadlock.

Draisaitl scored with 2:27 left in regulation, with McDavid adding an empty-netter with 1:05 remaining.

TAKEAWAYS

Kraken: Since joining Seattle last season, McMann has 11 goals in 20 games.

Oilers: Michaels, a 24-year-old Michigan native, went undrafted before helping Western Michigan win their first national championship in program history in 2025. He signed as a free agent with Edmonton and surprised many by making the team out of camp. He now has two goals in his first three pro games at the NHL level.

KEY MOMENT

Edmonton went up 2-1 with just 2:27 to play in the third after a puck caromed off of McDavid to Draisaitl out front and he buried his third of the campaign.

KEY STAT

Edmonton has owned Seattle, entering the contest with a 15-4-1 overall record against the Kraken and sitting at 8-1-0 all-time at home against them with seven consecutive wins. The Oilers have four of the top five scorers all-time against Seattle, with Draisaitl first with 34 points in 15 games, Connor McDavid second, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins third and Zach Hyman fifth.

UP NEXT

Kraken: Have their home-opener against the Calgary Flames on Sunday.

Oilers: Head to Anaheim to play the Ducks in a first-round rematch on Wednesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – A new era in Canadian NHL broadcasting kicked off Saturday night on Sportsnet with a new show title, a splashy introduction, and the familiar presence of longtime host Ron MacLean.

The NHL version of “Hockey Night in Canada” is out after nearly 75 years on television. Its replacement – “Saturday Night Hockey” – has arrived in its place after Rogers Communications and the CBC did not renew their sublicensing agreement.

The first Saturday of the NHL season felt much like previous broadcasts in the marquee time-slot.

The show began with a montage of highlights, vintage clips and fan shots. The Backstreet Boys’ 1997 hit “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)” provided the soundtrack.

MacLean and panellists Kevin Bieksa, Elliotte Friedman and newcomer Colby Armstrong discussed the matchups before rinkside host Kyle Bukauskas touched on the evening’s transition ahead of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ home game against the Ottawa Senators.

“A Saturday night from coast to coast to coast, this night will always belong to Canada with hockey being the conduit,” he said.

Slick graphics were accompanied by a new show logo that featured the title in big block letters. A Rogers logo sat at the top and an NHL logo was at the bottom.

MacLean made a single “Hockey Night” reference in the pre-game portion of the program after the panellists discussed how some players were settling in to the new campaign.

“And that’s Saturday,” MacLean said. “It’s kind of like a trial balloon. You use these games on “Hockey Night in Canada” as it was called and now Rogers “Saturday Night Hockey” to test your playoff mettle. We’re early on.”

The four-game slate also included Montreal at Pittsburgh, Seattle at Edmonton and Calgary at Vancouver.

It was the first time since Hockey Night’s television debut in 1952 that NHL games weren’t available to Canadian viewers via the public broadcaster. The program has been a Saturday-night mainstay for generations of hockey fans.

The CBC plans to broadcast Professional Women’s Hockey League games on “Hockey Night in Canada” this season.

When Rogers secured a 12-year deal with the NHL that started in 2014, it partnered with the CBC to continue Hockey Night.

The current campaign is the first season of Rogers’ new 12-year, $11-billion deal with the league. Sportsnet is part of Rogers Sports & Media, which is a subsidiary of Rogers Communications.

“Saturday Night Hockey” will feature an NHL doubleheader each Saturday with at least one Canada-based team in each matchup.

A number of significant changes were announced in the off-season on the Canadian NHL broadcasting front.

Sportsnet lifted 150 regional blackouts and now has a national schedule in Canada of more than 550 games. Monday Night Hockey games will stream exclusively on Sportsnet+, the network said, noting service subscribers would get that content as part of their package.

Rogers added three new digital channels with the exclusive content to Rogers Xfinity TV packages that have Sportsnet. However, for those who subscribe to Sportsnet through other TV providers, they’ll have to shell out an additional $12.99 per month for an add-on package.

Bell Media’s TSN/RDS will still broadcast some regional games this season and the Amazon Prime Monday Night package has shifted to Wednesdays.

TVA Sports also secured French-language rights for 12 years via a sub-licensing deal between Rogers and Quebecor. Sportsnet also cancelled “Hockey Night in Canada: Punjabi Edition” after an 18-year run.

The Friends of Canadian Media organization has started a “Write Your MP” campaign to support a policy direction to the CRTC to explore anti-siphoning regulations in Canada.

“Canadians are increasingly losing free or affordable access to major cultural and sporting events as global streaming platforms and private broadcasters secure exclusive rights,” the opening of the group’s template letter reads. “Events that once united us like the Stanley Cup Finals are moving behind paywalls.”

A Dec. 5 matchup between the Montreal Victoire and expansion PWHL Hamilton side will be the first women’s hockey game to be featured on “Hockey Night in Canada.”

“Yes, it’s going to be different,” CBC Sports executive director Chris Wilson said in an interview this week. “But it’s going to be really exciting, really inclusive and really accessible to a large number of Canadians.”

Hockey Night will return as part of CBC Sports Primetime, CBC’s new weekly Saturday night sports show that launched this weekend.

“It’s so cool to put women’s hockey on the map and especially on that big of a platform,” Vancouver Goldeneyes defender Caroline (KK) Harvey said Friday at a PWHL media day. “It’s going to be unbelievable.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

QUÉBEC – The Toronto Raptors had their six-game winning streak in Quebec snapped with a 129-105 pre-season defeat against the Miami Heat in the first-ever NBA game in Quebec City on Saturday at Centre Vidéotron.

The game, played in front of a sellout crowd of 18,474, was part of the NBA Canada Series which sees a second game in Vancouver on Oct. 10 when the Raptors will meet the Los Angeles Clippers.

Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic didn’t dress star forward Kawhi Leonard and will not in Vancouver as well. Leonard is still nursing an injury and Rajakovic won’t rush the two-time NBA Finals MVP.

As for the Heat, head coach Erik Spoelstra started star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was acquired from the Milwaukee Bucks. Antetokounmpo scored nine points Saturday night.

Both head coaches had their lone Canadians as starters for the game: R.J. Barrett for Toronto, and Andrew Wiggins for the Heat.

Barrett and Tyreke Key led the Raptors with 15 points each, while Tim Hardaway Jr. with 14, led the Heat in scoring.

Rajakovic said a lack of experience showed with many of his players competing in their first professional game, but was pleased with some details in the game.

“Defensively, we forced the Heat to 25 turnovers, which was a good job by our team, but in some instances, we lacked discipline when we had to get back on defence,” Rajakovic said.

He added that the team will need to work on getting more defensive rebounds as Miami grabbed 13 offensive rebounds.

Rajakovic wasn’t impressed with the offence.

“We didn’t shoot the ball well tonight, and even though we took more three-point shots, we only shot 29 per cent from the three-point line”.

The Raptors will continue their training camp in Toronto this week, before heading to the West Coast next Thursday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Quebec City police say the death of a 21-year-old man found in a home Friday is being investigated as a homicide.

Police identify the victim as Gabriel-Simon Akokane and say he has a criminal record.

They say officers found Akokane dead around 11 a.m. while carrying out a search at a home in the Saint-Jean-Baptiste neighbourhood.

Police say the search was part of an investigation by the force’s urban violence unit.

Sandra Dion, a police spokesperson, says Akokane had injuries on his body but declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.

A mobile command post is at the scene.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – Sean Whyte and a stout defence were a deadly combination for the B.C. Lions on Saturday afternoon.

Whyte kicked a club-record eight field goals before B.C.’s defence made a huge goal-line stand late in the game, giving the Lions a 24-17 win over the Toronto Argonauts. It was their first victory at BMO Field since 2019.

Twice the Lions’ defence stopped Toronto quarterback Nick Arbuckle at the B.C. one-yard line, the last coming on third down with 11 seconds remaining. Earlier, T.J. Lee intercepted Arbuckle at the visitors’ 11-yard line with 2:38 to play.

“We preach having grit and fighting for anything we can do to win the game for our team,” Lee said. “It (two late Arbuckle sneaks) was an opportunity for them to score but it’s also an opportunity for us to stop them.

“Anytime we get on the field our defence has the mindset that it’s an opportunity and we took advantage of it today.”

B.C. forced three Toronto turnovers.

Lee also had plenty of love for Whyte, 40, who has made 40-of-43 attempts (93 per cent) this season.

“Sean Whyte, we know he’s clutch,” Lee said. “It’s like a free throw for him, every kick is a free throw.”

Whyte finished one field goal short of the CFL record held by Edmonton’s Vincent Blanchard.

Arbuckle’s 36-yard TD strike to David Ungerer III at 5:30 pulled the Argos to within 21-17. Whyte’s 29-yard field goal at 2:33 put B.C. ahead 21-10 after Toronto’s Shawn Lemon sacked Lions starter Nathan Rourke for a 13-yard loss.

Arbuckle completed 27-of-33 passes for 292 yards and two TDs with two interceptions. He was making his first start of the season with incumbent Chad Kelly (right hand) out.

“It’s a tough loss, any loss is tough,” Arbuckle said. “Losing by one yard, or half a yard, on the last play is devastating.

“I felt like our defence played really well against a high-powered offence and gave us an opportunity there at the end to win it.”

B.C. (9-6) earned a third straight win and seventh in eight games as Whyte broke the club mark he and Lui Passaglia held jointly. The Lions moved two points ahead of third-place Calgary (8-8) and Saskatchewan (8-7) in the West Division and trail first-place Edmonton (11-4) by four points with both teams having three regular-season games remaining.

“Throughout the course of this last little stretch (the Lions’ defence) has been fantastic,” said B.C. head coach Buck Pierce. “It was fitting the way that game ended because of how well they’ve played … I couldn’t be more proud of the group.”

Offensively, B.C. had the ball over 35 minutes and the Lions only had to punt three times. However, Rourke was 15-of-32 passing for 254 yards before 13,974 spectators at BMO Field.

“I feel like two out of the three facets of our team really played extremely well,” Rourke said. “Offensively we’ve got to do better and it starts with me.

“This time of year we’ve got to be playing better, we can’t expect to play like that and win. Things to clean up but it’s always good when you can learn from a win rather than a loss.”

Pierce credited Toronto’s defence for keeping B.C.’s offence out of the end zone. But he also said the Lions’ unit has work to do.

“What concerns me is a lack of focus, having some errors mentally and physically,” Pierce said. “We just have to make sure offensively we continue to strive to put our best foot forward at all times.

“I think the biggest takeaway is the resilience and how the team responded in all phases.”

Toronto (9-7) had its four-game win streak snapped and also suffered its first loss in five contests at BMO Field. The Argos will also finish second in the East Division behind Montreal (12-4), which clinched top spot with a 37-10 home win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday night.

Makai Polk had Toronto’s other touchdown. Lirim Hajrullahu added two converts and a field goal.

Whyte’s 40-yard field goal at the 11-minute mark of the third quarter moved B.C. ahead 18-10. He connected from 19 yards out at 4:19 after Deontai Williams’s 17-yard interception return to the Toronto 29-yard line.

Whyte’s 12-yard field goal to end the second quarter gave B.C. a fortunate 12-10 halftime lead. Time appeared to run out on Rourke’s scramble to the Toronto four-yard line but he was deemed down with one second remaining.

Polk gave Toronto a 10-9 lead with a five-yard TD grab at 13:25. It ended a seven-play, 70-yard drive.

Whyte put B.C. up 9-3 with a 32-yard field goal at 12:05.

Hajrullahu’s 18-yard field goal at 9:27 of the first quarter made it 3-3. But Whyte countered with a 26-yard boot at 13:53 to put B.C. ahead 6-3.

Whyte opened the scoring with a 39-yard field goal at 4:53. Lemon recovered a Lions fumble on the drive, but it was nullified by an offside call.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct, 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

BC NDP Leader David Eby doubles down on comments he made regarding B.C. businessman and philanthropist Jim Pattison. Two high-risk sex offenders are causing concern for Metro Vancouver’s two largest cities. ‘Buy Canadian’ movement remains strong according to new Abacus Data poll.

Watch ‘Global News at 6 BC’ for the latest news in British Columbia.

Click here for more Global BC videos

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

A small Saskatchewan city is making a name for itself, but not the one it wants to be known by.

Prince Albert had the highest recorded levels of methamphetamine and cocaine in its wastewater between January 2024 and March 2026, according to data from Statistics Canada.

The concentration of traces of methamphetamine in wastewater across the city decreased from July to November 2025, before peaking at just over 2,000 milligrams per day per 1,000 people in March.

Prince Albert is one of only two cities with a concentration more than 1,000 milligrams per day per 1,000 people. The other city was Moncton, N.B., recorded in January.

Saskatoon has the third highest concentration of methamphetamine in its wastewater with 957 milligrams per day per 1,000 people in March.

While Metro Vancouver has levels of norfentanyl more than four times all other reporting cities combined, Prince Albert saw the biggest increase in norfentanyl in its wastewater between January and March.

“While fentanyl remains central to Canada’s overdose crisis, being involved in more than half (56%) of opioid-related deaths in 2025, stimulant use is also a significant source of substance-related harms nationally,” Statistics Canada said in its update.

One public health expert at the University of Saskatchewan said wastewater data provides a population overview, but it can also provide a vantage point for police forces and community organizations as its data transcends the level of drug use that may be individually reported.

“I think this helps combat stigma a little bit where we’re not just envisioning a certain segment of the population that’s using substances, but we can get a sense of the overall population level,” Barbara Fornssler told Global News.

This is not the first time Prince Albert has taken the crown for the meth capital of Canada. It also had the highest concentration of methamphetamine in the 2024 wastewater survey, though Statistics Canada noted that survey was conducted using a different method and the results may not be comparable.

Prince Albert Police Chief Patrick Nogier said the data reassures him where the force needs to dedicate its resources and attention.

“We need to be more efficient about determining how drugs are moving, where they’re moving within our communities, which ones are associated to which, so that we can have a better indication of who’s responsible for them,” he said during a press conference Thursday.

As for why cities in Saskatchewan are experiencing such a spike, Fornssler said there can be many contributors.

“It’s possible it’s the supply. It’s possible it’s the conditions that people are living in. It could also be related, and I think importantly in Saskatchewan, to our housing crisis and the lack of shelter availability,” she said.

She added that the closure of services like Prairie Harm, Saskatoon’s addiction treatment centre that shut its doors in 2025, is likely not contributing to a rise in drug use but is impacting how those who use can access appropriate supports.

“We are seeing elevated calls for ambulatory response. We’re seeing increases in the emergency department admissions. We are seeing greater demand on other systems that respond to drug-related harm,” she said.

While the wastewater survey provides a good overview for the eight communities who participate, Fornssler said she would like to see it expanded, and potentially even follow some of the methods that are being used in Europe.

“It’s my understanding based on data out of Europe … that they’ve been able to make some distinctions around the number of metabolites or the volume of metabolite in wastewater depending on how people are using the substance,” she said. “When you inject versus smoke versus snort, our bodies are gonna process that a little bit differently and it may result in greater or lower metabolite presence in the wastewater.”

She said understanding how people are using the drugs is valuable information for support services.

The City of Prince Albert said a daily count could help to better address the issue.

“That kind of data will help us to understand, for instance, when we see fluctuations, what else is going on at that time? What events are happening in the province or in the community that maybe contribute to that.”

Fornssler said in other countries public health officials and researchers are finding ways to link wastewater data with cellphone data to see how the levels of drugs in wastewater rise when people are concentrated for things like music festivals and other gatherings.

That’s not happening in Canada yet, but she said with the right additional supports, that could help some communities be better able to address drug problems within their communities.

– With files from Ashley Beherns, Global News

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