'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Like so many Canadian kids, Ben Stelter loved hockey and idolized his favourite players.
What Ben may not have fully realized in life is that those players actually looked up to him.
Back in March, when he was five years old, Ben was introduced at an Oilers game. He was invited to skate with the team before puck drop, and lined up next to them for the national anthem. The professional athletes towered over the tiny skater, even though his opponent was far bigger and scarier than theirs was.
Ben was fighting a form of brain cancer that forced multiple chemotherapy and radiation treatments.
On Wednesday, his father Mike Stelter announced on Twitter that Ben’s battle had ended. He was just six years old.
“Obviously this is a very tough day for the entire Oilers family,” captain Connor McDavid said in a rare summertime virtual press conference that had nothing to do with hockey. “Honestly, Ben meant so much to myself, to my teammates.”
If the tumour caused him any discomfort during the Edmonton Oilers’ deep playoff run this past spring, you couldn’t see it in Ben’s face. His smile, his giggle, and his calls to “play La Bamba, baby” gave the impression of a healthy, young hockey fan.
“I was greatly impressed with the courage of a young man who defined what a bright light was,” said head coach Jay Woodcroft. “Not only did he walk into our dressing room and our arena and light up our team, but I thought he lit up our fan base.”
Ben’s outlook was so positive and so courageous, he became something of a champion for his beloved Oilers. He was invited to team practices and dressing room chats. His words of encouragement and pre-game fist pumps for each player helped drive the team to a 10-game win streak at home. The Oilers reached the Western Conference finals for the first time in 16 years.
“What he went through, you wouldn’t know it by meeting him,” said Oilers forward Zach Hyman. “He’s going to be greatly missed and he’s such an inspiration to all of us. What he went through really puts everything into perspective.”
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
English, history, entertainment, math and geography: high school trivia teams could be quizzed on any of it when they compete at the Reach for the Top Nationals in Ottawa in June.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.