Canada’s junior men’s hockey team has battled back from a 3-1 challenge to win 5-3 against a strong Team Slovakia. The come-back means Canada gets a ticket to face a strong United States team tomorrow on the trail the tournament championship in Sweden. Centre Nic Petan scored the winner on a power play. He then excelled by firing the winning shot into an empty Slovak net.  Slovakia jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the second period on two goals from David Griger and another from Martin Reway. Canada matched those with goals from Curtis Lazar, Anthony Mantha, Jonathan Drouin and Petan. “I wanted to show I could play great hockey over here and that’s what I’m doing now” – Forward Anthony Mantha Zachary Fucale made his first start of the tournament for the Canadians, stopping 19 of 22 shots. Coach Brent Sutter indicated Fucale will be in net for the team’s next game against the United States. If Canada beats the United States on Tuesday in the final game of the preliminary round in regulation, it will win its pool. Curtis Lazar and Mantha also scored for Canada before a crowd of 2,558. Charles Hudon suffered what appeared to be a shoulder injury early in the third period, but returned to the bench after missing a few shifts, and Sutter said later the forward was fine.  

The Canadian Press has named Galen G. Weston, 41, as its Business Newsmaker of the Year for 2013. Mr. Weston is the executive chairman of Loblaws. He was the choice of news executives by a margin of 22 percent among all the nominees. Second place was taken by BCE chief George Cope. Galen Weston won the annual selection process for his role in one of the biggest takeovers in the country’s retail history (Shoppers Drug Mart) and his strong stance on the need for change in Bangladesh after the Dhaka factory collapse in April. Canadians see the value system in place at Loblaws stores every day, where the company’s many locations are staffed with the larger interests of the community in mind. In recent recent years Loblaws has been instrumental in the renovation of Maple Leaf  Gardens.

Jury Onyszczak has been interviewed by the Toronto Sun (with video) on his losses when his home on Elvina Gdns caught fire. Fire officials feel the blaze may have been caused when power returned to the small apartment building.  Sun    Previous post 

Christopher Peloso has been found dead. Mr. Peloso was the husband of George Smitherman. Police said this morning they have found the body but had no other comment.  An announcement was made on Twitter by Mr. Smitherman. He said “We will celebrate his life and we will find comfort somehow in knowing that he has found peace from the depression that has wreaked havoc on his mind.” The Toronto Star story said that Peloso’s relatives in his hometown, Sudbury, had no comment Sunday evening. When he went missing in September, his mother, Mary Ann, said, “The first thing I thought was he needed a break, he needed to get away for a bit . . . But as things went on longer and longer, we got concerned something had happened.” She also described Peloso as a “perfectionist,” “very patient” and “very loving. He has been a wonderful father with the kids.” His father Reno said Peloso and Smitherman’s marriage was a happy one, “with its high and low points, just like a typical marriage.” Star  The pictures shown of Mr. Peloso were provided by Mr. Smitherman and transmitted by Twitter. They show Mr. Peloso’s daughter by a previous marriage and two children adopted by he and Mr, Smitherman.   

They call it crowd-funding, a 21st-century phenomenon by which people gather money on the Internet for reasons good, goofy and just God-awful. Here’s one of the latter. As published tonight (Sunday, December 29, 12013) in the National Post Holly and Jon Granken of London, ON, want the world to finance their move to Scotland. Don’t ask why. They’re raising money this way just because they can. Of course the reaction to this shameless panhandling has been quite sharp. And no one is being forced to give money. Only a chump would do it. But what an interesting example of how crass begging has risen up and into “the cloud” from the dirty sidewalk outside subway stations. National Post