Present and accounted for. ✅
— CFL (@CFL) October 22, 2023
PLAYOFF SATURDAYS ARE SET TO GO#GCPlayoffs | #GreyCup pic.twitter.com/FC7RR3irl5
The 2023 CFL playoffs look like the 2022 CFL playoffs. Same 6 teams, same 6 positions.
The 6-12 Calgary Stampeders don't have the worst record in CFL playoff history. Not even close. The BC Lions (12-6) don't have Nathan Rourke yet Vernon Adams Jr. had almost 5,000 passing yards.
The Stampeders have the momentum. BC had an extra week of rest.
Hamilton in Montréal is deja vu as well. The Alouettes (11-7) won the tiebreaker early on against the Tiger-Cats (8-10). The teams had a collective bye followed by a meaningless game at Molson Stadium last week. No magic punts for either team.
The Tiger-Cats would love to get to the Grey Cup at home at Tim Hortons Field. The problem is the team has a 0-7 record against the 2 teams in front of them.
TSN
Saturday
Hamilton @ Montréal, 3p
Calgary @ BC, 6:30p
Montréal defeated Hamilton at Tim Hortons Field 38-12 on June 23 and 27-14 on August 5. The final game was at Molson Stadium with a 22-20 Alouettes win on October 28. The Ticats quarterback situation is very different now so maybe season series isn't as relevant. Though Shawn Lemon came along late as a pass rushing force for the Alouettes.
The BC Lions outlasted Calgary at McMahon Stadium 25-15 on June 8 and handily defeated the Stampeders at home 37-9 on August 12. The Stampeders, fighting for their playoff lives, downed the Lions 41-16 at BC Place.
CFL Playoffs are set! LET'S GOOOO!
— Kristina Costabile (@kcostabile1) October 23, 2022
Western Final: TBD at Winnipeg
Western Semi-Final: Calgary at BC
Eastern Final: TBD at Toronto
Eastern Semi-Final: Hamilton at Montrealhttps://t.co/QZ7r7dQ4tF
This tweet was about the 2022 playoffs. Since the same teams are in the same positions, we thought this was noteworthy. Trevor Harris started in Montréal and was injured most of this season in Saskatchewan. Jake Maier is in the same position for Calgary. Nathan Rourke is in the NFL. Dane Evans is the backup to Vernon Adams Jr. in Vancouver.
Crossover? We don't need no stinking crossover. The 2023 CFL playoffs, for the third year in a row, have 6 teams: 3 in the East and 3 in the West. The crossover dominated the CFL playoff picture in the late 2010s. We have a link to last year's CFL playoffs preview if you want to look at the CFL crossover history.
The Ottawa RedBlacks were last in the playoffs in the 2018 Grey Cup. Ottawa was eliminated in the East but had a slim shot for the West playoffs. No East team has ever crossed over to the West. Ottawa fired assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Khari Jones.
Winnipeg and Toronto have byes and await their opponents for home games in those cities on November 11. Those were the sites of the CFL division finals in 2021 and 2022.
The 2023 Grey Cup is in Hamilton, home of the Tiger-Cats. The dream to play and win at a home Grey Cup is still alive.
The division semifinals and finals are on Saturdays, not Sundays. If you guessed 2008 was the last time this happened, you are smarter than your humble narrator.
2023 CFL Week 21 preview: Final regular season weekend
This is the second straight season with a indoor playoff game. This didn't used to be a big deal when SkyDome/Rogers Centre and Olympic Stadium were in play. The 2022 game at BC Place was the first indoor playoff game since 2016, also at BC Place.
Like last year's West Division semifinal, the upper bowl is open at BC Place.
The BC Lions under new owner Amar Doman get a well-deserved break in hosting the 2024 Grey Cup in Vancouver. The West Coast city has hosted the Grey Cup 16 times, the most recent time was 2014.
2023 CFL Week 20 preview
Montréal snapped the recent bad streak against Hamilton in the CFL playoffs in 2022. The Alouettes won 28-17, snapping a 3-game losing playoff streak against the Ticats dating back to 2011.
Given that a West team crept into the East semifinal 2016-2019, 2014, 2012, and 2009, Hamilton and Montréal couldn't get together too often in the CFL playoffs. This is the third year in a row the teams will play in the East semifinal.
| Year | Road | Home | Score |
| 2022 | Hamilton | Montréal | 28-17 |
| 2021 | Montréal | Hamilton | 12-23 |
| 2013 | Montréal | Hamilton | 16-19* |
| 2011 | Hamilton | Montréal | 52-44* |
*game went into overtime
The 2013 game was the infamous wind game in Guelph, ON.
| Team | Total | Home | Road |
| Saskatchewan | 9 | 6 | 3 |
| BC | 9 | 4 | 5 |
| Edmonton | 9 | 4 | 5 |
| Ottawa | 9 | 3 | 6 |
| Hamilton | 8 | 5 | 3 |
| Montréal | 8 | 3 | 5 |
| Winnipeg | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| Toronto | 5 | 4 | 1 |
| Calgary | 5 | 3 | 2 |
The CBS Sports Network meant more TV appearances. 4 of the 9 teams had half their games on U.S. TV: BC, Edmonton, Ottawa, and Saskatchewan. This included the worst 2 teams in the league in Ottawa and Edmonton.
Division winners Toronto and Winnipeg had 11 appearances combined.
Tim Hortons Field, home of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the Grey Cup, couldn't get on any ESPN channel in the previous 2 seasons. CBS Sports Network showed the stadium 5 times in 2023 and 8 overall appearances for the Ticats. Calgary was only shown at home in 2022 yet got 2 road appearances in 2023.
CBS Sports Network 2023 CFL schedule
Thursday June 8 BC @ Calgary, 9p
Saturday June 10 Ottawa @ Montréal, 7p
Friday June 16 Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 9p
Saturday June 17 Edmonton @ BC, 7p
Sunday June 18 Hamilton @ Toronto, 7p
Friday June 23 Montréal @ Hamilton, 7:30p
Saturday July 1 Winnipeg @ Montréal, 7p
Monday July 3 BC @ Toronto, 7p
Thursday July 6 Edmonton @ Saskatchewan, 9p
Saturday July 8 Ottawa @ Hamilton, 7p
Sunday July 9 Montréal @ BC, 7p
Thursday July 13 Hamilton @ Edmonton, 9p
Saturday July 15 Calgary @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Saturday July 22 Saskatchewan @ BC, 7p
Sunday July 23 Ottawa @ Calgary, 7p
Saturday July 29 Saskatchewan @ Toronto, 4p // Saturday July 29 BC @ Edmonton, 7p
Thursday August 3 BC @ Winnipeg, 8:30p
Saturday August 5 Montréal @ Hamilton, 7p
Sunday August 6 Ottawa @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Thursday August 10 Winnipeg @ Edmonton, 9p
Saturday August 12 Calgary @ BC, 7p
Thursday August 17 Edmonton @ Hamilton, 7:30p
Saturday August 19 Montréal @ Ottawa, 7p
Sunday August 20 BC @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Thursday August 24 Montréal @ Winnipeg, 8:30p
Sunday August 27 Ottawa @ Edmonton, 7p
Sunday September 3 Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Monday September 4 Toronto @ Hamilton, 3:30p // Monday September 4 Edmonton @ Calgary, 7p
Friday September 8 Hamilton @ Ottawa, 7:30p
Friday September 22 Saskatchewan @ Ottawa, 7p
Friday October 6 Edmonton @ Toronto, 7p
Monday October 9 Ottawa @ Montréal, 1p
As for the elephant on the U.S. side of the ledger (as well as anywhere that isn't Canada), for the first time in a long time, the CFL playoffs are not on U.S. television. You can watch the games live on CFL+. 6 hours each Saturday for the next 2 weeks plus Grey Cup Sunday.
You might be at an event on Canadian soil where seeing the first round of the playoffs isn't viable. You can watch the video recaps of the playoff games. Finding whole games online are possible long after the games are over. Use your magic skills to find them. You'll likely know the score.
Years ago, the CFL playoffs would be on tape delay in the middle of the night. Things aren't that uncivilised, just a different wavelength.
Your humble narrator will not be able to watch the first round live. As diehard as I am, a full game video once I know the score won't do a lot to lift my spirits. The timing of the division finals (and the semifinals) means not going out on a Saturday night.
We have had Grey Cup viewing parties in recent years, a nice way to gather ex-pats. Can't do that in the new TV deal.
Canadians can record the games, go out and have a real life, and come back to watch the CFL playoff games. No one else in the world has this luxury.
2023 CFL Week 19 preview
JAMES LETCHER JR.'s TURN 🤯#CFLGameday on TSN & RDS
— CFL (@CFL) October 28, 2023
📲 Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/DaqZN4RNp3
There also was another mini punt from the Alouettes. Cole Spieker pulled off the trick on Saturday. We said there would be no new tricks, just the same trick. The rematch ought to be intriguing since if the Ticats have a way to stop that play, we might see the solution this Saturday.
Edmonton and Ottawa had terrible home woes. The Elks got the North American record in all sports. Edmonton finished 2-7 at home in 2023, a strong improvement and half of the team's 4 wins.
Ottawa had 3 home wins in 2023, a considerable improvement. The RedBlacks finished 1-8 on the road.
CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage
Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor with Brit Dort finished up their regular season on a chilly night in Calgary on Friday.
Marshall Ferguson and Paul LaPolice were with Kenzie Lalonde in Montréal on that final Saturday. Rod Smith and Duane Forde with Claire Hanna did the late game in Ottawa.
Twitter captures: @CFL; @kcostabile1; @CFL
logo credit: CFL
photo credit: CBS Sports Network/CFL
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