WestCentral

The Government of Canada has announced an investment of up to $14.3 million to help address critical healthcare labour shortages, a move that could provide much-needed relief to struggling medical facilities in west-central Saskatchewan.

The Government of Saskatchewan is reminding anglers to remove their ice fishing shelters from provincial lakes as spring approaches, with deadlines set for March 15 south of Highway 16 and March 31 in northern regions.

Officials warn that rising temperatures can lead to unsafe ice conditions, making it dangerous to retrieve shelters left too long. Anglers are responsible for removing all structures and debris before the deadlines to avoid potential fines or confiscation of their shelters.

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to escalate the trade war he launched with Canada even further Tuesday, just hours after imposing his first round of punishing import taxes on all Canadian goods.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Trump's imposition of a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy and 25 per cent tariffs on all other Canadian goods "dumb" and said Canada is fighting back.

The Kyle Elks are riding high after winning four games in five days to advance in both their Sask Valley Hockey League playoffs and Saskatchewan Senior A Provincials.

"It was exciting," said Elks captain Colby Schneider. "It was a hard weekend. We knew it'd be tough playing four games in five nights, but we played really well as a team. Once we knew we got to Sunday everybody had a good rest, and we were ready to go."

The Elks were able to turn the provincial series against Leroy around after a 7-2 loss in Game 1 of the best-of-three.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is facing calls from within his province and from a fellow premier to hit back on punishing U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford told reporters Tuesday Moe should consider no longer selling potash, uranium and oil to the United States and instead find different markets. 

"I consider Scott Moe a good friend of mine ... and I've talked to him. We need to make sure America feels the pain," Ford said.

Hours after the Arbitration Board issued their report on the new collective bargaining agreement between the provincial government and the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation, the President of the STF held a media availability to address what she called an historic decision by the board.  

The Town of Kindersley is inviting residents to put their creativity to the test by submitting name ideas for the 7th Street West Park.

The community-driven contest, which runs for two weeks, gives Kindersley residents of all ages a chance to participate by suggesting a park name and, if they wish, a sign design. Anna Polsfut, communications coordinator for the Town of Kindersley, said the initiative is about engaging the community in a meaningful way.

SHSAA Regional Wrestling took place over the weekend with west-central combatants in action. Athletes gathered together in Carrot River, fighting for the right to advance to provincials in Regina the following weekend.

The top six in each category earned the right to advance to the two-day tournament taking place this weekend at the University of Regina. The local athletes and results from regionals are below:

(Weight Class - Athlete - School - Place [if applicable])

(Click links for results)

The Outlook Mainline Ice Hawks have to be chomping at the bit to get playoffs underway after a very successful season in the second year ever of the Saskatchewan Junior Female Hockey League.

The Ice Hawks not only finished in first place due to a tiebreaker with the Regina Rebels, but they also had the league's leading scorer in rookie Haley Braun. With 65 total points—six more than Regina's Abigail Manz—Braun's 42 goals were also 11 more than the second-place finisher in that category.

The Town of Leader’s regular council meeting on Jan. 21 covered a range of topics, including attendance at the upcoming Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) convention, infrastructure projects, and library funding.

Mayor Aaron Wenzel, councillors Dustin Heatcoat, Dustin Bischoff, Craig Tondevold, Isabelle Blohm, John-Mark Bredeson, and Administrator Erin Romanuik were in attendance. The agenda was approved, as were the minutes from the Jan. 7 regular meeting and the Jan. 20 Transportation Committee meeting.