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Hamilton Spectator
10 hours ago
- General
- Hamilton Spectator
Young farmers shine at Bonnyville 4-H district show and sale in Cold Lake
The annual event, featuring members from the Ardmore, Bonnyville, and Beaver River Beef Clubs, began with a show at 10 a.m., followed by an awards ceremony at 6 p.m. and the livestock sale at 7 p.m. 'This is the big achievement day at the end of the year,' said Steph McMann, general leader of the Ardmore Beef Club, the group in charge of hosting this year's event. The show featured a range of projects including heifer, first and second-year cow-calf, herd, and market steer entries. The latter were auctioned off in the evening, following a buyer's dinner hosted by the Ardmore club. 'We supply a dinner before the auction for all the buyers that are interested,' McMann said. This marked the second time in recent years the event returned to Cold Lake. 'Three years ago, when Ardmore hosted, was the first year that it had come back to Cold Lake for quite a few years,' McMann explained, adding that the choice of venue made sense. 'They have a nice facility . . . it's sort of our home base.' The Ardmore club currently includes 14 members between the ages of eight and 16. 'We have Cleavers, which are little guys that don't show but are still included in the club . . . and then we have juniors, intermediates and seniors,' said McMann. Beyond raising livestock, members also engage in public speaking, community projects like Sparkle in the Park, and do charity work for the food bank. 'We're helping in all different kinds of areas, anybody within the community,' McMann said. Awards were handed out for various classes such as showmanship, grooming, and conformation. 'The awards are done based on the show during the day,' said McMann. Prizes ranged from ribbons and belt buckles to piggy banks and custom 4-H water bottles. One of the day's top honors was the Rate of Gain Award, given to the market steer with the highest daily weight gain. 'That calf was gaining in weight every single day since the day that they weighed in . . . it's a huge accomplishment,' said McMann. The winning steer was selected from a field of 54 and gained over four pounds per day. Rate of Gain Champion Market Steer was Jaycee Babb whose steer gained 4.15 lbs/day. Reflecting on the overall experience, McMann highlighted how the program fosters personal growth. 'It's a really big learning opportunity for the kids . . . They grow and learn so much respect for themselves, respect for their community.' Those interested in joining 4-H can explore clubs focused on arts, small engines, and horse projects. Newcomers are welcome to attend meetings to learn more about the clubs. Bonnyville 4-H District Beef Show results Pen of Five 1st – Ardmore 4-H Beef 2nd – Beaver River Beef 4-H 3rd – Bonnyville Beef 4-H Cleaver Kids Rosalyn Martindale Tessa Lee Ryley Kardash Ezra Beriault William Thiessen Fia Vasseur Heath Williams Junior Judging 1st – Colton Mathes 2nd – Ellen Livingston 3rd – Ollie Schoch Intermediate Judging 1st – Luke Brundige 2nd – Vanessa Vasseur 3rd – Arielle Theisse Senior Judging 1st – Mason Tetreau 2nd – Lily Brundige 3rd – Carson Thiessen Junior Grooming 1st – Sara Pardell 2nd- Ellen Livingston Intermediate Grooming 1st – Luke Brundige 2nd- Melody Brundige Senior Grooming 1st – Lily Brundige 2nd- Zach Thiessen Junior Showmanship 1st – Ollie Schoch 2nd- Jesse Thiessen Intermediate Showmanship 1st – Katie Thomson 2nd- Luke Brundige Senior Showmanship 1st – Ashlyn Tkachuk 2nd- Lily Brundige Heifer Class 1st – Luke Brundige 2nd- Lily Brundige 2-Year Cow/Calf 1st – Luke Brundige 2nd – Lily Brundige 3-Year Cow/Calf 1st – Lily Brundige 2nd - Hudson Martindale Supreme Female 1st - Luke Brundige heifer 2nd 2nd- Luke Brundige 2 yr old Market Steer Grand Champion Market Steer – Lily Brundige Reserve Champion Market Steer - Isabella Duguid Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Metro
27-05-2025
- Metro
Man 'cooked his chihuahua to death in oven because it wouldn't stop barking'
A man allegedly stuffed his Chihuahua puppy in an oven and cooked it to death because it was barking too much. James Williamson, 44, got into an argument with a family member and threatened to put the small dog in a hot oven if it did not quiet down, according to Sergeant Darrell McMann of the Atmore Police Department. Williamson is accused of putting the pup in the oven, turning it on and placing a chair in front of the appliance to secure the door. Neighbors reported hearing yelps coming from inside the home on Cruitt Drive in Atmore, Alabama, on May 19 and called cops. McMann said he arrived to find a dead Chihuahua on the driveway with serious burn marks. 'I have a Chihuahua myself,' McMann told WALA. 'When I got there, I was just at a loss for words, you know, I really was just stood there and looked at the dog for a little bit and had to get myself together.' Williamson has been charged with aggravated animal cruelty. It is a Class C felony, which is the second lowest level of felony in the state. His bond has been set at $15,000, and he will not be allowed to own animals if he is convicted. McMann said tougher laws should be in place for crimes as horrific as this. More Trending 'I think in cases like this, they should be strengthened, because I don't think being a Class C felony fits what he did,' McMann said. 'That pretty much describes what he did: horrible and inhumane.' Atmore is about 50 miles northeast of the port city of Mobile on the Gulf Coast. The dog was killed more than seven years after a South Korean farmer allegedly became annoyed that his neighbor's dog was constantly barking, and killed and cooked the pup and invited its owner over for dinner to eat it. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: London nightclub bouncer accused of rape 'used fake ID' to get job MORE: King Charles subtly criticises Trump's plans to annex Canada MORE: Man jailed for killing girl, 3, after taking '20 lines' of cocaine
New York Times
11-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Leafs' secondary scoring threats: Are Knies and McMann the best of the Core 4 era?
As the Toronto Maple Leafs approach the NHL playoffs, the perennial question once again rears its head: Will this time be different? The team's lack of success in the postseason is extraordinarily well-documented. Once again, Toronto will enter the battle for the Stanley Cup with the same top-heavy structure from both a talent and salary perspective. Advertisement In 2024-25, the Maple Leafs can point to a few possible differences between this year's group and the others that couldn't get it done in the Core Four era. The first is a new coach in Craig Berube, who has his team playing a meat-and-potatoes style that will supposedly fit well in a playoff setting. Berube's Stanley Cup ring gives him the benefit of the doubt, but his team ranks 27th in shot-attempt rate since Jan. 1 and their style of play deserves some scrutiny. Another reason this season could be different is Toronto's goaltending. There's a talent upgrade there, but they're also two goaltenders with injury histories, neither of whom have ever topped 40 regular-season games or made more than two starts in a playoff run. What we're going to look at here is a third possibility: the idea that Matthew Knies and Bobby McMann are secondary difference-makers outside the Core Four in a way others haven't been. How do they stack up against the supporting cast from past Leafs teams? The first thing is goal scoring, as Knies has more goals (29) than any non-Core Four Maple Leafs forward since 2017-18 and McMann has added 20 of his own. Since 2018-19, the Maple Leafs have scored just 2.59 goals per game in the playoffs — a total that would rank 30th in the league this regular season. A successful playoff run will require some scoring punch, and these two can provide it. Knies and McMann have also shown to be stellar complements alongside Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares on the top two lines. McMann's linemates, in particular, have had far more success with him than they've managed without him. He's spent time further down in the lineup, like he did on Wednesday, but his best work has come on the second line. Beyond five-on-five play, Knies has become a potent net-front presence on PP1 and a regular penalty killer. McMann hasn't made a significant special-teams impact, but his three power-play goals are tops among PP2 stalwarts. This is all impressive stuff, but to understand if Knies and McMann are a cut above similar Toronto forwards of this era, we need to compare them to the top non-Core Four points producers of the past six seasons. In most cases, there's a bit of both here, but Kadri and Kapanen are better representations of quality bottom-six players than guys who helped the top dogs elevate their play. Kadri did what he was supposed to do as the team's third-line centre, providing credible offensive numbers (0.60 points per game) and palatable possession metrics (49.55 percent xG) with fair neutral usage (51.6 percent offensive-zone start rate). Advertisement Kapanen spent a fair amount of time alongside Auston Matthews at five-on-five (519:19) — and Matthews had slightly better possession metrics with the speedster than without — but his most common linemate was Patrick Marleau, and the Finn skated less than 100 minutes with any other Core Four member. There's a solid case that Kadri and Kapanen provided more value than the 2024-25 duo. While they produced slightly less, particularly on the goal front, having Kadri centre the third line was a game-changer from a matchup perspective and like Knies, he was a staple on PP1. He wasn't driving the bus there by any means, but he ranked fifth on the team in power-play points (13). Kapanen, on the other hand, contributed outside of his raw offensive production with penalty killing. He ranked third among Maple Leafs forwards in PK time, led the team in short-handed goals (2), and his on-ice goals against/60 (6.22) was notably better than the team average (7.30). Where Toronto can reasonably hope to get more from Knies and McMann is in the playoffs. Kadri was suspended for a cross-check in Game 2 against the Boston Bruins, which removed him from the series, while Kapanen scored two points in seven games. Hyman spent more time with Matthews and Marner than anyone else and didn't play more than 100 minutes with a non-Core Four forward. He was always a stylistic fit for that duo, but notably, their on-ice numbers without him were better in most major categories, particularly expected goal rate (65.95 percent vs. 56.08 percent). Kapanen was a bottom-six presence who spent more time alongside Alex Kerfoot and Jason Spezza than any other forward. Their goal and point production on a per-game basis (0.28 and 0.61) are in the ballpark of the 2024-25 duo (0.34 and 0.60), but it's tough to see where they'd have an edge. Advertisement Neither did much on the power play, and while they ranked second and third among the team's forwards in penalty-killing time, that iteration of the Maple Leafs ranked 21st in the NHL in PK success rate. In the playoffs, they produced five points combined, with a minus-3 rating, and only scored twice on 32 shots. Once again, Hyman spent the year more or less glued to Matthews and Marner, but this time they performed better with the scrappy winger alongside them. The trio had an impressive 72.41 percent goal share and earned 62.93 percent of expected goals — better than the star duo did without Hyman (65.12 percent GF and 59.93 percent xGF). Spezza worked further down the lineup, logging just 11:02 per night but making it count. He ranked first on the team in five-on-five points/60, with his 3.08 mark edging out Marner (3.06) and Matthews (3.03). This one is tricky because Hyman produced at a similar clip to Knies and had an additive contribution to the top line, while Spezza was a bit of a unicorn. During the 2020-21 season, there wasn't a single other player who played at least 40 games and scored more than two points per 60 minutes while skating fewer than 10 five-on-five minutes per night. Spezza's 3.08 number was incredible within his limited scope. You could argue Spezza's offensive efficiency made him extremely impactful, but his all-around impact was hamstrung by how little he played. At the age of 37, he was in a perfect role that probably wasn't scalable. Considering neither player was a special-teams standout and Spezza's contributions were so narrow, we'd take Knies and McMann. This is the closest analog to the current pairing, as Bunting spent the vast majority of his time with Matthews and Marner while Kerfoot was primarily on the left of Tavares and Nylander. How much they elevated the top-six is open to some interpretation. In both cases, the star forwards posted slightly better possession metrics without them, but better overall results with them. Advertisement In five-on-five minutes, where the Maple Leafs had either Matthews-Marner and no Bunting or Tavares-Nylander and no Kerfoot, they were outscored 27-16. Their top two complete lines outscored opponents 78-51. The second line was a disappointment with Kerfoot, though, with a 50 percent goal share and 52.06 percent expected-goals rate. The point totals here are the best on the list, but Bunting and Kerfoot did more setting up superstars than finishing plays. Bunting in particular seemed to benefit from his linemates' efficiency in filling the net. Of his 40 assists, 29 were to Matthews or Marner, whose shots went in 16.7 percent of the time. In 2024-25, that number sits at 13.3 percent, making it harder for Knies to post similar numbers. Neither Bunting nor Kerfoot played a meaningful power-play role, but the latter gets some credit for his penalty-killing work. He was third among Toronto forwards in penalty-killing ice time on a unit that ranked eighth in the NHL. On points alone, this is the best duo, but Bunting's production had a passenger quality and Kerfoot couldn't do more alongside Tavares and Nylander than stalemate opponents. Bunting reprised his role on the top line alongside Matthews, although he spent more time with Nylander than Marner. To the left winger's credit, all three of Matthews, Nylander and Marner had better five-on-five goal and expected-goals rates with him than without. Järnkrok played with Tavares and Marner more than any other forwards, but also spent at least 180 minutes of five-on-five time with Kerfoot and Pierre Engvall. The Swede didn't seem to boost the second line he played on as Tavares and Marner outscored opponents 21-8 without him and just 10-8 with him. Advertisement The production here is very similar to the 2024-25 pair, with fewer games missed. That can be interpreted as better durability or worse per-minute production. The special teams impact was fairly muted, with Järnkrok ranking fourth among forwards in PK ice time while Bunting was fifth in PP minutes. Järnkrok's only 20-goal season makes this interesting, but he's more of a Swiss-Army knife than a needle mover, and Bunting's second-best season with the Maple Leafs doesn't equal what Knies is doing now. For much of the season, Bertuzzi helped the Maple Leafs' second line consistently win battles, sustain pressure and dominate territorially (59.00 percent xGF), which is something Tavares and Nylander failed to do without him (51.10 percent xGF). Later on, Bertuzzi and Domi joined forces with a red-hot Matthews to form a sizzling unit that produced a 67.71 percent expected goals rate and outshot opponents 104-59. While Bertuzzi spent most of his time with the Core Four, Domi was primarily deployed in the bottom six, where his scoring efficiency was stellar. The versatile forward ranked eighth among all players with at least 40 games played in points/60 at five-on-five (2.73). Considering the solid point total, Domi's success on a per-minute basis and the way Bertuzzi improved Toronto's second line, there's a case here. Bertuzzi is probably best conceptualized as a more productive player than McMann, who moved between the first and second line rather than the second and third, but the Knies-Domi difference is enough to have us leaning towards the current pair. As good as Domi's production was, there's a lot of secondary assists juicing his numbers, and the way third lines centred by him are cautiously deployed affects the rest of the roster, either overloading the Matthews line with defensive draws or forcing the fourth unit to carry a larger defensive load. There's a level of subjectivity involved in answering a question like this, but Knies and McMann are likely the most effective two forwards to support the Core Four in recent years. But even if they are, that's not a status they hold by a significant margin. The most important question about any Maple Leafs player in recent history is 'what are they going to do in the playoffs?'and that may be where Knies and McMann separate themselves from the pack. Advertisement None of the players above (outside of Spezza in 2020-21) made a meaningful mark in the postseason, and perhaps this pair of power forwards will be different. While Bunting and to some extent Domi were agitators, Knies and McMann bring a legitimate physical presence. The two wingers have combined for 306 hits with four games remaining in the regular season. The largest total by any other duo listed above is 177 (Kadri and Kapanen in 2018-19). Knies and McMann might just excel in the tighter spaces playoff hockey tends to provide. Their style could translate better than guys like Kerfoot and Kapanen, for instance. That's a credible theory, but it's just a theory. The facts available to us suggest the Maple Leafs may have better secondary options outside the Core Four than in past seasons, but not by enough to suggest it will necessarily drive a different outcome. (Top photo of Matthew Knies, Auston Matthews and Bobby McMann: Thomas Skrlj / NHLI via Getty Images)
New York Times
23-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Maple Leafs report cards: Strong start erased by poor finish in Nashville
Walking into Nashville having won their last three, the Leafs had a good opportunity to claim the sole top spot in the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay lost to Utah and Florida lost to Washington. The Leafs only needed one point against Nashville tonight, and although it looked like it would go that way after the first, they allowed the Predators, who struggle to score, to put five goals in the net for a 5-2 Toronto loss. Advertisement It was a race to three goals considering Nashville went into this game averaging 2.54 goals per game. After a strong opening period that completely took the fans at Bridgestone Arena out of the game, they allowed the Predators to get right back in it with a poor middle frame. The Leafs only had five shots on Juuse Saros, none of which were high-danger chances. They put up another nine in the third, some of which were more difficult, but they couldn't get a third goal. Their proximity to the net was another piece of the losing puzzle. Matthew Knies' rebound on the power play in the first was their closest scoring chance in terms of distance. The next was Bobby McMann's in the third period, nearly 28 minutes in game time later. We haven't seen these kinds of mistakes from the Leafs in some time, though the theme of playing down to one's opponent and taking a foot off the gas were the main culprits in this one. Regardless of the win streak heading into it, this is a difficult loss to accept. The team gets a final grade of D+. The second line stayed intact and McMann didn't take it for granted as he was the most noticeable at 5v5. He had the first shot of the game using his speed and strength to fight off Justin Barron and again, did a really good job as the last forward in the zone when his line had pressure. McMann had another one of these in the third. His pins along the boards not only gave his linemates time to change, but time for the next line to get on the ice and establish positioning to maintain presence in the offensive zone. The Leafs' fourth line outplayed the Predators' fourth line, and it was pretty noticeable. They had six shots on net to the opposition's one and they could've added a goal to their totals if not for the high stick. It's unfortunate; that goal would've been huge for Laughton but he's working his way to it and set up good scoring chances for Lorentz in the second and Morgan Rielly in the third. Advertisement Kämpf's coverage on the 2-2 goal was a stain for the line defensively. McCabe goes for the pinch, and he has to be there to cover the pinch. Ekman-Larsson was the only other defenceman other than Rielly to play at least 20 minutes and had four hits. Benoit, specifically had a good defensive play during a shift with Carlo after he missed the puck at the blue line taking a good path to cut Colton Sissons off. The two also had a good sequence in the second period firing back-to-back shots each at Saros. Benoit gets back to cover for Carlo — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 23, 2025 Seventh time he's hit the 30-goal mark in his career and the third doing so with the Leafs. Tavares has been on a heater, particularly on the power play as of late and the tally got the ball rolling for the team. JOHN TAVARES 🚨 30 GOALS! — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 22, 2025 Despite the multitude of errors in front of him, Woll didn't look good on those first two goals. He missed the read and was late to his left post on the power play and went down early ahead of the Kieffer Bellows goal. He came up with some huge saves as the game went on, including a short-handed stop on Sissons and a rebound robbery on Filip Forsberg. huge save off the rebound by Woll — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 23, 2025 He won't get a point on the Tavares goal, though he had two direct roles in it. Knies drew the call and he had a near-perfect screen on Saros. However, his interference right at the end of the first was the spark the Predators used to comeback and in the game. He had impactful roles on both of the team's goals winning the puck battle on the power play and moving the puck to Marner at the point then going on to work out a perfect faceoff play for the 2-2 goal. Advertisement Marner was back on the primary scoring side of things with an assist and a goal. The goal itself was a well-planned effort from Matthews, but the speed and accuracy of the shot were excellent. Similarly to his linemates, he didn't have much going after the first. MITCH MARNER 🚨 Right off the draw! Perfect plan! — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 22, 2025 Two pinches led right to goals against. The first wasn't all McCabe's fault as he could've used more support for his linemates to cover for the pinch into the offensive zone. The second, in the neutral zone, gave Nashville a three-on-one and a 3-2 lead. Another turnover by the defensive blue line in the third led to a near-minute of consistent pressure from Nashville. Filip Forsberg gives Nashville the lead — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 23, 2025 Scoring chance at one end, goal against at the other. Rielly had a bit of room on Saros' right, but he made the save and the Predators skated down for a chance of their own. Similarly to Nashville's other goals, mistakes, miscommunication and poor coverage gave them the space to capitalize. Luke Evangelista makes it 4-2 — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 23, 2025 Very quiet night for Nylander. He had two shots on net, but wasn't nearly as noticeable on his line. Another night with this line not having much of a spark as they were being out-chanced and outshot at five-on-five. With offence being an expectation from this line, a shot differential of 1-7 isn't going to cut it. The Leafs are at home Tuesday night to welcome the Philadelphia Flyers at 7:00 p.m. on TSN 4.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'We Fed Off The Momentum Of The Previous Game': Maple Leafs Stave Off Desperate Rangers In Second-Half Of Back-To-Back
Toronto's second line combined for seven points in their win over the Rangers, tying them for first in the Atlantic Division. The Maple Leafs may have got a few lucky bounces in their win against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday, but each of their goals in their 4-3 win in New York the following night was the definition of hard work. John Tavares notched a pair of goals and an assist, giving him a milestone of 1,100 career points. Bobby McMann and Matthew Knies followed up with their own goals, pushing Toronto past a desperate New York Rangers team that was well-rested. JOHN TAVARES 🚨🚨1100 NHL POINTS! — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 21, 2025 The Maple Leafs started strong, registering half of their shots (14) in the first period. Linemates Tavares and McMann scored Toronto's goals in the opening frame. "I thought that we came out of the gates really good on our toes. We played last night too, so sometimes you wonder how we're going to come out. But we came out and we were working right away and doing the right things and took hold of the game, in my opinion," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said post-game. "We had the lead and kept the lead and got up in a second (period) again, and I thought a third period was really solid. I mean, we gave up that 6-on-5 goal, but overall it was a solid period." BOBBY MCMANN 🚨Wins the puck battle, gets the slot, deflects the shot — Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 20, 2025 Returning McMann to the second line with Tavares and Nylander has paid dividends. The 28-year-old rejoined the trio during their win against the Avalanche, which he noted was a confidence-boosting game for the team. McMann registered an assist with his goal inside Madison Square Garden on Thursday. "I think we fed off the momentum of the previous game a little bit. We saw what we can do against really good teams, and that's just pressuring hard and being relentless and being aggressive," he said. "I think sometimes we can sit back a little bit. Maybe we did that a little bit in the first yesterday, but today we're right from the get-go we're going." Toronto's second line combined for seven points — three goals and four assists — and 11 shots against the Rangers, a team battling for one of the final wild card spots in the Eastern Conference. The Maple Leafs' win on Thursday brought them to 87 points through 69 games. The Florida Panthers also won, keeping them tied with Toronto in points but holding the tiebreaker, which is regulation wins. Nevertheless, playing like this against the Rangers, Avalanche, and Calgary Flames this week will give Toronto confidence entering the final 13 games of the regular season. And they still have their eyes on finishing first in the Atlantic Division. "I think it's important. We're right there, and we've been right there all year," Jake McCabe, who had three assists in New York said. "Home ice in the playoffs. You always want to come in first no matter what you do. This is no different in the division." Stay updated with the most interesting Maple Leafs stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
