Is Latin American-style gangsterism gaining a foothold in the US? There are troubling signs of it, said Collin Pruett in The American Conservative. Visiting Texas’s border with Mexico last year, I found a “population under siege, overstretched police”, and Mexican cartels smuggling migrants and drugs with impunity.
And the problem seems to be spreading. In April, a Native American tribal leader from Montana cancelled his plans to testify before Congress, citing death threats from the Sinaloa cartel. And the past fortnight has brought reports of a Venezuelan gang seizing control of an apartment complex in Aurora, a suburb of Denver, Colorado. “The brazen nature of the takeover, common in Latin America but unprecedented in the US, alarmed local citizens.” Videos from residents showed men with semi-automatic weapons barging into apartments. There have been reports of violent assaults, threats of murder, extortion, and child prostitution.
Back in April, the US Border Patrol chief, Jason Owens, warned Americans to “watch out” for the Tren de Aragua gang, said Luige del Puerto in The Denver Gazette. Venezuela’s most powerful criminal organisation, it began life as a prison gang a decade ago but has since spread to other countries in South and Central America, and now to the US. Officials acknowledge that the gang is operating in the Denver region, but they claim it isn’t a major threat. They’ve dismissed reports of gangsters seizing control of the apartments as wild exaggerations, insisting there have merely been isolated crimes.
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A lot of nonsense has been spouted about this, said The Denver Post. Donald Trump claimed that Venezuelans were “taking over the whole town”; Colorado Republicans claimed their state was “under violent attack”. Baloney. The fuss was instigated by the owners of the apartment complex, who are using gangs as “a scapegoat for the unsanitary, unsafe and unhealthy” conditions – a source of bitter complaint among residents.
Others have blown the story out of proportion for political reasons, or out of simple anti-immigrant prejudice. The fact is, the Denver region has always had some gang activity. According to the US Justice Department, prominent local gangs include the Bloods, Crips, Sureños 13, North Side Mafia and Gangster Disciples. “The addition of the Tren de Aragua gang to the mix is a dangerous complication, but not a cause for panic.”
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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — There was no elaborate celebration from Bennett Zmolek.
In fact, he didn’t even see it go in.
“I saw Resch coming at me,” Zmolek said of teammate Cole Reschny. “I was like, I guess it went in.”
Zmolek scored his first goal in nearly four years to help UND beat Colorado College 5-2 on Saturday night in Ed Robson Arena.
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His last goal was Jan. 20, 2022, when he was a freshman at Minnesota State against St. Thomas. That was 1,450 days and three hip surgeries ago.
With the game tied 1-1 in the second period, Zmolek spotted open ice on the right side of the rink and pinched from his defensive spot. Reschny made a cross-ice pass and Zmolek one-timed it five-hole on Tiger goalie Kaidan Mbereko.
“I’d say huge props to Resch,” Zmolek said. “He set it all up. I just had to tap it in.”
Teammate Dylan James grabbed the puck for Zmolek to keep.
“So proud of him,” James said. “Obviously, he’s been through a lot these past couple years. He’s played minimal games the last two years and he was voted captain. That shows what kind of guy he is. He’s the rock of our team. It’s very special seeing him get his first in a UND jersey.”
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Zmolek’s teammates celebrated the goal more than he did.
“We were all screaming on the bench,” forward Anthony Menghini said. “He’s such a great leader, such a great captain, does all the right things. For him to put it in the net was huge.”
UND defenseman Bennett Zmolek (center) celebrates his goal against Colorado College with forward Cole Reschny (17) on Jan. 10, 2026, in Ed Robson Arena.
Daryl Batt / Colorado College athletics
UND also received goals from James, Tyler Young, Abram Wiebe and Reschny. James and Reschny tallied assists and had two-point nights, while Menghini notched two assists.
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UND (17-5) took four points from the weekend after losing Friday’s series opener 3-2 in overtime.
The Fighting Hawks finally got to Tiger goalie Kaidan Mbereko, who had won six in a row against UND. Mbereko gave up four goals on 24 shots before leaving with an apparent injury in the third period.
“I don’t believe our record is great against CC, but this team is different,” James said. “It feels great to bounce back from yesterday and get a win.”
The Fighting Hawks sit atop the National Collegiate Hockey Conference standings, five points ahead of Denver. The Pioneers come to Ralph Engelstad Arena next weekend.
“Their coach. . . I have a lot of respect for Kris Mayotte,” UND coach Dane Jackson said. “He kind of mentioned that he really thought our North Dakota mentality was evident this weekend. That was pretty nice for him to say.”
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Jan Špunar, starting on consecutive nights for the first time since Dec. 5-6 at St. Cloud State, stopped 19 of 21. He allowed a pair of goals to defenseman Mats Lindgren, a midseason pickup from the ECHL.
But the night belonged to Zmolek.
After the game, Zmolek was asked what he remembered about his last goal.
“St. Thomas, right?” he said. “Their old barn. Low blocker.”
That goal came at the end of the 2021-22 season. Zmolek missed nearly the entire 2022-23 season due to hip surgery.
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He transferred to UND in the summer of 2023, and helped anchor UND’s defensive corps to a Penrose Cup in 2023-24. He missed all but one game last year with another hip surgery.
“I’m so happy for him,” Jackson said. “It was a great read, a great pass and he got a lot of wood on it. It was really a high-skill play. The guys are so happy for him. He’s such a leader for us in so many ways. Obviously, most of the time it’s with his defensive play and penalty killing and everything else. But to see him bring out the offense in a big moment, I was just so happy for him. He’s a warrior.”
Notes: UND wore its black jerseys. It is 4-1 in the black jerseys this season. Colorado College wore gold. . . UND played without Josh Zakreski (lower body) and Cody Croal (illness). The Fighting Hawks moved Jayden Jubenvill into the lineup for Sam Laurila. . . Colorado College played without forward Owen Beckner (upper), forward Brandon Lisowsky (lower), defenseman Max Burkholder (lower) and defenseman Colton Roberts (upper).
By
Brad Elliott Schlossman
Schlossman has covered college hockey for the Grand Forks Herald since 2005. He has been recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors as the top beat writer for the Herald’s circulation division four times and the North Dakota sportswriter of the year twice. He resides in Grand Forks. Reach him at bschlossman@gfherald.com.
A Colorado woman and her 6-year-old son were found dead in Canyonlands National Park near Moab, Utah, this week in what appears to be a murder-suicide, law enforcement officials said.
Park rangers responded to a suspicious vehicle parked in a no-camping area near Shafer Trail in the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands at 8:15 a.m. Thursday, the San Juan County, Utah, Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Park rangers found an unresponsive 6-year-old boy in the vehicle and started life-saving measures, but the boy was pronounced dead when he arrived at the hospital.
The woman was found dead outside of the vehicle.
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Both were reported missing by family in Colorado on Wednesday, the sheriff’s office said.
Sheriff Lehi Lacy on Saturday confirmed to The Denver Post that the woman and her son were also from Colorado.
The sheriff’s office is not identifying the woman or boy out of respect and will release the names once the agency gets permission from the family, Lacy said.
The investigation is ongoing, but “based on all evidence so far, this case is being investigated as a homicide and suicide,” sheriff’s officials said.
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After a homestand-opening win on Thursday, the Avalanche hosts the Columbus Blue Jackets for Next Gen Night on Saturday. This is the second and final regular-season matchup between the teams in 2025-26, as the Avalanche defeated the Blue Jackets 4-1 in Columbus on October 16th.
Latest Result (COL): OTT 2, COL 8
Latest Result (CBJ): CBJ 3, VGK 5
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A Big Night at Ball
Josh Manson recorded the first two-goal and four-point game of his career, along with a Gordie Howe hat trick, as the Avalanche defeated the Ottawa Senators 8-2 at Ball Arena on Thursday. Manson was one of five Avs to post at least three points on Thursday, alongside Nathan MacKinnon (1g/3a), Ross Colton (3a), Brock Nelson (2g/1a) and Cale Makar (1g/2a). Additionally, Brent Burns added a goal for Colorado while Scott Wedgewood stopped 29 of the 31 shots he faced in net for the Avs. With the victory, the Avalanche extended its home win streak to 16 games.
At 10:11 of the first period, Manson opened the scoring with his third goal of the season via a shot from the point through traffic. MacKinnon doubled Colorado’s lead at 17:14 of the first period with his 36th goal of the season via a shot from the slot set up by Necas. The Avs took a 3-0 lead at 2:35 of the second period when Makar scored his 13th tally of the season via a left-circle shot after receiving a drop pass from MacKinnon. At 5:08 of the middle frame, Shane Pinto put the Senators on the board. The Senators momentarily made it 3-2 with 13:41 remaining in the second period, but the goal was disallowed after the Avs successfully challenged for offside. After the disallowed tally, the clock was reset to 13:48.
Necas gave the Avs a 4-1 lead on the power play at 11:46 of the second period with his 20th goal of the season via a sharp-angle one-timer from the bottom of the left circle set up by MacKinnon. At 12:03 of the middle frame, Burns made it 5-1 with his sixth goal of the season via a right-point shot through traffic. Nelson gave the Avs a 6-1 lead on a five-on-three power play at 14:23 of the second period with his 20th goal of the season via a right-circle one-timer set up by MacKinnon’s cross-ice feed. The Avalanche took a 7-1 lead at 16:48 of the middle frame when Manson scored his second goal of the game and fourth of the season via a one-timer from the point set up by Jack Drury’s feed. At 18:04 of the middle frame, Nelson scored his second tally of the game and 21st of the season via a right-circle one-timer set up by Ilya Solovyov’s feed from the left point. Brady Tkachuk made it 8-2 with a shorthanded goal from the doorstep at 7:03 of the third period.
Leading the Way
Nate the Great
MacKinnon leads the NHL in goals (36) and points (78) while ranking tied for third in assists (42).
All Hail Cale
Makar leads NHL defensemen in points (51) and assists (38) while ranking third in goals by blueliners (13). Among all NHL skaters, he’s seventh in assists.
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Marty Party
Necas is seventh in the NHL in points (55) and tied for ninth in assists (35).
Series History
In 70 previous regular-season games against the Blue Jackets, the Avalanche has a record of 45-19-1-5.
Defeat on the Road
The Blue Jackets lost 5-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday. In the first period, Columbus took a 2-0 lead after goals from Boone Jenner at 8:24 and Kent Johnson at 10:41 before Reilly Smith put Vegas on the board at 12:20. The Golden Knights took a 4-2 lead after second-period goals from Smith at 5:19, Jack Eichel at 13:07 and Mark Stone on the power play at 18:44. Kirill Marchenko scored for the Blue Jackets to make it 4-3 at 14:28 of the third period before Brett Howden gave the Golden Knights a 5-3 lead at 16:14 of the final frame.
Contributors Against Columbus
MacKinnon has posted 26 points (7g/19a) in 22 games against the Blue Jackets.
In nine contests against Columbus, Makar has registered 17 points (6g/11a).
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Necas has recorded 21 points (4g/17a) in 26 games against the Blue Jackets.
Producing Offense for Ohio’s Team
Zach Werenski leads the Blue Jackets in points (46) and assists (30) while ranking tied for first in goals (16).
Marchenko is tied for the team lead in goals (16) while ranking second in points (35) and tied for second in assists (19).
Dmitri Voronkov is third on the Blue Jackets in points (28) and goals (15).
A Numbers Game
30
Colorado’s 30 five-on-five goals since December 19th (10 games) are the most in the NHL during that span.
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63
The Avalanche’s 63 second-period goals lead the NHL.
3.94
Colorado’s 3.94 goals per game since December 1st lead the NHL during that span.
Quote That Left a Mark
“It was fun. I don’t think he’s ever seen that before. He’s seen me fight. He’s maybe seen me score. But I don’t think he’s ever seen—actually, nobody’s ever seen that before out of me in the NHL. So, it was a first for everybody, including myself.”
— Josh Manson on recording a Gordie Howe hat trick with his father, former NHLer Dave Manson, in attendance
