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2019 Newfoundland and Labrador election preview

Newfoundland and Labrador premier Scott Ball is going for a second term for the Liberal Party in calling a spring election on May 16 for the province.

Ball's challengers have had precious little time in party leadership. Ches Crosbie has been leader of the Progressive Conservatives for days short of a year. NDP leader Alison Coffin has been in charge of the party since March 5.

The NL Alliance party just got officially registered. NL Alliance leader Graydon Pelley will only have a smattering of candidates.

The Liberals start with 27 seats, down from 31 in the 2015 election. The Progressive Conservatives have 8 seats, up from 7 in the last election. The NDP has 2 seats, same as the 2015 election results.

And then there were none: the lack of female premiers in Canada

NDP leader Alison Coffin is running in the St. John's East-Quidi Vidi riding as current incumbent and former party leader Lorraine Michael is not running for re-election. The other NDP member is Gerry Rogers from St. John's Centre. Rogers is also a former party leader and not running for re-election.

The Liberals 2015 win came on the heels of a federal election and was a complete turn around flip from PCs to Liberal. The PCs had been in power from 2003-2015. 40 seats are up for grabs in this election.

Red Liberal wave runs through Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

The Liberals had been hinting the election would flip from fall to spring to not clash with the federal election. Even with the hint, the other parties are not as ready in terms of fielding candidates.

The ruling Liberals just tabled a budget, which will not be passed unless the party wins re-election.

Earlier this month, the province renewed the Atlantic Accord agreement with the federal government on offshore resource revenues. Newfoundland and Labrador has had crippling debt in part due to falling oil prices.

Newfoundland and Labrador will receive $2.5 billion over 38 years: front-loaded so the province receives 60% within the first year. That does mean $1.5 billion within the next 12 months but only $40,540,541 on average each year for the next 37 years.

Video lottery terminals (VLT) may become a campaign issue. The gambling terminals in bars are a huge source of income to the province but come at a society price.

Progressive Conservative Leader Ches Crosbie says VLTs would not be allowed "until they're safe" if he becomes premier. Crosbie was the original lawyer behind the current class-action lawsuit against the Atlantic Lottery Corporation, the entity that runs the machines in Eastern Canada.

2019 Canadian politics preview

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The May 16 election will fall during the Stanley Cup playoffs. NHL fans in Newfoundland and Labrador will have to rely on other CBC affiliates or stream the game on cbcsports.ca. The province only has 2 over-the-air stations: CBNT (CBC) and CJON (NTV-Newfoundland television) licensed to St. John's.

photo credit: me

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs scoreboard

(2) Toronto vs. (7) Orlando Toronto leads series 3-1
Date	Matchup	Time	U.S. TV	Cdn TV
April 13	Orlando 104, Toronto 101	5p	ESPN	SN One
April 16	Toronto 111, Orlando 82	8p	TNT	TSN
April 19	Toronto 98, Orlando 93	7p	ESPN	SN One
April 21	Toronto 107, Orlando 85	7p	TNT	TSN
April 23	Orlando @ Toronto	7p	NBA TV	TSN
April 25	Toronto @ Orlando+	TBD	TBD	SN One
April 27	Orlando @ Toronto+	TBD	TBD	TSN

Times are Eastern Daylight
+ if needed

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs preview

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

2019 Stanley Cup playoffs scoreboard

2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs

Eastern Conference

(3) Toronto vs. (2) Boston Series tied 3-3
Date	Matchup	Time	U.S. TV	Cdn TV
April 11	Toronto 4, Boston 1	7p	NBCSN	CBC
April 13	Boston 4, Toronto 1	8p	NBC	CBC
April 15	Toronto 3, Boston 2	7p	NBCSN	CBC
April 17	Boston 6, Toronto 4	7p	NBCSN	CBC
April 19	Toronto 2, Boston 1	7p	NBCSN	CBC
April 21	Boston 4, Toronto 2	3p	NBC	CBC
April 23	Toronto @ Boston	7p	NBCSN	CBC

 

2019 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs preview

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

 

Western Conference

(2) Winnipeg vs. (3) St. Louis St. Louis wins series 4-2
Date	Matchup	Time	U.S. TV	Cdn TV
April 10	St. Louis 2, Winnipeg 1	8p	NHLN	Sportsnet
April 12	St. Louis 4, Winnipeg 3	9:30p	CNBC	Sportsnet
April 14	Winnipeg 6, St. Louis 3	7:30p	CNBC	CBC
April 16	Winnipeg 2, St. Louis 1 (OT)	9:30p	CNBC	Sportsnet
April 18	St. Louis 3, Winnipeg 2	8:30p	USA	CBC
April 20	St. Louis 3, Winnipeg 2	7p	NBCSN	CBC

 

(1) Calgary vs. (4) Colorado Colorado wins series 4-1
Date	Matchup	Time	U.S. TV	Cdn TV
April 11	Calgary 4, Colorado 0	10p	NBCSN	CBC
April 13	Colorado 3, Calgary 2 (OT)	10:30p	NBCSN	CBC
April 15	Colorado 6, Calgary 2	10p	CNBC	CBC
April 17	Colorado 3, Calgary 2 (OT)	10p	NBCSN	CBC
April 19	Colorado 5, Calgary 1	10p	NBCSN	CBC

 

Times are Eastern Daylight
+ if needed

And then there were none: the lack of female premiers in Canada

"Let me begin by saying to every girl and every young woman watching tonight: I believe in you and never stop believing in yourself. I hope that we have shown you that in your life, anything is possible. Sometimes it can feel like you take two steps forward and then one step back. But may you never ever stop taking those steps forward." — Alberta Premier Rachel Notley in her concession speech on Tuesday.

The transition in power in Alberta as a result of Tuesday's election will mark the end of an era with the loss of the last female premier in Canada. You have to go back to December 2, 2010 for the last day Canada didn't have at least one female provincial premier.

There were as many as 5 female premiers for most of 2013 and briefly in 2014 but only 2 by late April 2014.

Alberta has had 2 female premiers while British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec, as well as Newfoundland and Labrador have had a single female premier.

Kathy Dunderdale (Newfoundland and Labrador) started the modern trend on December 3, 2010. She took over as Progressive Conservative Party leader and premier and successfully led her party to a win in the 2011 election.

Christy Clark (British Columbia) took over as Liberal Party leader and premier on March 14, 2011. Clark's party won in 2013 and 2017, though Clark had to win a seat for herself after the 2013 election. Her party won a majority of seats in 2017 but couldn't form government.

Alison Redford (Alberta) became the Progressive Conservative leader and premier on October 7, 2011 and led her party in the 2012 election.

Pauline Marois (Quebec) started as the Parti Québécois leader in 2007. Marois became the official opposition leader after the 2008 general election. She became premier in the 2012 general election. In an attempt to gain a majority, Marois called for an election in 2014 and her party was thrown out of power.

Kathleen Wynne (Ontario) took over as Liberal Party leader and premier on February 11, 2013. Wynne led her party to victory in the 2014 general election. Her party fell to third place in the 2018 general election.

The pyramid of female premiers crumbled fast in the winter and spring of 2014. Dunderdale resigned in late January 2014. Redford ran into a number of issues and left in late March. Marois gambled to win a majority government but lost to the Liberals in late April.

The number went up to 3 when Rachel Notley (Alberta) became premier of Alberta in 2015. Notley became the NDP leader in 2014 when the party was in fourth place.

The number fell to 2 when Clark stepped down in 2017 even through her party technically won the most seats. Wynne lost to Doug Ford in the Ontario election in 2018.

Canada is losing female premiers: Politics or sexism?

There aren't many current contenders to spark the next wave of female Canadian premiers. Let's look at the current rosters of female party leaders in the Canadian provinces.

Rachel Notley will soon be the opposition leader in Alberta and has been the NDP leader since October 18, 2014.

Andrea Horwath is the opposition leader in Ontario and has been the NDP leader since March 7, 2009.

Manon Massé is a prominent force in the Quebec Solidarity Party, now the third-ranked party in the Quebec assembly. Massé is the longest serving QS MLA in the Quebec assembly.

Alison Coffin is the third straight female leader of the NDP in Newfoundland and Labrador. Coffin succeeded Gerry Rogers who succeeded Lorraine Michael. The NDP has 2 seats in the assembly. The Newfoundland and Labrador election is set for May 16, but Rogers and Michael are not running for re-election.

Jennifer McKenzie spent about 18 months in charge of the NDP in New Brunswick. McKenzie resigned as party leader in late February. The NDP has 0 seats in the New Brunswick assembly.

Alberta goes back to its conservative ways by electing the UCP

Is it easier for a woman to be a governor (equivalent of premier) in the United States. There are 5x as many states as there are Canadian provinces. The United States currently has 9 female governors: 6 Democratic and 3 Republican. 5 of them started serving earlier this year. 2 more governors, both GOP, would likely still be in office but couldn't run again due to term limits.

The dynamic in Canada is very different. 4 of the 6 female premiers of the modern era inherited power from long-time runs by men. Each of the female premiers won an election. Clark is the only female premier to win 2 elections.

Marois and Notley are the only premiers who didn't inherit the title by being the new party leader. When the baton is passed, that usually means a weakened party that is in charge. Brian Mulroney transitioning the prime minister role to Kim Campbell is a textbook example. The Progressive Conservatives fell to 2 seats in the 1993 federal election.

Marois had a minority government when she was first elected. Notley broke a 44-year streak by the Progressive Conservatives in Alberta. These don't lead to long terms as premier.

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Kim Campbell briefly served as prime minister in Canada from June 25-November 4 in 1993. Pat Duncan was premier in Yukon for about 2½ years from 2000-2002. Eva Aariak was premier in Nunavut from 2008-2013 in a nonpartisan, consensus government.

Rita Johnston served all of 217 days in 1991 as leader of the British Columbia Social Credit Party and therefore British Columbia premier until her party fell in the next election. Nellie Cournoyea was premier of Northwest Territories from 1991-1995 in a nonpartisan, consensus government. Catherine Callbeck was the first female premier to win an election, leading Prince Edward Island from 1993-1996 for the Liberal Party.

Then there is Elizabeth May, the first Green Party MP. May has represented the Saanich—Gulf Islands riding since May 2, 2011 and has led the Green Party since August 26, 2006. While May is serving on the federal level, her influence on the Greens has helped in her home province of British Columbia, where the Greens help hold the balance of power. Next week's Prince Edward Island election may show huge gains for the Greens in that province.

The 2010s had an amazing run of female premiers in Canada. The 2020s decade starts in January. We will be very curious to see if the new decade comes even close to the success for female premiers in Canada.

photo credit: CBC News Network

Alberta goes back to its conservative ways by electing the UCP

"Build that pipe" became "Build those pipes" in Jason Kenney's victory speech after his United Conservative Party (UCP) won 63 of the 87 seats in the Alberta election. The UCP campaign was an angry one and Kenney's speech started out pretty angry, aimed more at Ottawa, the United States, and the world than the people of Alberta. Kenney had telegraphed this given his legacy as a member of Stephen Harper's federal cabinet in Ottawa.

The UCP wasn't campaigning against Rachel Notley or the NDP in Alberta, but against Justin Trudeau and the United States.

Unlike Doug Ford's 2018 acceptance speech in Ontario, Kenney did speak French but that was to ask for Quebec's help over the Energy East pipeline project.

There were a number of UCP candidates who left the ballot over horrible things they said. Mark Smith, a UCP MLA who stayed on the ballot, was caught saying horrible things, including equating homosexuality with pedophilia. Smith stayed on the ballot and won re-election in the Drayton Valley-Devon riding. Kenney made an issue in the campaign over not protecting the privacy of students who join gay-straight alliances.

There is also a RCMP investigation over whether the Kenney campaign coordinated with a minor candidate in the UCP leadership race.

Rachel Notley in her concession speech thanked all the party leaders running, including Derek Fildebrandt of the Freedom Conservative Party of Alberta. Kenney mentioned every one except Fildebrandt. Notley said she will remain as the opposition leader. 

The NDP went from 52 seats to 24 seats in the latest election, though stronger than the 4 seats before the 2015 election. The NDP seats are concentrated in the Edmonton area. The UCP grabbed the vast majority of the seats in the Calgary area.

We will have more tomorrow on Notley's legacy.

The Alberta Party got about 10% of the votes. Greg Clark had the only seat but lost his riding. Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel failed to win is riding.

The Liberal Party lost its own seat when leader David Khan lost in his riding.

Great job, Alberta! Approximately 696,000 people have voted at the Advance Polls – a new record! Thank you to all our hardworking officers who made voting as easy and accessible as possible. Election Day is April 16. Make your mark! #chooseyouralberta #abvote #ableg #abpoli pic.twitter.com/kcX9Zvu2jo

— Elections Alberta (@ElectionsAB) April 14, 2019

The early voting results were almost tripled over the 2015 election total of 235,000 voters. Voters had a choice at voting in their riding or vote anywhere. The votes from vote anywhere — 223,000 voters — those votes will be counted this week. This might affect some close races in a few ridings but won't change the overall outcome.

Voter turnout was expected to be higher, unofficially at 64%, than the last time (57%), not even factoring in the early voting ballots.

2019 Alberta election preview

2019 Canadian politics preview

Analyzing NDP win in Alberta: Keystone XL and beyond

Alberta votes for change, NDP, Rachel Notley

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

Alberta Liberal Party David Khan knew the term "laying pipe" but only in the literal sense before mentioning it in a televised debate among party leaders. Khan was referring to getting "pipelines constructed in Alberta and get people back to work."

Khan now knows of the double meaning to the phrase that is about having sex.

The Liberal Party took advantage of the #layingpipe hashtag on hats and other merchandise.

Danielle Smith, Alberta Wildrose Party gain attention for big 'wheels,' not big ideas

We would be remiss if we overlooked another great sexual innuendo moment in Alberta politics. In the 2012 election, the Wildrose Party bus had Danielle Smith's persona strategically placed over the rear bus wheels to imply the wheels were her breasts.

Alberta may be conservative but Albertans think about sex.

We knew the NHL Center Ice free preview might bring us some Alberta election ads. These were the only 2 ads I saw, both from the UCP.

The first ad is pretty straight forward. Conservatives don't like the carbon tax, which is a free-market conservative idea. So they vow to get rid of the carbon tax. Notley and her NDP government put in its own carbon tax rather than accept the federal version. If the UCP does get rid of the carbon tax, the federal version will be put in place.

The second ad was a bit more bizarre. Notley, in reference to the previous Progressive Conservative government, referred to them as an "embarrassing cousin" in 2015. The ad strips the context. If Notley had said that in 2019 or maybe 2018, I'd get the slight. But 2015? That screams petty in ways I haven't seen and I've witnessed a lot of political ads.

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

CBC stations in Calgary and Edmonton did their civic duty. The rest of the network got Game 4 of the NY Islanders-Pittsburgh series. For those NHL fans in Alberta, they could have watched a different CBC station on cable or satellite or chosen to stream the game on CBCSports.ca.

photos credit: CBC News Network (first 2 photos); @dave_khan Twitter
Twitter capture: ; @ElectionsAB
videos credit: United Conservative Party ads

Celebrating National Canadian Film Day 2019

THE A to Zs of #CanFilmDay 📚 🇨🇦 — April 17

ANGRY INUK
BACK TO GOD'S COUNTRY
C.R.A.Z.Y.
DEAD RINGERS
EDGE OF THE KNIFE
FALLS AROUND HER
GINGER SNAPS
HURT
INDIAN HORSE
KAYAK TO KLEMTU
LÉOLO
MAUDIE
NELLY
LES ORDRES
POUR LA SUITE DU MONDE
REMEMBER
SABAH
THE TROTSKY
VIDEODROME
WATER

— Canadian Film Day (@canfilmday) April 4, 2019

An alphabetical list is a great way to think about Canadian film as we celebrate National Canadian Film Day today. I decided to come up with my own list in the spirit of the exercise.

These are Canadian films that I have seen. I didn't necessarily pick the best film that started with the letter but compiled a list with a cross-section of Canadian film. I could not come up with X or Z (or Zed). I would love to do a documentary on Zed called Zed or Z in American.

I also picked different films from the @CanFilmDay list. My list isn't better or worse than their list or other lists.

All the Wrong Reasons
Better Than Chocolate
Cafe de Flore
The Decline of the American Empire
Empire of Dirt
The Five Senses
Goin’ Down the Road
Hard Core Logo
Into the Forest
Jesus of Montreal
Kissed
Last Night
Marion Bridge
New Waterford Girl
One Week
Polytechnique
Quebec-Montreal
The Red Violin
Stardom
Trigger
Unarmed Verses
Vic and Flo Saw a Bear
waydowntown
x
The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom
z

Those who live or are in Canada can celebrate at Canadian film gatherings across the country. You can celebrate in an more intimate setting with online streaming, films on cable channels, and films in Canadian theatres.

While CBC Gem is mostly for television, the service has quite a few Canadian film titles. A relative new trend is checking out Canadian films from your local library. You can support Canadian film and your local library at the same time. Canada Screens is another great option within Canada where you can rent individual films one at a time.

The necessity of Canadian films that don't seem Canadian

You can even explore Canadian films that don't look Canadian with subtitles in languages other than English or French or an indigenous language. They count, too.

Made Nous and other ways to promote Canadian content

Dream of a Starlight Canadian film channel should shift to a streaming service

Made | Nous has been a wonderful campaign to bring a spotlight to Canadian content. You can use your love of Canadian television to find films that have the same actor. Emily Hampshire just won a Canadian Screen Award for her portrayal of Stevie Budd on Schitt's Creek. You can see Hampshire in Canadian films such as The Death and Life of John F. Donovan, All the Wrong Reasons, My Awkward Sexual Adventure, Cosmopolis, Good Neighbours, and The Trotsky.

Kevin Hanchard has done a lot of Canadian television, including Orphan Black. Hanchard also played Dizzy Gillespie in Born to Be Blue.

Caroline Dhavernas is known for her TV work but has been in a number of Canadian films in English and French: Hochelaga, Land of Souls; The Forbidden Room; Mars et Avril; Passchendaele; and Niagara Motel.

This year's edition of the National Canadian Film Day has the theme of 100 years of Canadian film. Reel Canada points out the oldest surviving feature film from 1919: Nell Shipman's silent film Back to God’s Country.

I know I've seen a couple of shorter films from the 1960s. Goin' Down the Road (1970) and Mon Oncle Antoine (1971) are the caretakers to the shift to the modern era of Canadian film. You might choose a more recent Canadian film but you do have more options.

Celebrating National Canadian Film Day 2018

Celebrating National Canadian Film Day 2017

Celebrate the 2016 version of National Canadian Film Day

Celebrating National Canadian Film Day 2015

See a Canadian film on National Canadian Film Day (2014)

Those outside Canada can find plenty of Canadian films on streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.

2019 Canada Now Canadian film festival still too focused on U.S. coasts

Here are a bunch of Canadian films that pass the Bechdel test

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews coverage

You can gather more information about National Canadian Film Day 2019.

Twitter capture: @CanFilmDay
video credit: YouTube/Encore +
photo credit: National Canadian Film Day/Reel Canada

Canola farmers in Canada latest pawn in China battle over Meng Wanzhou arrest

As you watch all of those Huawei sponsorship mentions on Hockey Night in Canada on Rogers Sportsnet, consider that China still has 2 Canadians held captive in conditions much worse than how Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou is living in Vancouver. Another Canadian may be put to death.

Canadian canola farmers have been feeling the sting of China's retaliation, at least all of this is "unofficial" retaliation.

Canada sends a lot of canola to China, about $2.7 billion worth in 2018. Suddenly, Chinese customs inspectors said they found "dangerous pests" in Canada canola shipments. Shipments from 3 Canadian companies have been blocked.

• There is no reason to think "dangerous pests" even exist as China hasn't shown any proof.
• Some might struggle with the idea of "China" and "food safety" in the same sentence.

While everything is unofficial, the correlation is clear. China is still upset about the arrest of Meng Wanzhou on Canadian soil at the request of the United States.

Canada paying a price to go along with U.S. desire to arrest Meng Wanzhou

CanadianCrossing.com trade coverage

The original retaliation: 2-for-1 and in horrible conditions vs. living better than most people in Vancouver. A death penalty sentence and canola oil sales to China are icing on an over-frosted cupcake.

Canada could ban Huawei from its 5G networks. Australia is doing that. Australian coal shipments are "suddenly" running into extra scrutiny at Chinese ports, including impurity complaints.

The United States — the country that wanted Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou to be arrested and extradited — hasn't had any retaliation, mostly due to its size and impact of what the country could do in retaliation.

This op-ed provides enough details that, if they are close to being accurate about the conditions where Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig have been suffering for over 4 months, requires swift action.

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This scenario will not magically disappear short of Meng Wanzhou being on Chinese soil and a full apology from Canada, neither of which is happening. Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig are going to be trapped in deplorable conditions for some time.

Robert Lloyd Schellenberg is in a whole different nightmare. Schellenberg was found guilty of drug smuggling and sentenced to 15 years in November. After the Meng Wanzhou arrest, Schellenberg was retried and sentenced to death over the same charges in a one-day trial in Dalian.

There may be a delay in the very slow process, thanks to Meng Wanzhou filing a civil lawsuit, claiming she was unlawfully detained and questioned for 3 hours without being advised of her constitutional rights. She is entitled to file the lawsuit but you can't help but wonder that Canadians Spavor and Kovrig don't have those rights in China for much harsher treatment.

The Canadian canola farmers are innocent financial pawns. They might find other homes for the canola seeds but they had contracts with China.

China is upset against the Western world but Canada is paying the price. The allegations of the connection between Huawei and the Chinese government have strong credibility. In an open world, the threat of Canada banning Huawei from its 5G networks would be a financial incentive for China to release their "hostages." Canada and other countries don't want to use Huawei in their 5G networks but are seeing the financial impact in a world where denying them may not be possible.

photos credit: me

Video review: Mary Goes Round

As a child of a father who was a marriage counsellor with perhaps not the best marriage on the block, I could appreciate a story about a substance abuse counsellor with a drinking problem.

Mary Goes Round is about Mary, who gets arrested for drunk driving. She goes from the big city (Toronto) to where she grew up (Niagara Falls) back to her family. She shows up to find that her father is dying from cancer but he won't tell his younger daughter, the half-sister Mary has never met.

Aya Cash — an American actress know primarily for her lead role in the FXX series You're the Worst — gives us an innocence to Mary, who doesn't take the path that substance abuse counsellor Mary would take to help alcoholic Mary. Writer/director Molly McGlynn strikes an ideal balance with light and meaningful but never sappy. The concept could easily fall apart but everyone involved doesn't let that happen.

Being back at home, Mary searches for the connection between drinking and her family, taking on the added burden of getting to learn more about her half-sister while also taking care of her.

You get a feel of small-town Ontario in the film. Mary points out during a meeting that she is from Timmins and makes a Shania Twain reference.

TIFF 2017 preview

TIFF 2017 Canadian films preview

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

Kristian Bruun has a nice small role as a police officer. Emma Hunter plays a random friend Mary runs into while back home. Aaron Poole, in a less scary role than Strange Empire, plays Mary's Toronto boyfriend.

Bruun and Hunter starred in the McGlynn short film 3-Way (Not Calling) in 2016. The 2017 film was McGlynn's full-length film debut.

McGlynn hovers in the middle with the film not getting too high or low but does a marvelous job of setting the tone she wants and getting her audience to come along for the ride.

Mary Goes Round is available in the U.S. through Amazon Prime.

video credit: YouTube/Wilding Pictures
photo credit: Mary Goes Round

2019 Toronto Raptors NBA playoffs preview

The 2018-2019 Toronto Raptors are in the NBA playoffs for the 6th year in a row. Raptors players and fans alike want a more successful playoff run.

Despite setting a franchise record for wins (59), the Raptors went out in the 2nd round for 2 years in a row.;

LeBron James is in the other conference and not even in the playoffs.

The Raptors are the #2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 58-24 record, one game off the team record from last season. Toronto went an electric 32-9 at home and a great 26-15 road record. Toronto finished 2 games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the top spot in the East.

Toronto will play Orlando in the first round. The Magic finished 42-40 but lost the tiebreaker with Brooklyn to finish as the #7 seed. The teams split games in each city. Orlando won the only previous playoff series between the teams in 2008, a date that feels very far away in NBA time. The Magic haven't been in the playoffs since 2012.

Nick Nurse is in his first playoff season as the Toronto head coach. Nurse juggled 22 starting lineups during the regular season, as opposed to 12 starting lineups under previous coach Dwane Casey. Coach Casey had the same same starting lineup in 52 of 82 games. Kyle Lowry and Kawhi Leonard are the guys who run the board for the Toronto Raptors.

(2) Toronto vs. (7) Orlando Series tied 0-0
Date	Matchup	Time	U.S. TV	Cdn TV
April 13	Orlando @ Toronto	5p	ESPN	SN One
April 16	Orlando @ Toronto	8p	TNT	TSN
April 19	Toronto @ Orlando	7p	ESPN	SN One
April 21	Toronto @ Orlando	7p	TNT	TSN
April 23	Orlando @ Toronto+	TBD	TBD	TSN
April 25	Toronto @ Orlando+	TBD	TBD	SN One
April 27	Orlando @ Toronto+	TBD	TBD	TSN

Times are Eastern Daylight
+ if needed

The Toronto Raptors finally won a Game 1 in the opening round of the 2018 NBA playoffs. The Raptors had struggled with that even with really good players and teams. Being swept in the second round meant that there was only a single Game 1 win in last year's playoffs. 

The NBA doesn't reseed playoff brackets so if the Raptors advance, their opponent will either be Philadelphia (3) or Brooklyn (6).

TSN and Rogers Sportsnet will split Raptors playoff games. TSN will take Games 2, 4, 5, and 7 while Rogers has 1, 3, and 6. The Rogers games will be on Rogers Sportsnet One.

2018 Toronto Raptors NBA preview

CanadianCrossing.com NBA coverage

Kyle Lowry and Kawhi Leonard double team DeMar DeRozan and Leonard comes up with the steal and the slam!! pic.twitter.com/mhsVIUeGbF

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) February 23, 2019

The unspoken elephant is that Toronto traded a very popular player in DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard, who may leave the Raptors at the end of the season. There is a window that isn't opened very far. This is the time for the Toronto Raptors.

Toronto Raptors playoff history

2018	Cleveland	0-4
2018	Washington	4-2
2017	Cleveland	0-4
2017	Milwaukee	4-2
2016	Cleveland	2-4
2016	Miami	4-3
2016	Indiana	4-3
2015	Washington	0-4
2014	Brooklyn	3-4
2008	Orlando	1-4
2007	New Jersey	2-4
2002	Detroit	2-3
2001	Philadelphia	3-4
2001	New York	3-2
2000	New York	0-3

photo credit: ca.NBA.com
Twitter capture: @TSN_Sports

2019 Canada Now Canadian film festival still too focused on U.S. coasts

The 2019 version of Canada Now films sneaked past us and already launched in New York City and Los Angeles.

The New York City version at the IFC Center featuring some films we know, some films where we had no clue, and in the words of The New York Times: "Canadian productions in disguise."

Those words specifically applied to Hugh Hefner's After Dark: Speaking Out in America but also appears to apply to The Accountant of Auschwitz.

There are Canadian documentaries on the list that are known to our readers, which includes Anthropocene: The Human Epoch, winner of the top doc award at the 2019 Canadian Screen Awards, and Edge of the Knife.

The Fireflies Are Gone is the only other film besides Anthropocene: The Human Epoch on the list we've seen. Mouthpiece from Patricia Rozema is on my list and their list.

Clara and À tous ceux qui ne me lisent pas | For Those Who Don't Read Me, based on the poet Yves Boisvert from Yan Giroux, are completely new to me.

Other areas are getting fewer films or different films. As an example, the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica, CA got Through Black Spruce and Firecrackers. You can see all the films and all the dates in various places.

We love the idea of Canadian films touring the United States, but a real tour with advance publicity that isn't trapped by the yo-yo that is New York City and Los Angeles and somehow New Orleans most years.

This isn't just about Chicago but more about the idea that people in the middle of the United States could get into the idea of a Canadian film festival if one ever came to their city. Some of the dates are throwing in a film or two in another festival. Canada Now is its own festival in New York City and Los Angeles.

Canada Now is adding Germany and Mexico to the UK for international destinations, which is welcome news. Semana de Cine Canadiense (Canadian Film Week) just finished up in Mexico.

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

Telefilm Canada, which organises Canada Now, should spread the word to places that would warmly embrace Canadian film in the United States.

You can find out more about the 2019 Canada Now Canadian film lineup.

video and photo credit: Canada Now