logo
Brad Marchand's Game 1 goal for Florida Panthers wins donairs for 1,500 fans in Halifax

Brad Marchand's Game 1 goal for Florida Panthers wins donairs for 1,500 fans in Halifax

Calgary Herald05-06-2025

Halifax's 'little ball of hate' delivered free donairs to about 1,500 people Wednesday night.
Article content
Brad Marchand's goal for the Florida Panthers in the first game of the Stanley Cup finals had the folks at King of Donair rolling up their sleeves after the maker of the Halifamous late-night snack took to social media promising free donairs if people commented on their Facebook and Instagram posts about the celebrated playmaker and hometown hero before the puck dropped.
Article content
Article content
Article content
'We know Brad likes donairs and, obviously, we're rooting for Canadian teams, too, but we want to see the cup back in Halifax,' said Nicholas Nahas, one of three brothers who co-own the fast-food business that has four outlets in Halifax.
Article content
Article content
'We're hockey fans and he's a Halifax homegrown boy.'
Article content
Marchand played for the Boston Bruins when they won the Stanley Cup in 2011. The left winger was traded to Florida this past March.
Article content
While Marchand scored on a power play at the 12:30 mark of Wednesday night's game, the Edmonton Oilers won Game 1 against Florida 4-3 in overtime.
Article content
'Tough night last night,' Nahas said Thursday morning of Florida's loss as he was adding up the number of people who cashed in on the offer of a free donair, which normally retails for $9.89.
Article content
Article content
The business made the offer 'on a whim,' he said. 'We knew what we were getting ourselves into.'
Article content
Article content
He plans to send coupon codes to everyone who commented on the outfit's Marchand posts. 'All of our stores have the master list at the store level and when someone comes in with their code, they cross it off.'
Article content
The business has made donairs for Marchand before when he hosts private events.
Article content
'Brad does have a free donairs for life card,' Nahas said.
Article content
Not everyone who saw the company's social media posts about Marchand was after a free donair, which for the uninitiated, is a pita filled with spicy ground Canadian beef, tomatoes, onions and slathered in a sweet sauce.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Carney travelling to Europe for security, defence talks with EU, NATO
Carney travelling to Europe for security, defence talks with EU, NATO

Winnipeg Free Press

time16 minutes ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

Carney travelling to Europe for security, defence talks with EU, NATO

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney will depart for Europe on Sunday for back-to-back summits where he is expected to make major commitments for Canada on security and defence. Carney will be joined by Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, Defence Minister David McGuinty and secretary of state for defence procurement Stephen Fuhr at the EU and NATO summits, where military procurement and diversifying supply chains will top the agendas. The international meetings come as Canada looks to reduce its defence procurement reliance on the United States due to strained relations over tariffs and President Donald Trump's repeated talk about Canada becoming a U.S. state. Carney will fly first to Brussels, Belgium, starting the trip with a visit to the Antwerp Schoonselhof Military Cemetery where 348 Canadian soldiers are buried. He will also meet with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. At the EU-Canada summit, Anand and McGuinty are expected to sign a security and defence agreement with the EU in what one European official described Friday as one of the most ambitious deals Europe has ever signed with a third country. The agreement will open the door to Canada's participation in the ReArm Europe initiative, allowing Canada to access a 150-billion-euro loan program for defence procurement, called Security Action for Europe. An EU official briefing reporters on Friday said once the procurement deal is in place, Canada will have to negotiate a bilateral agreement with the European Commission to begin discussions with member states about procurement opportunities. A Canadian official briefing reporters on the summit Saturday said the initial agreement will allow for Canada's participation in some joint procurement projects. However, a second agreement will be needed to allow Canadian companies to bid. At the EU-Canada summit, leaders are also expected to issue a joint statement to underscore a willingness for continued pressure on Russia, including through further sanctions, and call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. After Brussels, Carney heads to The Hague in the Netherlands for the NATO leaders' summit on Tuesday and Wednesday. There, Carney will meet with the King of the Netherlands and later with leaders of Nordic nations to discuss Arctic and transatlantic security. At the NATO summit, Carney will take part in bilateral meetings with other leaders. The summit agenda includes a social dinner hosted by the king and queen of the Netherlands and a two-and-a-half hour meeting of the North Atlantic Council. NATO allies are expected to debate a plan to hike alliance members' defence spending target to five per cent of national GDP. NATO data shows that in 2024, none of its 32 members spent that much. The Canadian government official who briefed reporters on background says the spending target and its timeline are still up for discussion, though some allies have indicated they would prefer a seven-year timeline while others favour a decade. Canada hasn't hit a five- per- cent defence spending threshhold since the 1950s and hasn't reached the two per cent mark since the late 1980s. NATO says that, based on its estimate of which expenditures count toward the target, Canada spent $41 billion in 2024 on defence, or 1.37 per cent of GDP. That's more than twice what it spent in 2014, when the two per cent target was first set; that year, Canada spent $20.1 billion, or 1.01 per cent of GDP, on defence. In 2014, only three NATO members achieved the two per cent target — the U.S., the U.K., and Greece. In 2025, all members are expected to hit it. Any agreement to adopt a new spending benchmark must be ratified by all 32 NATO member states. Former Canadian ambassador to NATO Kerry Buck told The Canadian Press the condensed agenda is likely meant to 'avoid public rifts among allies,' describing Trump as an 'uncertainty engine.' Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. 'The national security environment has really, really shifted,' Buck said, adding allies next door to Russia face the greatest threats. 'There is a high risk that the U.S. would undercut NATO at a time where all allies are increasingly vulnerable.' Trump has suggested the U.S. might abandon its mutual defence commitment to the alliance if member countries don't ramp up defence spending. 'Whatever we can do to get through this NATO summit with few public rifts between the U.S. and other allies on anything, and satisfy a very long-standing U.S. demand to rebalance defence spending, that will be good for Canada because NATO's good for Canada,' Buck said. Carney has already made two trips to Europe this year — the first to London and Paris to meet with European allies and the second to Rome to attend the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2025.

Bank of Canada hoping for better look at ‘complicated' inflation picture
Bank of Canada hoping for better look at ‘complicated' inflation picture

Winnipeg Free Press

time25 minutes ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

Bank of Canada hoping for better look at ‘complicated' inflation picture

OTTAWA – The Bank of Canada will get a fresh look at national inflation figures this week — a picture that's been particularly murky as of late amid tax changes and trade wars. Statistics Canada is expected to publish its consumer price index for May on Tuesday. Financial data shows the consensus among economists is that inflation ticked up to 1.8 per cent year-over-year last month. April figures showed the annual inflation rate slowed sharply to 1.7 per cent, thanks largely to a drop in gasoline prices tied to the end of the consumer carbon price. Benjamin Reitzes, BMO's managing director of Canadian rates and macro strategist, said he expects inflation cooled two ticks to 1.5 per cent in May. He pointed to a slowing in shelter inflation and a smaller jump in gas prices compared with the same time last year for the easing. But it won't be just the headline number the Bank of Canada is parsing as it attempts to set its benchmark interest rate in an increasingly uncertain world. 'The reality is, they don't just look at one number. They look at a number of different inflation metrics to really try and figure out what the underlying trend is,' Reitzes said. Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem called the current inflation picture 'complicated' in a speech to the St. John's Board of Trade in Newfoundland and Labrador on Wednesday. The 'firmness' in underlying inflation lately might be early signs of the trade war with the United States impacting inflation, he said. The central bank has so far been dogged by uncertainty tied to the tariff dispute, holding its policy rate steady at 2.75 per cent twice in a row as it waits for clarity on how the trade restrictions will impact inflation. While the tariffs and counter-tariffs themselves are likely to drive up prices for businesses, it's not yet clear to the bank how quickly companies will pass those costs on to customers. Resulting slowdowns in the economy could also see businesses and consumers rein in spending, keeping inflationary pressures relatively tame. Katherine Judge, senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets, said inflation likely inched higher because of tariffs. 'The acceleration in the monthly pace will be largely tied to food prices that are picking up counter-tariff impacts and core goods prices that could begin to reflect broader tariffs,' she said in a note to clients on Friday. 'We expect rent inflation to decelerate after a surprising jump in April, and in line with industry data, leaning against food price increases.' Judge noted the upcoming inflation reading will reflect adjustments Statistics Canada made to its CPI basket, but said such changes don't usually have a meaningful impact on the headline number. Reitzes said it's been hard to pinpoint the impact of tariffs on the inflation data. 'The Bank of Canada is certainly watching for that, though,' he said. 'The army of economists they have working for them will be kind of teasing through all of that data and looking for any signs of that.' Food inflation has been a bit stronger in recent months, which Reitzes noted is one area where Canada is applying counter-tariffs. But he also said that could be a lagged impact from weakness in the Canadian dollar at the start of the year now filtering into food prices. Another source of noise in the inflation data is tax changes from the federal government in the early part of the year. First, Ottawa's two-month GST holiday skewed price data on a range of groceries, gifts and household staples, and now the end of the consumer carbon tax is driving down headline inflation. But that impact is only going to last for a year and will fall out of the inflation comparison after 12 months. Macklem said the central bank is increasingly putting weight on CPI measures that strip out influences from tax changes to give it some clarity. He noted Wednesday that inflation excluding taxes was 2.3 per cent in April — stronger than the central bank was expecting. Macklem also signalled Wednesday that the Bank of Canada is scrutinizing its own preferred measures of core inflation a little more closely. Those core inflation figures are now running above three per cent, but Macklem also warned there's 'potentially some distortion' that could be 'exaggerating' price pressures. Alternative measures of core inflation are coming in lower, so he said the bank is looking at a range of factors as it gauges where inflation is heading next. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. 'There is some unusual volatility. So how temporary or persistent this is, I think remains an open question,' Macklem said. The Bank of Canada will get a look at two inflation reports before its next interest rate decision on July 30. If inflation shows signs of remaining well contained in those releases, Reitzes said the Bank of Canada might find a window to lower interest rates to boost the economy in the face of tariffs. 'They'll probably take that opportunity, but inflation needs to provide them with that,' he said. 'And at the moment it is not doing so.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2025.

Abbotsford Canucks lose game 5 of the AHL Championship, force game 6
Abbotsford Canucks lose game 5 of the AHL Championship, force game 6

Global News

time4 hours ago

  • Global News

Abbotsford Canucks lose game 5 of the AHL Championship, force game 6

A disappointing night for the Abbotsford Canucks after failing to win the Calder Cup on home ice at the Abbotsford Centre. Jesse Puljujarvi spoiled the party in Abbotsford on Saturday night when he scored at 15:22 of overtime to lift the visiting Charlotte Checkers to a 4-3 victory over the Canucks. A sold-out crowd at Abbotsford Centre was hoping to see the Canucks — who entered the game leading 3-1 in the best-of-seven championship series — hoist the Calder Cup on home ice, but the best the American Hockey League squad can do now is win the title at Bojangles Coliseum in North Carolina. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Ben Steeves, Brett Chorske and Rasmus Asplund also scored for the Checkers, who outshot the hosts 40-32. Linus Karlsson scored twice for the Canucks, while Arshdeep Bains had a goal and assist. Story continues below advertisement The Checkers, the AHL affiliate for the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, swept the Laval Rocket in the Eastern Conference final, while the Canucks bounced the Texas Stars in six games in the Western Conference final. The sold out seats at the Abbotsford Centre indicate the franchise's farm team is a growing source of hype after the Vancouver Canucks had a less-than-stellar NHL season. The Abbotsford Canucks have already broken uncharted ground in the AHL, reaching the Calder Cup final for the first time in franchise history. The 2017-18 Toronto Marlies are the only Canadian team to win the Calder Cup over the past 11 AHL seasons. Game six is on Monday June 23.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store