Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A team of preteen Ukrainian refugees that have been scattered across Europe by war arrived Wednesday in Quebec City, where they'll get the chance to compete in a renowned hockey tournament.
The team of 11- and 12-year-olds landed in Montreal before being bused to the provincial capital ahead of next week's Quebec International Peewee Hockey Tournament, which has been attended in the past by all-time greats such as Wayne Gretzky and Guy Lafleur.
The bleary-eyed team arrived at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City, where they were greeted by the local families who will host them during their stay. The team, who wore hats and jackets bearing the Ukrainian flag, had a chance to look at the ice, where thousands of people are expected to gather in the stands to watch them play.
Coach Evgheniy Pysarenko described the team's presence in Quebec City as "almost a miracle."
"Before it was mission impossible, now it’s miracle on ice," he said.
Pysarenko told reporters at the hockey arena that it will be hard for players to forget the war in Ukraine, where some have fathers that are on the front lines fighting the Russian invasion.
But he hopes they'll leave the tournament with lifelong memories and the belief that "anything is possible."
The team, he added, are "messengers of hope," and symbols of "spirit, strength and solidarity."
Twelve-year-old Maksym Kukharenko, whose hometown is Kyiv, has been living in the Czech Republic. He said the trip to Canada was "very long," but that he's excited to play.
"It's very cool that I’m going to this country and this city," he said.
His teammate, also named Maksym, said the tournament is "a chance for us to show ourselves to other teams in America, in Canada."
The team's improbable journey comes after months of effort by Pysarenko and a Quebec City businessman, who had to sort out visas and arrange travel for players who were displaced by war and living in countries across Europe.
At least one boy is originally from Kherson, which spent months under Russian occupation, and others are from Odesa, which has been bombed.
The Ukrainian team will have some time to settle in before they're scheduled to take to the ice at the Videotron Centre on Feb. 11 to play the Junior Bruins from Massachusetts.
Patrick Dom, the general manager of the tournament, said the last few months have been a “roller-coaster of emotions,” filled with doubts about whether the team would make it.
Given what they’ve been through, Dom said he has few expectations for how they’ll perform on the ice. But in this case, the final score isn’t the point.
“When they go back to their country or wherever they’re coming from, they will say, ‘there were 15,000 people cheering, wearing white shirts for peace’” he said.
“They will remember this for the rest of their lives. That’s what we want.”
The tournament runs Feb. 8-19.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2023
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.