As of September 25, 2026, U2 has been around for 50 years. Five decades ago, in 1976, a bunch of kids showed up in the kitchen at Larry Mullen Jr.’s place. Fourteen-year-old Larry had posted a note on the hallway bulletin board at Mount Temple Comprehensive School on Malahide Road in Dublin.

Four of the kids from that afternoon in the kitchen are still in the band. There’s been only one lineup change. On March 4, 1978, Dik Evans left the group, back when it was still known as “Feedback” and then “The Hype.” Other than that, U2 has always been Larry, Bono, the Edge, and Adam Clayton.

There are groups whose names have survived longer. The Blind Boys of Alabama have a history that dates back to 1939. The Oak Ridge Boys were formed in 1947. Golden Earring first got together in 1961.

But how many groups have the same members after 50 years? Right now, the answer is none. Until recently, ZZ Top was the champion, with the same three guys since 1969, but when Dusty Hill died in 2021, that streak ended at 52 years.

To put U2’s longevity into perspective, they were formed just after Montreal hosted the Summer Olympics. They began before the first Star Wars movie came out. Heck, U2 is older than disco. And they’re still making albums, and they’re still touring.
Obviously, we gotta do something to mark this milestone. But how?

There have been documentaries and books and movies and concert films and box sets. Their story has been told a million times. So what can we do that’s different, yet fun and informative? I thought long and hard about what to do.

And here’s what I came up with. This is part one of a show I’m calling “50 Things About U2 at 50.”

Hang on. This is gonna get dense.

Songs heard on this show:

• U2, Tonight
• Radiators from Space, Television Screen
• U2, Stories for Boys
• U2, 11 O’clock Tic Toc
• U2, I Will Follow
• U2, Gloria
• U2, Pride (In the Name of Love), 2023 version/U2
• U2, Sunday Bloody Sunday (Live)
• U2, Get Out Your Own Way

Here’s Eric Wilhite’s playlist.

The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on these stations:

• 102.1 The Edge/Toronto – Sunday night at 7pm
• Q107/Toronto – Sunday night at 9pm
• Live 88-5/Ottawa – Saturdays at 9am and Sundays at 6pm
• 107.5 Dave-FM/Kitchener – Sunday nights at 11pm
• FM96/London – Sunday nights at 8pm
• Power 97/Winnipeg – Sunday nights at 10am and 10pm
• 107-3 The Edge/Calgary – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
• Sonic 102.9/Edmonton – Sunday at 8am and 8pm
• The Zone/Victoria – Sunday at 9am and 9pm
• The Fox/Vancouver – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
• The Goat Network/Interior BC
• WAPS/WKTL The Summit/Arkon, Canton, Cleveland, Youngstown – Mon-Fri at 9pm

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Few species on this planet can make a noise like 10,000 screaming teenage girls. That’s a lot of lung power, but it can come at a serious health cost–and I don’t mean one’s hearing.

In 2017, The Journal of Emergency Medicine entitled “Screaming your Lungs Out! A Case of Boy Band-Induced Pneumothorax, Pneumomediastinum, and Pneumoretropharyngeum.” It warns of the effects of prolonged screaming by young women at boy band concerts.

Basically, they can scream and sing so long and so hard that lungs may spontaneously collapse, requiring immediate medical treatment. I quote: “Spontaneous pneumothorax has been linked with multiple activities leading to acute increases in transpulmonary pressure (e.g., weightlifting, diving, and military flying). This particular case suggests that forceful screaming during pop concerts should be added to that list.”

Be careful out there, kids.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

OTTAWA – The game of hockey isn’t always fair.

The Ottawa Senators had one of their better performances of the season on Tuesday but still ended up in the loss column.

The Senators (11-6-2) outworked, outmuscled and outshot the Washington Capitals but couldn’t outscore the visitors, falling 3-2 in overtime.

The bright side was the fact they still managed to earn a point.

The Senators have been without starting goaltender Linus Ullmark for almost three weeks but have managed to hold their own and play some impressive hockey.

The Senators have gone 4-3-2 without Ullmark, thanks in large part to 27-year-old Samuel Ersson of Sweden, who seems to be finding his game, and the team remaining committed to smart decisions with and without the puck.

Tuesday was a perfect example. Washington scored on its first shot and outshot Ottawa 11-5 in the opening 20 minutes.

From the start of the second, the Senators dominated and outshot the Capitals 17-2 — holding the American squad without a shot for more than 21 minutes.

“I thought we played awesome tonight,” said Senators head coach Travis Green. “It was one of our better games of the year.”

Not one to be lavish in his praise, Green said he liked everything about his team’s game.

“Thought we checked well,” he said. “We created a lot. Put a lot of pressure on the back end.”

Early in the season the Senators often had to rely on Tim Stutzle and Drake Batherson to carry the offensive load, but in their last three games Ottawa has been getting depth scoring from the likes of Michael Amadio, Fabian Zetterlund, Ridly Greig and Nick Cousins. Even Ottawa’s fourth line is chipping in with Hayden Hodgson picking up a goal Tuesday.

Ottawa will likely be without Cousins for the next few games after taking a big hit from Washington’s Jakob Chychrun.

Cousins took the impact from the hit but then bounced his head off the glass before falling hard to the ice. No penalty was called on the play and he required assistance to leave the game.

Cousins is the type of player who does not always show up on the scoresheet but his impact is unmistakable. He has the ability to play up and down the lineup, plays the role of agitator and knows how to bring out the best of his teammates. He is the energy guy many teams consider invaluable.

“I think everybody hates these scenes in hockey and any sport,” said Senators captain Thomas Chabot. “Obviously, you’re aware it’s part of the game, but it’s a lot more than the game of hockey, and it sucks seeing him like that.”

Green didn’t have much of an update on Cousin post-game other than to say “he’s not doing great.”

The Senators have been hit hard by injuries through the first 19 games of the season. They were without Jake Sanderson for eight games, Artem Zub missed seven and Chabot missed four. Forward Warren Foegele has now missed six, while Andre Burakovsky has been in and out of the lineup and they lost William Eklund after just four games with a torn tendon in his ankle. Ullmark has missed nine games.

Despite the rash of injuries the Senators are committing to Green’s system and getting rewarded.

“There’s times you might not play your best hockey and you’ll end up winning the game,” Chabot said. “And there’s times you’ll feel like you played great hockey and you end up losing.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

The Montreal Canadiens welcomed Carey Price back to the Bell Centre with a memorable, spine-tingling ovation Tuesday night.

Canadiens fans cheered for close to four minutes during an on-ice ceremony, wildly serenading their longtime star goaltender with a blend of “Ca-rey! Ca-rey!” and “Olé, Olé” chants ahead of puck drop against the Minnesota Wild.

Price, meanwhile, stood beside the team benches, next to the five individual trophies he won over his illustrious career, as he attempted to get a word in.

“From the bottom of my heart, the most sincere ‘Merci beaucoup,’” Price told the crowd, his voice trembling.

Following team tradition, the Canadiens added Price to their ring of honour after his induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday in Toronto.

Price, 39, became the 62nd member of the Canadiens organization to enter the Hall of Fame, capping a remarkable journey that began in the remote community of Anahim Lake, B.C.

Growing up, Price’s father, Jerry, flew his son in a four-seat plane 320 kilometres from their hometown to Williams Lake, B.C., three times a week so he could play minor hockey.

Price went on to spend his entire 15-year NHL career in Montreal after the Canadiens selected him fifth overall in the 2005 draft, becoming the franchise’s all-time leader with 361 wins. He finished with a .917 save percentage, a 2.51 goals-against average and 49 shutouts in 712 regular-season games.

“It’s special,” Price, a member of the Ulkatcho First Nation in B.C., said before the game. “I was able to be a part of many ceremonies here, and obviously the rich culture of this franchise speaks for itself. I’m just honoured to add another chapter to it.”

One of the greatest goaltenders of his generation, Price became known for his exceptional positioning, unflappable demeanour and stylish windmill glove saves.

He backstopped Canada to Olympic gold in 2014, then won the Hart Trophy as league MVP and the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender in 2015 — posting an eye-popping .933 save percentage and 1.96 goals-against average across 66 games.

But Price never won a Stanley Cup, spending much of his career carrying Canadiens teams that lacked offensive firepower and elevating them above their expectations. Alex Kovalev’s 84 points in 2007-08 — Price’s rookie season — were the most by a Montreal player during his career.

Price came closest to hoisting hockey’s holy grail in 2021, when he led an underdog Canadiens team to the Stanley Cup final against the Tampa Bay Lightning with COVID-19 restrictions still in full swing.

He would suit up just five more times as a degenerative right knee injury cut his career short, with his final appearance coming in a 10-2 victory over Florida at the Bell Centre on April 29, 2022.

At the time, Canadiens fans didn’t know for certain that game would be his last.

“When you end your career, there’s a picture of riding off into the sunset, and I didn’t feel like it happened, but I felt the love regardless,” Price said. “I had time to reflect on everything a little bit over this time, and it made me even more thankful for everything.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press

A Montreal man who’s been selling poppies at the Vendôme metro station for two decades says he was recently hassled by security guards.

The 90-year-old Carl Andersen is a Canadian Forces veteran who volunteers his early November mornings raising money for the Royal Canadian Legion.

Recently, he ran into a bit of an obstacle. Andersen says last week two Société de transport de Montréal (STM) transit agency security officers asked him if he had permission to sell poppies at Vendôme.

“I said, I’ve been doing it for 20 years, I’ve never had to ask permission. He said, ‘well, we’re trying to get rid of people asking for money in the subway,'” Andersen recounted to Global News.

Andersen said it’s the first time he’s ever been hassled by security. He said after consulting with their supervisors, the officers told him they would “tolerate” his presence.

“I felt a little harassed,” he said. “The thing is, I didn’t like the word ‘tolerate,’ which meant that they could change that toleration at any moment.”

The STM told Global News it is permitted to solicit donations outside the paid zone.

“If Mr. Andersen does not solicit customers, but rather waits for customers to come to him and it is considered a donation, there should not be a problem, as long as he complies with the other rules concerning traffic flow, civic conduct, etc,” STM spokesperson Amelie Regis said in an emailed statement.

He hasn’t had any trouble since, and the people he was pinning poppies on Tuesday appeared happy to see him, according to Global News staff.

Some buy from him year after year, pausing their commutes for a warm greeting and a story.

“There are veterans that are in real need, and for them, this is why we do it,” he said.

Charity is a vital part of who Andersen is. It’s something the Canadian Forces veteran says he learned from his mom. “My mother was very giving and we weren’t brought up with a hell of a lot of bucks,” he said.

Andersen says he lied about his age to join the forces at 15. He served in Canada during the tail end of the Korean War. He claims eventually his lie was discovered, and he was honourably discharged.

Andersen used to be a big runner. He says he’s completed 97 marathons in his life, and he’s done more fundraising runs than he can count. He’s raised money for breast cancer research, the Terry Fox Foundation and the War Amps, among others.

“I’m close to, if not over, a million dollars in charity done through my running,” he said.

Andersen said he hopes to keep volunteering for the Legion at Vendôme until he’s at least 100.

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

Alberta’s government is bucking questions about the taxpayer cost of a delegation that toured Kentucky bourbon distilleries last year and brought a staffer’s husband along for the ride.

The office for Dale Nally, the minister of red tape reduction, says the husband of his chief of staff paid his own expenses.

But documents obtained by the Opposition NDP indicate Gary Davidson didn’t reimburse his share of group transportation costs.

The internal government documents and correspondence about the trip show distillery touring costs were split among industry stakeholders who paid their own way and expenses claimed by Nally, his deputy minister and his chief of staff.

The NDP says it amounts to a taxpayer-funded booze fest and has demanded the minister pay back $5,400 for the cost of the distillery tours.

New Democrats began asking about the trip last week, and Nally’s office has declined to answer questions about whether the minister consumed alcohol while touring about a dozen bourbon distilleries in early September 2025.

His office also declined to explain why Davidson joined the delegation. In 2019, Davidson ran unsuccessfully for a United Conservative Party nomination in a Red Deer riding.

The trip’s stated purpose was for meetings with Kentucky lawmakers and, when it was announced, representatives from Alberta’s whisky industry were invited at their own expense.

Last week, UCP Premier Danielle Smith defended Nally’s efforts to develop and promote the province’s whisky sector.

“We want to also have an Alberta whisky tour here. We need to understand those who are doing it well in Kentucky,” she said in the legislature.

Nally made the trip after Alberta lifted an initial ban on American alcohol products in June 2025 amid the ongoing trade war with the United States.

The minister has said international missions are at the core of his job and that he made the trip for research to help brand Alberta whisky and grow the province’s economy.

“Business loves it, and it’s working,” he said last week in question period.

An unnamed spokesperson for Nally’s office said in statements this week that Nally’s meetings helped inform the development of the Alberta Whisky Act, which passed legislature debate this spring. It establishes requirements and standards for a product to carry an official Alberta whisky label.

“Transportation was booked prior to the mission taking place to accommodate transportation for a larger group of people that included the minister, staff and industry representatives,” said the office.

Finance Minister Jason Nixon said last week that his department reviewed the receipts and that no alcohol was billed to taxpayers. He said expenses paid to a company called Sip Kentucky were strictly for transportation.

“The company was hired exclusively to do transportation,” he said.

NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has been skeptical, pointing to one of the company’s slogans: “You sip. We drive.”

Last week, Nenshi called it an egregious expense to incur while Albertans are facing a cost-of-living crisis.

Receipts for the Kentucky trip are posted online and show plane tickets, accommodations, meals and transportation for Nally, his chief of staff and his deputy minister cost taxpayers about $20,000.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

One of the last memories Ashley Ryan has of her husband is wiping blood off his face shortly after he was shot while responding to a domestic disturbance call in Edmonton four years ago.

Ryan, who worked as a paramedic for about 13 years, recounted the traumatic moment in court Tuesday, reading her victim impact statement in the sentencing hearing of 22-year-old Dennis Okeymow.

Const. Brett Ryan and his partner, Const. Travis Jordan, were killed in March 2023 when they arrived at an apartment building.

They were ambushed and shot by 16-year-old Roman Shewchuk. The boy then turned the gun on himself.

Court heard that weeks earlier Okeymow sold the semi-automatic rifle to the teen, who had a history of mental illness.

Okeymow was found guilty in May on 10 charges, including three counts of manslaughter and three counts of criminal negligence causing the deaths of the officers and the shooter.

Ashley Ryan told court she was at the Royal Alexandra Hospital when Jordan was wheeled in. She was trying to revive him when, moments later, an ambulance pulled up with her husband.

“The blood-curdling screams that I let out when I realized that it was Brett on that stretcher will never not echo in that ambulance bay,” said Ryan, who was 15 weeks pregnant at the time with their first child.

“I cleaned up my husband’s blood and brain matter off his face and his beard. So when our family and friends came to say goodbye, they didn’t have to witness the carnage done to him and see the way that I saw him for the last time.”

She said because of Okeymow’s actions, she now has to live with those “images being forever etched in my mind.”

She said she has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression, and she can no longer work in the career she loved.

With treatment, she has “basic human functioning” and can be there for her son, she added.

“I now have to be both mom and dad — the role Brett was looking forward to and so excited for.”

Her impact statement was one of eight submitted in the hearing.

The Crown is seeking a prison sentence of 12 to 14 years, while the defence asked for 4 1/2 years of time already served, with three years’ probation.

Court of King’s Bench Justice John Little is to make a decision at a later date.

Laurie Ryan told the judge that her son’s death also made her end her career in health care.

The former emergency room nurse said that upon seeing her son’s lifeless body in the hospital, she started performing CPR and hoped he would start breathing.

“For 35 years, I walked into emergency departments where people were frightened, injured, suffering and sometimes fighting for their own lives. I knew what to do,” she said.

“But when it was my own son lying there, all those years of experience could not save him … that helplessness is something I struggle with every day.”

She said she can no longer step into a hospital without being overwhelmed with grief.

Annie Jordan said the devastating loss of her husband was all because someone illegally sold a firearm.

“A single act can send shock waves through countless lives,” she told court.

The trial heard that Roman’s mother had called police for help when her son strangled her. She was also shot and injured when her son opened fire on the officers.

Days earlier, the teen used the same gun to shoot a stranger in the head at a pizza shop. Richard Albert survived but suffered serious and permanent injuries.

Okeymow apologized in court to the officers’ families and the police service.

“I understand that words won’t change what happened that day, but I apologize. I’m sorry,” he said.

Prosecutor Adam Garrett said Okeymow should have realized the risk of illegally selling a .22-calibre semi-automatic rifle and 80 rounds of ammunition to the boy.

Okeymow also knew or was “wilfully blind” to the teen’s mental health issues and regularly sold him drugs, Garrett said.

He added that when Okeymow heard about the shooting at the restaurant, and thought Roman could be the gunman, he didn’t warn anyone.

Jamil Sawani, Okeymow’s lawyer, said his client was only 18 when he was charged and that the sentence the Crown is suggesting would “consume the rest of his young adult life.”

Sawani presented parts of his client’s pre-sentencing Indigenous background report, indicating that Okeymow’s family was upended by the residential school system.

The lawyer said Okeymow’s mother grew up without her parents and didn’t know how to be a mother.

Okeymow was “born into tragedy,” sent twice to foster care and witnessed his mother try to kill herself. She also taught him how to sell drugs, said Sawani.

But he said his client has made progress with his life while in custody, by reconnecting to his Indigenous culture and completing high school.

“The deaths of Const. Jordan and Const. Ryan cannot be undone, the death of Mr. Shewchuk cannot be undone,” the lawyer said.

“What remains in the court’s power is whether this tragedy claims one other promise of a life that could be different.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press

OTTAWA – Cole Hutson’s goal 74 seconds into overtime, set up by Alex Ovechkin, lifted the Washington Capitals to a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.

The Capitals overcame a horrid second period, in which they allowed two goals and trailed 2-1, to register the victory.

Matt Roy and Pierre-Luc Dubois also scored for the Capitals (10-6-0), while netminder Logan Thompson made 23 saves.

Ridly Greig and Hayden Hodgson scored for the Senators (11-6-2), while Samuel Ersson stopped 14 shots.

Outshot 17-2 in the second period, Washington went a span of 20 minutes and five seconds before they registered their next shot in the third period.

The Capitals showed life on the power play and maintained control after it expired and capitalized with Hutson finding Dubois at the side of the net for a wide-open shot to tie it 2-2 at 12:31 of the third.

Ersson made a big save on Jack St. Ivany with four minutes remaining to keep the game tied.

With 2:57 remaining Jakob Chychrun laid a huge hit on Nick Cousins and no penalty was called to Ottawa’s disappointment. Cousins needed help getting off the ice.

Down 1-0 after the first, the Senators scored twice to lead 2-1 after 40 minutes.

Thomas Chabot set up both goals for the Senators.

On the first, Chabot kept the puck in at the blue line and fed Michael Amadio, who quickly passed it back. Chabot then found Greig in the slot, where he beat Thompson off his backhand.

Ottawa took the lead late in the period when Chabot took a pass from Stephen Halliday and put the puck through Chychrun’s legs to Hodgson for his first of the season.

The Capitals opened the scoring just 35 seconds into the game when Roy took a pass from Chychrun and fired a slap shot past Ersson for his first of the season.

Greig returned to Ottawa’s lineup after missing two games.

TAKEAWAYS

Senators: After a slow start to the game the Senators found their legs in the second.

Capitals: Washington looked disengaged for much of the second period.

KEY STAT

Ryan Leonard played his 100th NHL game Tuesday. He has 26 goals to join Alex Ovechkin (64), Alexander Semin (39), Dmitri Khristich (38) and Peter Bondra (29) as one of only five Capitals since 1990 to score 25 or more goals in his first 100 games in the NHL.

UP NEXT

Capitals: Visit the New Jersey Devils on Thursday.

Senators: Host the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

TORONTO – Gabriel Landeskog scored his second goal of the game in the third period as the Colorado Avalanche topped Toronto 6-3 to hand the Maple Leafs their fourth straight regulation loss Tuesday.

Devon Toews, with a goal and an assist, Brock Nelson, Artturi Lehkonen and Martin Necas, into an empty net, provided the rest of the offence for Colorado (11-6-2). Mackenzie Blackwood made 28 saves. Cale Makar added two assists.

Darren Raddysh, Easton Cowan and Jack Roslovic replied with a goal and an assist each for Toronto (8-10-2), which has dropped six of its last seven decisions.

Sergei Bobrovksy finished with 22 stops.

The 38-year-old goaltender — a two-time Stanley Cup champion and two-time Vezina Trophy winner as the NHL’s top netminder — has allowed three goals or more in 12 of his 13 starts since signing in free agency July 1.

Roslovic (lower-body injury) and shutdown defenceman Chris Tanev (load management) returned to the Toronto lineup after sitting out Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils.

TAKEAWAYS

Maple Leafs: Morgan Rielly (lower-body injury) joined a long list of players receiving treatment in the trainer’s room. The veteran blueliner is listed as day-to-day, while centre Colton Sissons (lower-body injury) is out week-to-week. Top-line winger Kirill Marchenko (lower body) along with defencemen Marshall Rifai (lower body) and Nick Blankenburg (upper body) also remain sidelined week-to-week.

Avalanche: Makar left Sunday’s practice in Denver with an unspecified injury, but took part in Colorado’s morning skate and declared himself ready for Tuesday.

KEY MOMENT

Landeskog bagged the winner just 51 seconds after Roslovic tied the score 3-3 when he was left all alone in front of Bobrovksy.

KEY STAT

Raddysh’s blast that gave Toronto a 1-0 lead was clocked at 92.89 miles per hour — the fourth fastest shot to result in a goal across the league this season, according to the NHL.

UP NEXT

Avalanche: Visit the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.

Maple Leafs: Host the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

When Connor Hellebuyck was dealt to New Jersey, everyone had November 10 circled on their calendar. That was the day that the Devils would visit the Winnipeg Jets.

While the sellout crowd didn’t get a full cathartic experience because Hellebuyck was held out of the game, they still had a great time watching their team dispatch New Jersey 4-2 with a pair of former Devils factoring largely into things.

Dawson Mercer scored twice against his ex-team, while fellow former Devil Nico Daws stopped 19 of 21 shots to send the rocking crowd home happy following their fourth straight victory.

Fans got their lone chance to see Hellebuyck during warmups and they made sure to make their voices heard, booing him vociferously when he took the ice, giving him Bronx cheers whenever he stopped a shot and cheering very loudly when a puck would beat him.

The Jets fed off the energy in the building with 15,209 in attendance as they jumped out to an early two-goal lead.

“Not too often the building is rocking in warm-up and right from the drop of the puck,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “I just really like the way the guys recognized that the two points were extremely important. Got off to a really good start, didn’t like our second (period), but I was really, really pleased with our third. We played direct in the third period and really put a lot of pressure on them.”

Kyle Connor also had a two-goal performance in helping snap the Devils five-game win streak. Rookie Viggo Björck had another assist to give him a three-game point streak as Daws won his first game as a Jet.

“Anytime you can get two points for your team, it feels really good,” Daws said. “And obviously against them, it’s even more special.”

After getting badly outscored during their nine-game losing streak, the Jets have now outscored their opponents 19-11 over the four-game win streak.

The Jets gave up the first goal in 12 of their first 16 games, but have now scored the first marker in their last three consecutive contests.

Mercer was relishing his first two-goal game with his new team.

“I like to get out there and help my team win on a nightly basis,” said Mercer. “But obviously playing your own team first time, it was definitely an exciting game for me, and I’d say it meant a little bit more.”

The Jets special teams continue to improve as their penalty kill was a perfect four-for-four, while they struck two more times on the power play.

“We had been building to me in the last three or four games prior to that where we got back to that attack mindset,” Arniel said. “Winning puck battles, just being relentless and that second (power play) unit is starting to catch on a little bit, especially about the puck movement side of things.”

Winnipegger Cody Glass once again scored against his hometown team, giving him five goals in nine career games against the Jets.

With one assist, Mark Scheifele moved into a tie for the second most assists in franchise history with Dale Hawerchuk and Blake Wheeler with 550. He’s now only three helpers back of Thomas Steen’s team record.

The Jets haven’t lost on home ice to the Devils since November 5, 2019, winning six straight versus Jersey at the Canada Life Centre.

Jets fans whipped out several fun chants early in the game, with Hellebuyck watching the game from somewhere in the bowels of the arena. Chants like “where is Connor?”, “pull your goalie” and “face the music” were heard loud and clear in the opening period.

New Jersey controlled the puck for much of the first period but Winnipeg opened the scoring, and, in an act of poetic justice, it was a former Devil delivering the blow.

Mercer picked up the puck in the corner in the Devils’ end and started carrying it up the wall. He cut back to the middle before firing a wrister that beat Jake Allen top-shelf through a screen at the 7:54 mark.

It was Mercer’s second goal since he was traded to Winnipeg in the Hellebuyck deal.

Winnipeg would arrive at a great opportunity to double their lead when they found themselves on a 5-on-3 for 1:46. It took almost the whole duration of the two-man advantage but they were able to cash in.

After Scheifele missed badly on a one-timer, the puck rolled around to Connor in the corner. After a quick give and go with Cole Perfetti, Connor held the puck for a few seconds, then sent a shot on goal that went off the skate of Brenden Dillon in front and trickled into the net.

It was Connor’s 14th of the season and it came with 4:54 to go in the period.

New Jersey got their first power play of the game late in the period but could not beat another former teammate, Nico Daws, who stopped all 11 shots he faced in the first.

The Devils finally got one past Daws just 1:14 into the second. Neal Pionk had a chance to clear the puck but failed as Jesper Bratt intercepted a pass at the point. Eventually, the puck wound up below the goal line where Arseny Gritsyuk fended off two Jets defenders before sliding a pass in front that Bratt buried.

Winnipeg’s lead lasted another 42 seconds before New Jersey tied the game.

The Devils cycled the puck around the Winnipeg end before a point shot from Johnathan Kovacevic, who was drafted by the Jets and was lost on waivers in 2022, was tipped home by Glass to even the score.

Another former Jet who was lost on waivers in 2024, Declan Chisholm, also picked up an assist on the play.

Each team had another power play look before the period was over but neither could capitalize as the score stayed tied 2-2 through 40 minutes.

New Jersey outshot the Jets 6-5 in the second and carried an overall edge of 17-13 into the third.

The Jets were the better team over the first half of the third, leading to a too-many-men penalty on the Devils with 9:43 to go. After the first unit struggled to keep the puck in, the second unit came over the boards and got the job done.

Bjorck had the puck at the right point and slid it down low to Alex Iafallo. He spotted Mercer wide open at the back door and fed him a perfect pass that Mercer buried to put Winnipeg in front for good.

With the Jets in front, the fans started feeling more confident and began the chants again. They chanted for Mercer, for Bjorck, and delivered a hearty “we don’t need you.”

With just under two minutes left, the Devils pulled Allen for an extra attacker and Bjorck nearly got his first NHL goal, hitting the post on the empty net.

Connor showed the youngster how it’s done, hitting the empty net with 58 seconds left to seal the game with his 15th.

Allen made 21 saves in defeat.

The Jets will now hit the road to face the Dallas Stars Thursday night. Puck drop is just after 8 p.m. with pregame coverage on 680 CJOB starting at 6 p.m.

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