Deserts in Canada are more like tundras or steppes, treeless and more grassy. It is hard to imagine a northern climate in the 90's but Alaska has been having that kind of temperatures recently.
That is warmer in the Northern latitudes than it gets it is in the tropics. It seems hotter here because of the mugginess and humidity, but it is humidity that modifies the temperature.
I found the following on wikipedia that might contribute to the hotspot as well. Global warming melting the permafrost layers releasing greenhouse gasses carbon and methane and dead grasses increasing the risk of wildfires.
"Relationship to global warming
A severe threat to tundra is global warming, which causes permafrost to melt. The melting of the permafrost in a given area on human time scales (decades or centuries) could radically change which species can survive there.[7]
Another concern is that about one third of the world's soil-bound carbon is in taiga and tundra areas. When the permafrost melts, it releases carbon in the form of carbon dioxide and methane,[8] both of which are greenhouse gases. The effect has been observed in Alaska. In the 1970s the tundra was a carbon sink, but today, it is a carbon source.[9] Methane is produced when vegetation decays in lakes and wetlands.[10]
The amount of greenhouse gases which will be released under projected scenarios for global warming have not been reliably quantified by scientific studies, although a few studies were reported to be underway in 2011. It is uncertain whether the impact of increased greenhouse gases from this source will be minimal or massive.[10]
In locations where dead vegetation and peat has accumulated, there is a risk of wildfire, such as the 1,039 km2 (401 sq mi) of tundra which burned in 2007 on the north slope of the Brooks Range in Alaska.[10] Such events may both result from and contribute to global warming.[11]"
https://www.dw.com/en/saving-canadas-on ... a-19470246