There are no standards in hockey. Just vibes.

This is a story about how corporations are taking over youth hockey and arenas in the U.S., driving up costs, travel and eliminating time, joy and community. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

Winnipeg, MB..If anyone is wondering why I sometimes talk as if there's a giant black cloud hanging over our office (or more accurately, right outside the window), this is why. Several things are going very well for this city. But this, on the other hand, is -

97,4 % des commerces sur l’île de Montréal offrent un service en français. Le saviez-vous? Moi non plus, parce que presque personne n’en parle. Sommes-nous trop pessimistes au Québec quand il est question du français? Mon texte ⬇️ avezvousvotepourca.substack.com/p/a-montreal...

Here’s a sneak peek of the museum I’ve been curating here in Kahnawà:ke. The space is complete and the next phase will be the installation of is content, cases and cabinetry.

Imagine your team is going to the Stanley Cup final and you're THIS quiet in the deciding game.

I've been solidly on team, "they're young, they have much to learn, take it easy" but this team has laid a lotta eggs. Gotta be disconcerting for management.

A sign of the times in southeast Saskatchewan.

Just this week I was in Estevan, Sask., where the RCMP killed four striking coal miners in 1931.

Saying that the country has never been more divided is possibly an insult to Canada's rich history of being divided.

After this round Gary Bettman would still say the NHL has a great playoff format.

I did a thread on 15 minute cities on X which went so viral I ended up in the Times and on BBC Radio. I thought I'd repeat it here... This was my parents house in Coventry. They bought it in 1965 and it was my home throughout the 1970s & 80s. My mum lived there until 2021. It was a happy home. 1/22

In political science school they didn't teach us enough about the role bad faith actors play in politics. I am always, naively, amazed at how craven it all is.

Let the narrative-building begin!

Now for sports’ greatest coin-flip.

Apropos of nothing at all. policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/03/defe...

But be sure to pick up some genuine Saskatchewan seal skin for all your stuntman protective gear needs.

A prescient piece by Helen Beny: AI scribes in Canada’s health system pose privacy and safety risks policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/04/ai-s...

One problem with the post-cable era is nobody’s streams are synced. (As an old man of cable, a vastly superior stream, I get to scoop my neighbours.)

Lynne Couves & Rosa Brown: Neglected energy systems are failing Canada’s North policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/05/cana...

The federal government is spending more than double this amount keeping Canada’s journalism industry “afloat” too even though informing people about their democracy and other matters of public interest is not a big money maker either

La République, Honoré Daumier, 1848

I went home recently to write about Alberta’s separatists. What I found was a movement wildly, dangerously disconnected from reality. www.thestar.com/opinion/star...

In aviation I believe this is the start of what they call pilot-induced oscillation.

Canada's housing crisis has masked a contravening trend: an explosion in rental unit construction and a dramatic spike in vacancy rates. Via @thelogic.co thelogic.co/news/canada-...

It’s a bit weird to me that final success or failure in Quebec high school boils down to one 500-word essay on the arts and AI.

My secret hope in the regular season that the Jets could steal Dach for nearly free is fading fast.

The Hub has changed its mind about government subsidies (while trying to maintain an accounting-based distance?) mailchi.mp/thehub/test-...

Embarrassed to admit I didn’t realize giving my information to elections authorities meant the parties were getting it too. I’ve been doing it for 37 years without a second thought.

It's nice out.

A lot of ink gets spilled about the disadvantages of Canadian NHL cities compared to their U.S. counterparts, but it sure seems like the teams are mostly just poorly run. Maybe our hockey problem is more of a business culture problem.

Montreal Canadiens (2026)

Survival mode doesn’t usually work for an entire game but you just never know!

R.M. of Sherwood (close to Regina): - was evaluating large data centre proposal - concerned residents; process issues - 4 out of 7 council members abruptly resign in March - has all 4 replaced by appointment by SK government - none of the 4 reside in the R.M. - Data centre approved yesterday #SKPoli

Saskatchewan has committed 3 Crown corporations & backstopped a $2.6B coal-refurbishment program…to support Canada’s largest…AI data centre. However, it has no guarantee of getting an appropriate return. That is a problem — & without a framework for future megaprojects, the problem will only grow.

The only way to clear the air before Albertans cast another ballot: Premier Smith should call a public inquiry. Tomorrow. I will have more on my thinking this afternoon.

It is the year 2006 and Canadian policymakers expect baby boomer downsizing to close the housing gap It is the year 2016 and Canadian policymakers expect baby boomer downsizing to close the housing gap It is the year 2026 and Canadian policymakers expect baby boom www.ctvnews.ca/business/rea...

New square on my Montreal bingo card: man in park with shopping cart full of belongings… and two laying hens ranging nearby, two eggs on the ground.

NYT: Your subscription is going up from $4 a month to $20 a month. Me: Jumps 5 hoops to cancel. NYT: How about a year at $2 a month? Truly business innovators.

Danault played last 3:31

Liberté, égalité, Texier! 🔵⚪️🔴

Manbo He: Canada is spending billions to fix the wrong productivity problem policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/04/prod...

Ben Beveridge: Bell’s $1.7B AI data centre reveals flaws in Saskatchewan’s Crown deal strategy policyoptions.irpp.org/2026/04/sask...

Charles, ripping it up with the historical jokes.

There is absolutely no way anyone in the administration will understand a joke about the French and Indian War. That’s half the joke.🔥🔥🔥

This was nice to see live.

This promises to be a fantastic event. A must-attend for all Albertans concerned about the prospect of a referendum on sovereignty. Register here: ctrforconstitutionalstudies.cmail20.com/t/d-l-gkuukl...

The headline sounds ridiculous in a nine-team league but might actually be quite fun. (And the eighth place team will have to die of exhaustion to get the cup.)

Andrew Willis: To make the Canada Strong Fund work, look to Quebec’s example, not Norway’s www.theglobeandmail.com/business/com...

Who knew my Montreal-based think tank job would take me back home to southeast Saskatchewan. Really looking forward to this event.