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Minor hockey players in Montreal were suspended when they chose not to try out for elite teams. Now Hockey Montreal is reversing the decision. The suspension affected about two hundred children aged nine to sixteen.

They chose to play less time-committing single-letter hockey instead of for the more competitive double-letter teams. The players were not told that they would be suspended if they declined the invitation to try-out. Hockey Quebec said that Montreal had no business suspending the players. 

 More than five hundred dogs have been seized in what could be the largest animal cruelty case in Quebec’s history.

 The dogs were found in a puppy farm in southwestern Quebec. They had been living in poor conditions with many suffering from skin and respiratory problems. The dogs have been placed in the care of Humane Society International, with several hundred already at a treatment centre.

 A spokesperson for the Quebec Ministry of Agriculture said that the scale of the seizure is without precedent in Quebec. This is just the latest in a string of animal abuse cases, which have given the province a sour reputation.

 An investigation is underway and charges could be laid against the owners of the puppy mill. The fate of the dogs is now in the hands of the courts.

While the question of when and not if Federal Deputy Leader of the NDP Thomas Mulcair will run for party leadership floats around, he took the time to stop by and convince some Concordia students that the NDP is still a contender even after Jack Layton’s gone.

Joel Balsam reports:

When Thomas Mulcair walked into the small conference hall at the Maritime Hotel in downtown Montreal Friday, he took the time to shake the hands of everyone in the room.

He asked them all their names, but really, he wants them to know his.

The Federal deputy leader of the NDP is expected to run for party leadership. But to the dismay of about 40 students in attendance, he didn’t make the announcement. Instead, he took the time to talk politics and make a plea for young people to get involved.

“Find the group in our political structure that most closely resembles your values. I’ll be thrilled if it’s the NDP, but even if its not I’ll have absolutely identical respect for your choice. Choose.”

Mulcair is credited with igniting the flame for the Orange Wave that gave the NDP 57 new seats in Quebec. He was the only one in the province to have a seat before this year’s election.

Many have pointed to the collapse of the Bloc Quebecois as the reason for the rise of the NDP. Mulcair doesn’t buy it.

“Don’t think that the fact that the Bloc was swept out by that broom of change that that means the sentiment that was behind is no longer there. It simply means that the last standing federalist political party is being given one last chance.”

Parliamentary session begins this Monday. Mulcair and the NDP plan to stand up to the Conservative majority who now have the voting power to put forward whatever legislation they want.

As for when Mulcair will join the leadership race, he said it’s a matter of weeks and not days.

Joel Balsam, CJLO News.

Photo by: Sarah Deshaies