Rob Drinkwater, The Canadian Press

Edmonton Oilers fans crowd around Mary Loewen in a plaza outside the team's home arena during every playoffs game, asking to have their pictures taken with the superfan who's dressed as the Stanley Cup.

Loewen dons a sequined blazer, wears silver gloves and glasses, and covers her face in silver makeup. Then she puts on her "crown" which is meant to imitate the bowl of the famous trophy.

It has 3,500 sequins, and they were all put in by hand.

The winning bidder of more than a dozen unopened boxes of classic hockey cards uncovered in a Regina home says he's feeling remorse over his $3.7-million-dollar purchase after hearing how sad the runner-up was upon losing out.

"When I heard the runner-up bidder was literally devastated by missing out on acquiring this, I felt real empathy for him," Jack Arshawsky of Thornhill, Ont. said in an interview, adding he's hoping someone famous, perhaps even Wayne Gretzky, might be interested in taking the boxes off his hands.

A dog called Hero lived up to his name earlier this week after spending two days by his stranded master's side, keeping his owner warm and even fending off coyotes while the man waited to be rescued from a muddy ditch in southern Alberta.

The dog's bravery and devotion have earned widespread plaudits online and prompted one local animal rescue organization to raise money to cover vet bills for Hero and other pets inadvertently drawn into the 48-hour saga.

Authorities in the United States have charged another man in an alleged human smuggling operation that led to a family from India freezing to death while trying to enter the country from Manitoba.

A court document filed Thursday in Illinois says Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel is charged with transportation of an illegal alien along with conspiracy to bring and attempting to bring an illegal alien to the U.S.

No details were provided on his arrest. An arrest warrant for Patel, which says he was also known as "Dirty Harry," was filed in Minnesota court in September.

The Royal Canadian Air Force is investigating a sexual misconduct allegation against a Snowbirds pilot, and the aerobatics team will be performing a plane short for the time being.

The commanders of 1 and 2 Canadian Air Divisions issued a statement on Saturday saying the allegation has been made against a member of 431 Squadron, which is based in Moose Jaw, Sask., and the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is investigating.

Light rainfall and cooler temperatures slowed down wildfire activity in Alberta over the long weekend and more rain that's in the forecast may help firefighters catch a breath during a record-breaking season of fires.

"This could be a turning point for the firefighters working out there on the fires," Christie Tucker of Alberta Wildfire said during a news conference Monday.

"We have received rain, I understand, on almost every wildfire that's currently burning in the province except those in the far north."

The Alberta government is providing $20.8 million over the next four years to implement recommendations from a star-led task force on human trafficking.

Country singer Paul Brandt, chair of the Alberta Human Trafficking Task Force, personally thanked Premier Jason Kenney during the funding announcement Sunday at Edmonton International Airport for his willingness to prioritize the issue, and for putting faith in Brandt to lead the group.

A five-year-old boy missing from a First Nation in northern Saskatchewan since April has been found dead in a river in the community, police announced on Sunday.

RCMP issued a news release saying officers in their Carrot River detachment got a report on Saturday evening that Frank Young had been found deceased in the river on Red Earth Cree Nation, near the location where he was originally reported missing on April 19.