News briefs for January 18, 2022

Tom Wison's goal just 26 seconds into overtime lifted the Washington Capitals to a 4-3 victory over the visiting Winnipeg Jets tonight.

Pierre-Luc Dubois had tied the contest with just 65 seconds left in regulation time.

The Jets continue a four-game road trip in Nashville on Thursday night.

WASHINGTON -- This one's going to come down to the wire.

The Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals are tied 2-2 after two periods.

Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti put the visitors up a pair of goals early, but Alexander Ovechkin and Dmitry Orlov responded for the home side.

Shots are 21-21 through 40 minutes.

Winnipeg is 1-for-3 on the power play, while Washington has gone 0-for-2.

Kyle Connor's team-leading 22nd and Cole Perfetti's first of his career have given the Winnipeg Jets an early lead in the U.S. capital.

Washington's Alex Ovechkin, with his NHL-best 27th of the year, cut the deficit in half later in the opening frame.

Shots are 12-10 for the Capitals through 20 minutes. 

The Winnipeg Jets are finally coming home to play some hockey. Games set for next Tuesday against Florida and next Thursday against Vancouver will proceed as scheduled; however, attendance at Canada Life Centre has been limited to 250 fans.

The club is in the process of contacting season ticket holders about the process to purchase tickets, with 125 fans allowed to do so in pairs of two. All others will have their accounts credited.

Winnipeg's last home game was on Dec. 19. Since then, six home games, and three road games, have been postponed. Details are expected Wednesday on when those will be re-scheduled, with most expected to occur in February during the three-week Winter Olympics window.

Robbery victims were forced into their own basement and attacked with bear spray as three suspects broke into their Portage la Prairie home early Monday morning. 

Just before 4 a.m. Monday, RCMP went to the home on 3rd Street NE in the small city west of Winnipeg for a robbery with a firearm. Three suspects had gotten inside the home, one with a gun and another with the pepper spray. 

The suspects stolen "numerous items" and fled, RCMP said. Police weren't able to find them, but now have obtained warrants for three men accused in the robbery. Officers found a sawn-off shotgun nearby the crime scene. 

Jordan Chartrand, 27; and Mitchell Hunter, 38, are wanted for various robbery and break and enter charges, among other charges. Maurice Merrick, 29 of Portage la Prairie, was arrested Tuesday afternoon.

RCMP is asking anyone with information on the suspects' whereabouts to call Portage la Prairie RCMP at 204-857-8767 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or tip online.

Winnipeg police have made a second arrest in the shooting death of a 43-year-old man on Alexander Avenue on New Year's Eve. 

The victim, Robert Randall Anderson, was found dead by police around 2:30 a.m. at the home on the 300 block of Alexander Avenue. 

The first suspect, 32-year-old James Houle, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and two counts of possessing a firearm on Jan. 12. 

Ryan Joseph Roulette, 29, was arrested Jan. 16. He's charged with second-degree murder, three counts of possessing a firearm contrary to a prohibition order and a warrant for apprehension and suspension of parole and statutory release. 

Manitoba reported three more deaths due to COVID-19 on Tuesday and 19 more hospital admissions. 

The province’s pandemic death toll is now 1,466.

According to the province's pandemic dashboard, 620 people with COVID-19 were in hospital including 48 in intensive care. As of midnight, a total of 102 patients, including those without COVID-19, were in ICU.

There were 847 new cases confirmed through PCR testing since Monday. The test positivity rate province-wide was 34.2 per cent. Just 2,623 tests were processed yesterday.

The province is no longer tracking the majority of positive COVID-19 cases because PCR testing is limited and Manitobans using rapid tests are not able to report their results.

WASHINGTON -- The Winnipeg Jets look to make it two wins in a row when they kick off a four-game road trip tonight in Washington at 6 p.m.

Here is the projected lineup, based on the morning skate at Capital One Arena:

FORWARDS
Copp-Scheifele-Ehlers
Connor-Dubois-Perfetti
Harkins-Lowry-Poganski
Vesalainen-Toninato-Reichel

DEFENCE
Morrissey-DeMelo
Samberg-Pionk
Stanley-Schmidt

Connor Hellebuyck starts in goal.

Blake Wheeler (injured), Evgeny Svechnikov (injured) and centre Paul Stastny (just out of of COVID protocol) all participated in the morning skate but won't play tonight. 

Manitoba hospitals are seeing an increase in the number of infants and children needing treatment for severe respiratory infections.

Shared Health said cases of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) bronchiolitis, an infection of the small airways in the lungs, have spiked at the Children’s Hospital at Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg.

The signs include breathing difficulties, wheezing and a frequent choking cough.

Handwashing, reducing contacts and staying home when ill will help to reduce exposure, according to Shared Health.

A 72-year-old man from the Rural Municipality of Springfield died after colliding with a fence while snowmobiling Monday afternoon, RCMP said. 

Shortly before 2:30 p.m., officers were called to the scene in a field near a rural property on Pleasant Road in Springfield, east of Winnipeg. Several people were providing first aid to the victim, RCMP said. 

The driver, who wasn't wearing a helmet, was pronounced dead on the scene. RCMP said speed and alcohol were not factors in the collision. 

A winter storm is in effect in Winnipeg while some light snow continues to fall in southern Manitoba. 

Environment Canada said about 10-15 centimetres has fallen, coupled with high winds, which are expected to last through the day. That combination has hampered visibility on some roads and highways. 

Meantime, numerous school divisions outside of the city have either cancelled classes or buses. 

A city spokeswoman said its snow clearing operations began at 7 a.m. With high winds expected throughout the day, the spokeswoman said, the city will address areas prone to drifting snow. 

Slipknot, the heavy metal band known for their wild antics on stage, have set an April 11 date to perform at Canada Life Centre.

Tickets go on sale Jan. 21 at 10 a.m. at KnotfestRoadshow.com. Prices haven't been released.

The show is part of the Knotfest Roadshow tour that has the band playing 38 dates across North America in the spring. Also on the bill are the Los Angeles rock group In This Moment and Jinjer, a metalcore group that hails from Donetsk, Ukraine.

Manitoba's premier will swear in her new cabinet Tuesday afternoon. 

Premier Heather Stefanson will preside over the swearing-in ceremony at 1 p.m. at the Legislative Building.