Canadian Crossing

NHL the month in preview December 2023

Dwayne Roloson may not want to watch the lone TNT game in December (6) involving a Canadian team. The 2006 Stanley Cup final rematch could be triggering for Roloson. At least the Oilers have a new downtown arena instead of being out at Northlands Coliseum.

ESPN matches that with a rare trip to Canada where Connor Bedard will play Connor McDavid (12).

The NHL Network has a pair of Showcase games following the Vancouver Canucks to Minnesota (16) and Chicago (17). The Hughes brothers — Jack (New Jersey) and Quinn (Vancouver) — are a good reason for the U.S. channel to pay a visit to Vancouver (5).

The NHL Network has Canadian teams on 4 of the 5 HNIC Saturday nights: Boston in Toronto (2), Nashville in Canada's largest city (9), Sidney Crosby goes to Ottawa (16), and Carolina spends some of the holidays in Toronto (30).

ESPN+/Hulu is doing an unusual experiment, kicking up the Connor McDavid road obsession to 11. The streaming service will showcase Edmonton against the 3 New York City area teams in Belmont (19), Newark (21), and Midtown Manhattan between 7th and 8th Avenues from 31st to 33rd Street (22).

If Ray Ferraro is on those calls, we will be much more interested.

The NHL will take a seasonal break from December 24-26.

TNT

December 6
Carolina @ Edmonton, 9:30p

ESPN

December 12
Chicago @ Edmonton, 10p

NHL Network

December 2
Boston @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
December 5
New Jersey @ Vancouver, 10p
December 9
Nashville @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)
December 16
Vancouver @ Minnesota, 2p (NHLN Showcase)
December 17
Vancouver @ Chicago, 3p (NHLN Showcase)
December 23
Pittsburgh @ Ottawa, 7p (HNIC)
December 30
Carolina @ Toronto, 7p (HNIC)

ESPN+/Hulu

December 19
Edmonton @ NY Islanders, 7:30p
December 21
Edmonton @ New Jersey, 7:30p
December 22
Edmonton @ NY Rangers, 7:30p

Hockey Night in Canada

December 2

Boston @ Toronto, 7p/Detroit @ Montréal, 7p/Seattle @ Ottawa, 7p
Vancouver @ Calgary, 10p

December 9

Nashville @ Toronto, 7p/Montréal @ Buffalo, 7p/Ottawa @ Detroit, 7p
Carolina @ Vancouver, 10p

December 16

Pittsburgh @ Toronto, 7p/NY Islanders @ Montréal, 7p/Colorado @ Winnipeg, 7p
Florida @ Edmonton, 10p/Tampa Bay @ Calgary, 10p

December 23

Toronto @ Columbus, 7p/Pittsburgh @ Ottawa, 7p
Calgary @ Los Angeles, 10p/San Jose @ Vancouver, 10p

December 30

Carolina @ Toronto, 7p/Montréal @ Florida, 7p
Edmonton @ Los Angeles, 10p

Rogers Sportsnet national telecasts

December 4 Seattle @ Montréal, 7p/Carolina @ Winnipeg, 7:30p

December 6 Carolina @ Edmonton, 9:30p

December 9 New Jersey @ Calgary, 4p

December 10 New Jersey @ Edmonton, 4p

December 11 Toronto @ NY Islanders, 7p/Calgary @ Colorado, 9:30p

December 12 Calgary @ Las Vegas, 10p

December 13 Pittsburgh @ Montréal, 7p

December 14 Tampa Bay @ Edmonton, 9p

December 17 Vancouver @ Chicago, 3p

December 18 Montréal @ Winnipeg, 7:30p/Florida @ Calgary, 9:30p

December 20 Detroit @ Winnipeg, 7:30p

December 21 Calgary @ Anaheim, 10p

December 22 Edmonton @ NY Rangers, 7:30p

December 27 Ottawa @ Toronto, 7p/Seattle @ Calgary, 9:30p

December 28 Edmonton @ San Jose, 10:30p

2023 Heritage Classic wrapup: Battle of Alberta goes outdoors

2023 Heritage Classic preview: Battle of Alberta at Commonwealth Stadium

Appreciate your patience in our 2023 Heritage Classic wrapup. This game really should have been in early December after the Grey Cup. We were covering the 2023 Windsor International Film Festival and couldn't even watch the game live.

The Oilers got their second win of the year in the game. The game wasn't a bounce for either team. Better than San Jose but not by much.

The NHL insults Canada by having the outdoor games in October.

NHL the month in preview November 2023

Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft got to coach in the 2023 Heritage Classic. Edmonton fired Woodcroft and assistant coach Dave Manson on November 12.

Kris Knoblauch of the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack is the new head coach, joined by assistant coach Paul Coffey.

The Edmonton Oilers panicked after the team's 3-9-1 start, 1 of those wins being the 2023 Heritage Classic over Calgary, which hasn't fired its coach … yet. Knoblauch is Edmonton's 10th coach in the last 15 years.

Woodcroft had a 79-41-13 record as Oilers head coach. Will Knoblauch (nothing personal) do better? Neither of them is in goal for the Oilers.

NHL the month in preview October 2023

Where was your favourite Canadian NHL team in the standings on U.S. Thanksgiving? For those who care, Vancouver is #2 in its division (Smythe), Winnipeg is #3 in its division (Norris), and Toronto in a wild card spot (Adams). 

Montréal, Ottawa, Calgary, and Edmonton hope that trend does not hold. 

Tracking the NHL 2023 media changes

The TTC aka Toronto subway takes a lot of flak from those who live in Toronto. You can access Scotiabank Arena from Union Station without going outside.

William Nylander actually takes the TTC to the Toronto Maple Leafs home arena for nearly every game. Auston Matthews does not. 

Tyson Barrie reportedly took the subway to the arena when Barrie played in Toronto.

Professional athletes make enough money to drive to work. So seeing a NHL player on your way somewhere is a nice treat. Be respectful. They are literally going to work, same as millions who take a bus, train, or streetcar.

Alex DeBrincat leaves the Ottawa Senators in part to search for a nearby Chipotle

Maybe there is something to what the Ottawa team did, but something where Las Vegas deserves some kind of punishment for having the player after Ottawa had that person and the Senators get severely punished while Las Vegas gets off scot free. That sadly feels like the NHL these days.

Ottawa fired general manger Pierre Dorion in part because of the loss of the 1st round draft pick. Steve Staios, the club's president of hockey operations, will assume interim GM duties.

The Ottawa Senators will forfeit a 1st-round draft pick in either 2024, 2025, or 2026. The ruling noted that Ottawa didn't tell Las Vegas about the no-trade clause after Las Vegas tried to trade Evgeni Dadonov to the Anaheim Ducks.

Dadonov had a no-trade clause that the NHL claims Ottawa should have told Las Vegas. This non general manager imagines when a player is traded, the contract is forwarded to the new team. In said contract, any non trade clauses would be included.

Las Vegas made the trade, not Ottawa. The severe punishment doesn't come with an explanation on what Ottawa didn't do that would be different from normal NHL team protocol.

Since this rarely happens, we can't imagine of the NHL privileged teams (Las Vegas, Boston, Pittsburgh) would ever suffer such a penalty. We can sadly imagine a team such as Ottawa suffering such a penalty.

Dorion had been the Senators general manager since April 2016.

Movember is over. The mustaches have been out over the last month as a reminder about fighting cancer. Gord Downie died from cancer; the Tragically Hip Fireworks was a wonderful tune for the Hockey Night in Canada open on November 4.

2023 NHL preseason schedule

Gary Bettman may not be interested in Quebec City though the Los Angeles Kings are drawn to the Quebec provincial capital for the 2024 preseason. The Kings will train in Quebec City from October 2-6.

The Quebec government is helping out with $5 million to $7 million. The Kings will have some open practices as well as a couple of preseason games with Boston Bruins (3) and Florida (5).   

Montréal used to have a preseason game at the Videotron Centre yet that hasn't happened since September 20, 2018 with Washington as the opponent.

Philip Danault (Victoriaville), formerly with the Habs, and Pierre-Luc Dubois (Ste-Agathe-des-Monts), formerly with the Winnipeg Jets, are Quebec natives on the Los Angeles roster.

Our guide to the NHL Canadian teams coverage

November 2 Toronto @ Boston, 7:30p Steve Levy/Ray Ferraro/Emily Kaplan ESPN+/Hulu
November 4 Nashville @ Edmonton, 3p EJ Hradek/Kevin Weekes NHLN
November 9 Edmonton @ San Jose, 10:30p Mike Monaco/Cassie Campbell-Pascall ESPN+/Hulu
November 15 NY Islanders @ Vancouver, 10p Brendan Burke/Jennifer Botterill/Darren Pang TNT

Was fun to watch Ray Ferraro cover a Toronto game in Toronto, like in the TSN4 days. Not the same in a lot of ways, especially without Gord Miller. The November 9 game might have been part of why Edmonton fired Jay Woodcroft. 

Brendan Burke is the Team B play by play person for TNT so Burke covered his day job team in Vancouver. Burke is a professional but that is not a good look. We found out this was Jennifer Botterill's return to Vancouver since she was on the gold medal team for Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics.  

TNT's Eddie Olczyk did a little moonlighting, co-hosting After Hours with Scott Oake in Seattle. Olczyk has a good history with the original Winnipeg Jets and shared some memories with Oake.

Sportsnet threw a few wrenches in watching After Hours right away. You can eventually find the whole episode online though Canadians could get faster access through Sportsnet+. Those who can access CBC can watch the segment on television. 

We've seen John Garrett work a couple of Hockey Night in Canada games from Montréal this season. If you are cutting back your workload, Montréal trips are a good way to relax in a really beautiful city.

Ray Ferraro made his return to the Vancouver Canucks booth in Montréal. Ferraro and John Shorthouse proved to be a great combination on Rogers Sportsnet Pacific.

Gord Miller and Mike Johnson did an excellent job with the games in Sweden. They are used to international games. They even covered the Sunday game with Toronto for the NHL Network while John Bartlett and Garry Galley called that game from Stockholm on Sportsnet. 

Kyle Bukauskas had some fun with an homage to Mister Rogers in Pittsburgh on November 25. Of course, Rogers started Mister Rogers Neighbourhood with CBC in Toronto.

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

We are catching up on October and November in our December month in preview for CBC promos during Hockey Night in Canada games as seen on U.S. television.

The Pan American Games ran from October 20-November 5. Chris Cuthbert noted the irony of running that promo the day before the end of the games on November 4. The Parapan American Games ran from November 17-26.

CBC used promos for a non-Canadian TV show (Ghosts), which would seem to be a violation of its own internal rules.

For those new readers, Rogers Sportsnet is required to air 6 CBC promos during Hockey Night in Canada. Ideally, there should be 2 promos per period, within game action and not next to a commercial.

The Chris Cuthbert telecasts seem to run 5 promos except for November 25. John Shorthouse only gave us 4 promos on November 11.

Rogers Sportsnet claimed exclusivity of the Vancouver-Toronto game on November 11. We have noted this strategy before in previous seasons. This also means CBC and Citytv carried the game from Montréal that night.

We don't run the ads from the NHL Center Ice free preview anymore. We did note the terrible ad with Zack Hyman (Edmonton) and his former Toronto teammate Morgan Reilly for Pepsi Zero Sugar. They disagree on a celly but agree on a crappy soda.

October 21 early game: CBC News app; Santiago 2023 Pan American Games (1st); Bones of Crows; CBC News app (2nd); Halloween movies (The Witch) on CBC Gem (3rd)

October 28 early game: Santiago 2023 Pan American Games; CBC News app (1st); BlackBerry; Bones of Crows; Black Life: Untold Stories (2nd); CBC News app (3rd)

November 4 early game: BlackBerry; CBC News app (1st); Santiago 2023 Pan American Games (2nd); Black Life: Untold Stories; Ghosts (3rd)

November 11 early game: CBC News app (1st); BlackBerry; Ghosts (2nd); Black Life: Untold Stories (3rd)

November 25 early game: BlackBerry; CBC News app (1st); Ghosts; Santiago Parapan American Games; BlackBerry (2nd); CBC News app (3rd)

photo credit: NHL
video credit: Rogers Sportsnet

2023 Heritage Classic wrapup: Battle of Alberta goes outdoors

One crucial element missing from the vast majority of Heritage Classic games is rivalry. Sure Montréal played Ottawa in 2017 and there have been a couple of Toronto-Detroit games. Finally, the Battle of Alberta got to be a NHL outdoor game.

True, the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers were a combined 3-10-2 going into the Heritage Classic. Connor McDavid had been injured yet was healthy enough to play in the game.

Edmonton had a 3-1 lead after the 1st period to ride a 5-2 win over Calgary at the 2023 Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on October 29.

Brett Kulak, from Stony Plain, Alberta, scored the first goal for the Oilers. Evander Kane (goal, 2 assists), Zach Hyman, Evan Bouchard, and Vincent Desharnais also had goals for the Oilers. A.J. Greer and Nazem Kadri scored goals for the Flames.

The loss extended the Calgary losing streak to 5 games. Edmonton snapped a 4-game losing streak.

Leon Draisaitl had 2 assists for Edmonton while Connor McDavid had an assist. Reminiscent of playing in a football stadium, Draisaitl had a solid kick of the puck after he used his broken stick, leading to a penalty.

The Oilers (left) and Flames (right) had some fun with their arrival at Commonwealth Stadium. This is part of the charm with these outdoor games.

An oddity in that both starting goalies for the game — Stuart Skinner (Edmonton) and Jacob Markstrom (Calgary) — had never started a NHL outdoor game.

Game time temperature was a reasonably comfortable 3° Celsius at puck drop.

The #Flames and Oilers will bring a combined 3-10-2 record into the Heritage Classic.

— Ryan Pike (@RyanNPike) October 27, 2023

We figured the U.S. coverage would be embarrassingly bad but Turner exceeded our low expectations. As we noted, the Heritage Classic originally didn't show up on either the TNT or ESPN schedule. Turner never sent out a release for the game. The game aired on TBS, never used for a regular season game in the current contract.

John Forslund and Eddie Olczyk called the game but weren't in Canada. Anson Carter and Jackie Redmond, who are Canadian, were on site. The studio crew wasn't used except for host Liam McHugh and somehow Brian Boucher.

There was a pregame of sorts. The best part was Wayne Gretzky explaining the history of the Battle of Alberta, like from the 1980s when he played. TBS did air the pregame ceremonies and O Canada. Of course, TBS aired no postgame for the Heritage Classic though the channel did air Nickelback. Sorry.

The NHL Network did offer the Rogers Sportsnet feed the next day but only the 90-minute version. Rogers Sportsnet was also there for Hockey Night in Canada the day before the game. They know how to cover the Heritage Classic.

2023 Heritage Classic preview: Battle of Alberta at Commonwealth Stadium

2022 Heritage Classic wrapup

2022 Heritage Classic preview

The purpose of having an outdoor game in Edmonton in 2023 was the 20th anniversary of the 2023 Heritage Classic, the NHL's first regular-season outdoor game in the modern era. The game was on Hockey Night in Canada with Chris Cuthbert on the call with Greg Millen with 57,167 fans on a very cold night at Commonwealth Stadium. The wind chill temperatures reached -30° Celsius as the Montréal Canadiens defeated the Edmonton Oilers 4-3.

CanadianCrossing.com Alberta coverage

Other than 2021, the Battle of Alberta has been banned from U.S. national television during the regular season. We saw promos for future U.S. outdoor games during the Heritage Classic. Turner did everything possible to not get people to watch the Battle of Alberta in the United States.

This is one of the best NHL rivalries and the NHL management doesn't care. Even Major League Soccer isn't that inept.

For those who watched, the temperatures and ice were good and made for a wonderful evening. The 2023 Heritage Classic drew 55,411 fans.

As we noted, the Canadian outdoor games don't usually get heated rivalries. Toronto and Montréal could have a rivalry game at Stade Saputo or Percival Molson Stadium but the NHL does not seem interested in an outdoor game in La Belle Province.

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

If you missed the NHL Network rebroadcast, we have a condensed video of highlights from the 2023 Heritage Classic in Edmonton at the top of the page.

Canadian NHL teams in outdoor games

Year	Date	Stadium	Result
2003	November 22	Commonwealth Stadium	Montréal 4, Edmonton 3
2011	February 20	McMahon Stadium	Calgary 4, Montréal 0
2014	January 1	Michigan Stadium	Toronto 3, Detroit 2 (SO)
2014	March 2	BC Place	Ottawa 4, Vancouver 2
2016	January 1	Gillette Stadium	Montréal 5, Boston 1
2016	October 23	Investors Group Field	Edmonton 3, Winnipeg 0
2017	January 1	BMO Field	Toronto 5, Detroit 4 (SO)
2017	December 16	TD Place	Ottawa 3, Montréal 0
2018	March 3	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	Washington 5, Toronto 2
2019	October 26	Mosaic Stadium	Winnipeg 2, Calgary 1 (OT)
2022	March 13	Tim Hortons Field	Buffalo 5, Toronto 2
2023	October 29	Commonwealth Stadium	Edmonton 5, Calgary 2

video credit: Rogers Sportsnet/NHL
photo credit: NHL
Twitter capture: @RyanNPike

2023 Heritage Classic preview: Battle of Alberta at Commonwealth Stadium

The Battle of Alberta on outdoor ice will finally be an event. The 2023 Heritage Classic won't be at Lake Louise, which would have been an awesome experience. The site is Commonwealth Stadium, home of the CFL Edmonton Elks, the original place for the first outdoor NHL game in the modern era. The NHL stole this idea and allow American-based teams to dominate the outdoor schedule.

The Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers meet on Sunday at 7 pm Eastern/5 pm Mountain in the 2023 Heritage Classic.

Gary Bettman and the NHL have gone out of their way in recent times to reduce the significance of any Canadian outdoor game by placing them so early in the schedule, when even Edmonton isn't that cold.

The embarrassment continues on the U.S. side because TBS, a channel that has never carried a regular season NHL game, will carry the game. Rogers Sportsnet, with announcers who understand the Battle of Alberta, will have the game in Canada.

We will update the TBS announcers when the release comes out this week. You can also check for yourself. Ugh.

Chris Cuthbert, who called the 2003 game in Edmonton, will also call the 2023 version. Of course, Cuthbert had called many events at Commonwealth Stadium, mostly CFL games for CBC and later for TSN.

We will also update this entry with Sportsnet info. Ron MacLean has said the HNIC crew will be in Edmonton the night before the 2023 Heritage Classic.

NHL the month in preview October 2023

INJURY UPDATE ⬇️

Connor McDavid suffered an upper body injury during last night’s game vs. the Jets & is expected to be out of the #Oilers lineup for one to two weeks. pic.twitter.com/qU5dNKuUcC

— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) October 22, 2023

The one element the NHL and yes, even Bettman wanted in the 2023 Heritage Classic was a healthy Connor McDavid. His recent upper body injury will likely keep him out of the game.

2022 Heritage Classic wrapup

2022 Heritage Classic preview

Edmonton and Calgary played Les Habs in previous Heritage Classic games. The Oilers lost 4-3 in 2003 to Montréal at Commonwealth Stadium in 2003. Calgary shut out Montréal 4-0 at McMahon Stadium in 2011.

Each team has also played the Winnipeg Jets in the Heritage Classic. Edmonton won 3-0 over the Jets at Investors Group Field in 2016. The Flames lost 2-1 in overtime at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan in 2019.

The #NHL ice truck has arrived and they have begun setting up for the 2023 Tim Hortons Heritage Classic. #Oilers #Flames pic.twitter.com/jd1DC3Ep5c

— Derek Van Diest (@DerekVanDiest) October 17, 2023

The Edmonton Elks announced that the team will close the upper bowl in 2024. The 2023 Heritage Classic should be the last time for awhile where we see fans in the upper bowl.

This is how we remind you Nickelback is playing the 2023 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic between the @EdmontonOilers
and @NHLFlames. ⤵️ https://t.co/cQrUcP0EwT

— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) October 13, 2023

The U.S. outlets don't usually cover too much of the in between period action. This might be a good thing for the 2023 Heritage Classic since Nickelback is playing. Nickleback is Canadian but the band is still … Nickleback. First, a documentary (Hate to Love: Nickelback) and now this.

CanadianCrossing.com Alberta coverage

The NHL Network offers a rebroadcast in the hopes of carrying the Rogers Sportsnet feed. The only rebroadcast is in a 90-minute block so the whole game won't be shown in the rebroadcast. The NHL Network would never do that to the U.S.-based outdoor games. That rebroadcast runs at 2 pm Eastern on October 30.

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

We will report back on this game in November since we have other priorities. This is way too early in the season to play this significant of a game.

Canadian NHL teams in outdoor games

Year	Date	Stadium	Result
2003	November 22	Commonwealth Stadium	Montréal 4, Edmonton 3
2011	February 20	McMahon Stadium	Calgary 4, Montréal 0
2014	January 1	Michigan Stadium	Toronto 3, Detroit 2 (SO)
2014	March 2	BC Place	Ottawa 4, Vancouver 2
2016	January 1	Gillette Stadium	Montréal 5, Boston 1
2016	October 23	Investors Group Field	Edmonton 3, Winnipeg 0
2017	January 1	BMO Field	Toronto 5, Detroit 4 (SO)
2017	December 16	TD Place	Ottawa 3, Montréal 0
2018	March 3	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium	Washington 5, Toronto 2
2019	October 26	Mosaic Stadium	Winnipeg 2, Calgary 1 (OT)
2022	March 13	Tim Hortons Field	Buffalo 5, Toronto 2
2023	October 29	Commonwealth Stadium	Calgary vs. Edmonton

photo credit: NHL
Twitter captures: @EdmontonOilers; @DerekVanDiest; @NHLdotcom

Tracking the NHL 2023 media changes

This is Year 3 of the new U.S. TV deal. ESPN has the Stanley Cup finals this season.

There is one major change at TNT. Good news for ESPN viewers, bad news for TNT viewers: Brian Boucher somehow retains employment. Boucher replaces Keith Jones, who jumped to the Philadelphia Flyers on the management side. Jones was a better asset on games than as a studio analyst for NBC.

Patrick Sharp worked as a fill-in analyst on the playoffs on TNT as well as working in Chicago. The Philadelphia Flyers hired Sharp to be a special advisor to hockey operations.

As a reminder: Kenny Albert, Eddie Olczyk, and Boucher are the primary team with Brendan Burke, Darren Pang, and Jennifer Botterill (Rogers Sportsnet) as the backup team. Liam McHugh leads the studio crew with Anson Carter, Paul Bissonnette, and Henrik Lundqvist and sometimes Wayne Gretzky. Tarik El-Bashir, and Jackie Redmond (Canadian) also contribute to the TNT package. Alex Faust may get some games for TNT.

Most of the TNT telecasts with Canadian teams will involve the secondary teams, so less of Boucher is always a good thing.

Here is the TNT schedule involving Canadian teams. Schedule is subject to change. The original TNT release didn't mention the Heritage Classic, which will somehow air on TBS, a regular season first for the U.S. channel.

October 29 Calgary @ Edmonton, 7p (Heritage Classic) TBS
November 15 NY Islanders @ Vancouver, 10p
December 6 Carolina @ Edmonton, 9:30p
February 21 Boston @ Edmonton, 10p
February 28 St. Louis @ Edmonton, 8:30p
March 6 Buffalo @ Toronto, 7p
March 10 Edmonton @ Pittsburgh, 1p (Sunday)
March 13 Washington @ Edmonton, 10p
March 20 Toronto @ Washington, 7:30p
March 31 Anaheim @ Vancouver, 3:30p (Sunday)
April 10 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 8:30p

Edmonton gets 7 games, 5 of them at home, 6 if you count Commonwealth Stadium. Vancouver gets 2 home games. Toronto only gets 2 games, home and road. Calgary only gets in because of the Heritage Classic. There are only 5 games before March 1.

Montréal, Winnipeg, and Ottawa are shut out. The TNT schedule has mostly Wednesday doubleheaders with some Sunday games.

ESPN acquires primary U.S. NHL package in new 7-year deal

ESPN will have the Stanley Cup finals in 2024. As we noted up top, Brian Boucher jumped from ESPN to TNT. Good for ESPN.

The ESPN lineups are pretty much the same. ESPN let go Chris Chelios as part of the many budget cuts at ESPN. Great player but didn't add much in the studio.

The regular season package is on ESPN and ABC. ESPN is taking stronger anxiety pills and will allow its crews to go places in Canada other than Alberta. ESPN refused to touch Canada in Year 1 and only offered 2 Alberta home games in January 2023.

Edmonton does have an ABC game, though in Dallas.

The ESPN group did carry Winnipeg and Calgary last year. Only Toronto and Edmonton get to play within the ESPN group.

The March 30 game is a Hockey Night in Canada game. We are hoping that is a mistake.

The ESPN+/Hulu games are exclusive within the local markets. The ESPN play-by-play people are Sean McDonough, Steve Levy, John Buccigross, Bob Wischusen, and Leah Hextall (Canadian). Colour analysts include Ray Ferraro, Cassie Campbell-Pascall, Kevin Weekes, A.J. Mleczko, Hilary Knight, and Ryan Callahan. Studio analysts include Mark Messier and Rick DiPietro.

ESPN has reporters: Blake Bolden, Emily Kaplan, and Greg Wyshynski. Linda Cohn will host In the Crease for ESPN+ and contribute to NHL coverage.

Barry Melrose announced his retirement from ESPN due to being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Melrose was a lone light in the darkness that was ESPN's NHL coverage for a very long time. A good guy and a huge loss to the NHL coverage in the United States.

Here is the ESPN and ESPN+/Hulu schedule involving Canadian teams. Schedule is subject to change.

October 19 Edmonton @ Philadelphia, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
October 24 Toronto @ Washington, 6p ESPN
October 31 Los Angeles @ Toronto, 8p ESPN

November 2 Toronto @ Boston, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
November 9 Edmonton @ San Jose, 10:30p ESPN+/Hulu

December 12 Chicago @ Edmonton, 10p ESPN
December 19 Edmonton @ NY Islanders, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
December 21 Edmonton @ New Jersey, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
December 22 Edmonton @ NY Rangers, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu

January 2 Toronto @ Los Angeles, 10:30p ESPN+/Hulu
January 9 Edmonton @ Chicago, 8:30p ESPN+/Hulu
January 11 Toronto @ NY Islanders, 7p ESPN

February 6 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 10p ESPN+/Hulu
February 17 Edmonton @ Dallas, 3p ABC (Saturday)
February 19 Toronto @ St. Louis, 1p ESPN

March 5 Edmonton @ Boston, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
March 9 Edmonton @ Buffalo, 12:30p ESPN+/Hulu (Saturday)
March 26 New Jersey @ Toronto, 7:30p ESPN+/Hulu
March 30 Toronto @ Buffalo, 7p ESPN+/Hulu (HNIC)

April 16 Toronto @ Florida, 7:30p ESPN
April 18 Edmonton @ Colorado, 9:30p ESPN

pic.twitter.com/E3Fc1Gkb7J

— Dave Tomlinson (@HockeyDaveT) September 19, 2023

Dave Tomlinson replaces John Garrett on Canucks local TV on Rogers Sportsnet Pacific. Garrett retired as the Vancouver TV analyst this spring but will stay on as an analyst for Hockey Night in Canada.

Ray Ferraro will join select Canucks games as an analyst. Ferraro will continue to work for ESPN, so figure mostly home games that don't interfere with his ESPN workload.

Tomlinson called Canucks games on radio from 2010-2017 and was the Seattle Kraken radio analyst the last 2 seasons.

Ferraro worked for Canucks TV (separate from Rogers Sportsnet Pacific) in 2009-2010 as a rinkside reporter and studio analyst. Ferraro left TSN just about a year ago. What a journey!!

John Shorthouse and Garrett had amazing chemistry together and had fun, even during a bad Canucks game. This is about as good a solution as Vancouver and Rogers Sportsnet could find.

John Garrett retirement opens the door of opportunity for Vancouver Canucks TV colour analysis

Victor Findlay replaces Peter Ruttgaizer as the play-by-play voice for TSN 690 and the Montréal Canadiens game broadcasts. Findlay has filled in on Habs and Ottawa Senators telecasts on TSN. Findlay and Jon Abbott were essentially the replacements for Chris Cuthbert when Cuthbert left for Rogers Sportsnet in 2020.

Findlay also covered Champions Hockey League hockey. Findlay will likely fill in for Bryan Mudryk on Habs telecasts when Mudryk covers the Briar.

A combination of J.P. O'Connor (mainly weekday games) and Jon Goyens (weekend games) replaces Sergio Momesso as radio analysts on Habs games in English.

2-time Olympic gold medal winner Meaghan Mikkelson is the new radio analyst for the Calgary Flames. Mikkelson replaces Peter Loubardias, who left after 10 years of Calgary Flames colour radio analysis. You might remember that Loubardias was the TV play by play voice for the Flames from 2008-2011.

Toronto Maple Leafs fans will miss Leafs Lunch on TSN 1050 in Toronto, a casualty of the many Bell Media cuts. TSN 1050 replaced the segment with ESPN programming.

I will just say this: If cutting loose a broadcaster of @alex_faust’s caliber is the right decision than our business is in way worse shape than I even thought it was. https://t.co/i9nCARu5BG

— Brendan Burke (@brendanmburke) June 5, 2023

Alex Faust was one of the best assets for the Los Angeles Kings and he isn't on the ice. The Kings decided to be foolish and go to a TV-radio simulcast that doesn't include Faust.

Faust has spent the summer calling baseball games for Apple TV+ so he isn't starving. TNT would definitely use him for occasional West Coast games and the playoffs unless ESPN or someone else grabs him.

We don't give much praise to U.S. announcers but Faust is an exception. Maybe Rogers Sportsnet would give Faust some Hockey Night in Canada games on the West Coast.

Darren Pang has a Chicago connection, being a Hawks goalie in the 1980s. The Bally instability in St. Louis is likely the reason Pang jumped from the St. Louis Blues to Chicago. The Hawks had been juggling the analyst role since Eddie Olczyk left for the Seattle Kraken. Here's hoping Troy Murray is the fill-in when Pang has TNT duties.

Chicago let go Colby Cohen from the broadcast team. Jamie Rivers replaces Pang on the St. Louis telecasts.

Brian Boucher also replaces Keith Jones on Philadelphia Flyers telecasts on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Pittsburgh made a bunch of changes to its broadcast team. On the play by play side, Steve Mears goes from TV to radio and Josh Getzoff from radio to TV. Longtime TV colour analyst Bob Errey is no longer on the telecasts.

Al Kinisky replaces Dave Tomlinson as the Seattle Kraken radio analyst to work with Everett Fitzhugh.

Our guide to the NHL Canadian teams coverage

2023 NHL preseason schedule

CanadianCrossing.com NHL coverage

We have our October preview tomorrow, the true start of the NHL regular season for the Canadian teams.

photo credits: NHL on TNT; NHL on ESPN
Twitter capture: @HockeyDaveT; @brendanmburke

2023 CFL Week 18 preview: Thanksgiving weekend

Edmonton at Toronto may not sound like an exciting matchup. When the 2021 Elks were forced to finish with 3 games in 7 days (thanks to COVID-19), Edmonton did win in Toronto on a Tuesday night. The 2023 Argos aren't likely to lose to Edmonton but you never know.

An Elks loss means no playoffs in Edmonton. CBS Sports Network has this game on tap.

Winnipeg and BC play for the tiebreaker late on Friday in Vancouver. This is by far the best game of the holiday weekend. Worth watching on CFL+.

Hamilton fans travel well though the Roughriders are traditionally tough at home. Each team is fighting for playoff position. The game featuring the 2 non-NHL markets is on the final Saturday of the CFL season before Hockey Night in Canada dominates the Canadian sports schedule.

Ottawa and Montréal complete the Hwy 417 rivalry for the year on Thanksgiving Monday in La Belle Province. The CFL used to have a Thanksgiving doubleheader but we should be thankful (pun intended) that the CFL even plays on the actual holiday.

CBS Sports Network has this game as promised: its final telecast of the season.

Calgary gets extra turkey for the holiday and doesn't have to run around too much.

CBS Sports Network

Friday
Edmonton @ Toronto, 7p
Monday
Ottawa @ Montréal, 1p

TSN

Friday
Edmonton @ Toronto, 7p
Winnipeg @ BC, 10p
Saturday
Hamilton @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Monday
Ottawa @ Montréal, 1p

Bye week: Calgary

One of those "Only in the CFL" kind of moments 👀

📺 #CFLGameday on @TSN_Sports, RDS
📲 Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/pjErv8jnDt

— CFL (@CFL) September 30, 2023

2nd-and-18. A short pass to the running back. Wait. What!! A short dribble kick and then falls on the ball. 1st down!!!

Some may wonder if I cover the CFL for plays such as these. There is a bit of truth to this. Montréal running back Jeshrun Antwi performed a bit of CFL magic to secure a first down. All the Ottawa defenders were more than 5 yards away so there wouldn't be a no yards penalty. Recovering one's own onside kick is a thing in the league up north.

The key to the play was that Antwi was behind the line of scrimmage when punting the ball and recovering the ball past the line of scrimmage.

A punter can always recover a punt as long as the punt is behind the line of scrimmage and the punter recovers the ball across the line of scrimmage. Doesn’t matter how far the punt goes. If the player recovers the ball like Antwi did, the team gets a fresh set of downs.

The Alouettes could have saved this for a Hamilton playoff game or at BMO Field in mid-November. To be fair, Antwi attempted the same play in July in Vancouver, but missed the kick.

Joseph Zema came in second for unusual plays by an Alouettes player. Zema "inadvertently" kicked the ball out of the arms of Redblacks returner Brandon Dandridge. David Cote tried a 46-yard field goal with Dandridge was returning the miss. Alouettes tight end Regis Cibasu recovered the fumble.

In most CFL games, a Pick 6 for a touchdown would be the highlight. Montréal safety Marc-Antoine Dequoy went 108 yards for a Pick 6. Dequoy now has a career-high 5 interceptions in 2023.

Ottawa had 6 turnovers, going from +8 before the game to +2 as a team. The RedBlacks still haven't beaten an East team in 2023.

2023 CFL Week 17 preview

Oh my gosh, Toronto lost for only the second time this season but no one really cared about that. Winnipeg needed the game more to keep up with the BC Lions. The Blue Bombers and Lions will be 1-2 in the West. BC has a domed stadium in BC Place and would love to have home field for the West final (and a week off). Winnipeg wants cold and snow at IG Field since their running game is much better than what BC has.

Saskatchewan now has a 4-game losing streak with losses to Edmonton and Ottawa in that streak. Yet the Roughriders (6-9) still have a 2-game edge on Calgary (4-11) and Edmonton (4-11). There will not be a crossover to the East so the teams are fighting to be the road team in the West semifinal, either in Winnipeg or Vancouver.

Saskatchewan has the tiebreaker with Edmonton and will play for the tiebreaker with Calgary next week. A Roughriders win over Hamilton this week eliminates Edmonton and a potential Ottawa crossover. The RedBlacks can't gain an East playoff spot but have a very slim chance of a crossover to the West, something no East team has ever done.

Montréal and Hamilton clinched playoff spots. The Alouettes have a 1-game lead on the Tiger-Cats and the tiebreaker with Hamilton: the teams play in the final game of the season.

The Hamilton victory shows the potential impact of quarterbacks recovering from injury. The return of Matthew Shiltz made an impact after replacing Taylor Powell as the Ticats quarterback. Mason Fine is back for Saskatchewan. The return of Trevor Harris could make an impact in the playoffs for the Roughriders.

Meanwhile, Calgary's Jake Maier, the Stampeders starter, couldn't get a touchdown in Hamilton. Even the threat of a deep ball would have helped Calgary.

Edmonton is technically alive for the playoffs with 3 games to go. Ottawa is alive but only as a crossover. The RedBlacks lost the 2018 Grey Cup and haven't been to the playoffs since that time.

2023 CFL Week 16 preview

Even if the Saskatchewan Roughriders don't make it to the 110th Grey Cup in Hamilton, there will be green as part of the celebration. Green as in Green Day, the halftime band for the Grey Cup.

This would be more impressive in the United States if the game was on TV. Hamilton is the furthest team south in the CFL (a bit south of Toronto) so that might be encouraging to draw a well-known band for the Grey Cup.

2023 CFL Week 15 preview

The CFL traditionally had a Thanksgiving Monday doubleheader. The league even blew off the day in 2019. The CFL has a story on recent exciting Thanksgiving weekend games. Your humble narrator recalls the 2011 game mentioned involving Anthony Calvillo.

A titan of the game, and a #CFL legend.

It is with tremendous sadness that the Canadian Football League mourns the loss of George Reed.https://t.co/abzVNYZCtI pic.twitter.com/maT0aYdpiM

— CFL (@CFL) October 2, 2023

George Reed was before my time in knowing about the CFL. I certainly heard people talk about how great Reed was for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. I have a friend in Saskatchewan who named his son Reed after George Reed. Sorry to hear of his passing.

Wab Kinew becomes first First Nations premier with NDP win in Manitoba

We didn't mention a battle of former Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Tuesday's Manitoba election. Obby Khan (PC) defeated Willard Reaves (Liberal) in the Fort Whyte riding in southwestern Winnipeg. Khan beat Reaves in the 2022 byelection to replace former premier Brian Pallister, albeit by a close margin. Khan became the first Muslim elected to the Manitoba legislature.

We have noted a number of Canadian politicians with football backgrounds. Yes, Reaves' son Ryan is a new member of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Rod Smith and Duane Forde had another busy weekend, starting out in Winnipeg on Friday night with John Lu and on Saturday in Hamilton with Matthew Scianitti.

Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor were in the sunny weather in Vancouver with Farhan Lalji on Friday night. Marshall Ferguson and Matt Dunigan got a more interesting game in Ottawa on Saturday afternoon with Kenzie Lalonde.

logo credit and Twitter captures: @CFL

2023 Toronto Blue Jays MLB playoffs preview

The Toronto Blue Jays have lost their last 5 American League playoff games: the final game in the ALCS to Cleveland in 2016, 2 in Tampa Bay in 2020, and 2 in Seattle at home in 2022.

Thanks to the Houston win and Texas loss on Sunday, the 2023 Toronto Blue Jays will play the wild card round in Minnesota. The Blue Jays losing playoff streak may seem sad but the Minnesota Twins have lost 18 straight playoff games. The last Twins postseason win was Game 1 in the 2004 ALDS at Yankee Stadium. The Twins have lost 13 of those 18 games to the New York Yankees.

The Toronto Blue Jays finished 89-73 losing the final 2 home games to Tampa Bay, the team Toronto would have played in the postseason. The Minnesota Twins won the AL Central with a 87-75 record. The Twins finished 7-3 in the final 10 games while the Blue Jays went 4-6.

The Jays and Twins split their 6-game season series, winning 2 out of 3 each in the road stadium.

Kevin Gausman will pitch Game 1.

Brandon Belt and George Springer have World Series winning experience. The young core is more mature yet that core (Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., etc.) with Springer is 0-4 with the Game 2 nightmare against the Mariners at Rogers Centre.

This is the postseason action for Davis Schneider.

The starting pitchers are better. The bullpen is hit and miss, especially down the stretch. The catching depth is not as deep. The outfield defense is vastly improved. The home runs are down.

This is the time to see whether the Toronto Blue Jays can take things to the #NextLevel.

The Wild Card Series schedule with times pic.twitter.com/AlTcxeS8ll

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 1, 2023

4:38 pm start times will be in effect for Game 1 and Game 2. The times are subject to change on Thursday depending on how many games are remaining. You might remember from last year's schedule that the Blue Jays would have been on ABC in the States had Toronto not choked in Game 2 at Rogers Centre against Seattle.

MLB has announced that if Toronto needs a Game 3 in a 2-series scenario on Thursday, the game moves to 3:08 pm on ABC. if the Blue Jays are the only Game 3, the game moves to 7:08 pm on ESPN.

Rogers Sportsnet will produce its own telecasts in Canada with Dan Shulman and Buck Martinez. In a miracle, the Blue Jays radio people will be on site at Target Field in downtown Minneapolis. Citytv might sim sub a Blue Jays playoff game on ABC.

ESPN will send Michael Kay and Alex Rodriguez to Minnesota. Could be worse; could be the Sunday Night Baseball crew.

2023 Toronto Blue Jays second half preview

2023 Canada Day notebook

Rogers Centre renovations help but Canada still needs a really good baseball stadium

Wanna see what it’s like to be part of a Postseason celebration? #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/cgjEnhnQfh

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) October 2, 2023

2023 Toronto Blue Jays preview

2023 Toronto Blue Jays spring training schedule

CanadianCrossing.com MLB coverage

Former Minnesota pitcher Jose Berrios (11-12, 3.65) as well as Chris Bassitt (16-8, 3.60) will likely draw the other starts. Yusei Kikuchi (11-6, 3.86) could be in long relief or even throw a crucial inning. Hyun-jin Ryu is also an option.

You might remember Edouard Julien at 2nd base for the Canada team at the World Baseball Classic this spring. Julien plays for Minnesota: Julien hit .263 with an on-base percentage of .381 — as the Twins leadoff hitter — with 16 HR and 64 RBI. While Julien won't play in Canada in the postseason, he does know the words to O Canada. Julien, in his rookie season, is from Quebec City.

John Schneider has a career regular-season record of 135-101 with Toronto, 0-2 in the postseason thanks to the Seattle sweep in 2022.

Toronto Blue Jays playoffs history

2022	Seattle	0-2
2020	Tampa Bay	0-2
2016	Cleveland	1-4
2016	Texas	3-0
2016	Baltimore	1-0
2015	Kansas City	2-4
2015	Texas	3-2
1993	Philadelphia	4-2
1993	Chicago (AL)	4-2
1992	Atlanta	4-2
1992	Oakland	4-2
1991	Minnesota	1-4
1989	Oakland	1-4
1985	Kansas City	3-4

photo credit: @Bluejays
Twitter captures: @BNightengale; @BlueJays

2023 CFL Week 16 preview

Saskatchewan is coming off a tough loss to Edmonton and can use a road win, even if that means a trip to Ottawa. Crossover is the unofficial theme of this contest to start out Friday night.

CBS Sports Network comes off the bench to show this game.

BC travels to Edmonton for the final time this season. The teams have played in Edmonton and Vancouver, a Lions shutout both times. A point for the Elks would be an improvement in the latter half of the Friday doubleheader.

Calgary has done poorly at home. Montréal may see an opening to start out the Saturday doubleheader in the afternoon in Calgary.

Hamilton finally gets its revenge game in Toronto following the Labour Day contest. A good chance for the Argos to draw a good crowd in prime time on Saturday night.

CFL+ has the final 3 games of the week for our American readers.

Winnipeg needs a rest after a trip to Hamilton and has reasonably good weather to enjoy a week off from football.

CBS Sports Network

Friday
Saskatchewan @ Ottawa, 7p

TSN

Friday
Saskatchewan @ Ottawa, 7p
BC @ Edmonton, 9:30p
Saturday
Montréal @ Calgary, 4p
Hamilton @ Toronto, 7p

Bye week: Winnipeg

THIS GAME’S NOT OVER YET#Redblacks #BCLions #CFLpic.twitter.com/NRENgfpAjK

— 3DownNation (@3DownNation) September 17, 2023

Sure Ottawa had lost 6 straight games but all 3 of the RedBlacks wins have been against the West. Sure Ottawa hadn't won in Vancouver since 2017 but the team had a 19-point lead over the BC Lions.

Sure Ottawa wouldn't try a long field goal attempt where BC's Terry Williams wouldn't return the missed field goal attempt 120 yards for a touchdown.

Vernon Adams Jr. had 3 interceptions that didn't help the Lions cause through most of the game. Then Adams became the Adams he has shown through most of the season. The comeback was worth staying up to watch.

The Lions have proven tough at home with the loss to Hamilton being the only blemish in Vancouver.

The Lions don't always win when Adams throws for 300+ yards but his consistency will help BC go far.

Ottawa's woes got worse after kicker Lewis Ward suffered a torn pectoral muscle and is out for the season.

The Toronto Argonauts clinched the East Division title and will host the Eastern Final at BMO Field on Saturday, November 11. The Argos didn't need to beat the Alouettes a third time but remain undefeated in their own division.

Toronto's 3rd-and-3 play from deep into their own end was a good gamble, thanks to a pass interference call. Montréal had the 7-point lead against a team not used to coming from behind in the game.

The Argos play through every week, using up all their byes. The team doesn't have to anything to play for, except pride and individual stats.

2023 CFL Week 15 preview

2023 CFL Week 14 preview: Banjo Bowl and Battle of Alberta, part II

2023 CFL Week 13 preview: Labour Day rivalries

The BC Lions were thrilled with the Winnipeg loss in Hamilton. Winnipeg hasn't won in Hamilton since 2017 when Collaros was the Tiger-Cats quarterback. This was only the Tiger-Cats second home win and the first against any team not being Ottawa.

Hamilton's Tyreik McAllister returned a missed extra point attempt 126 yards to give the Ticats 2 points. When your NFL loving buddies bash the CFL, tell them about Williams and McAllister.

The Alouettes collapse and Hamilton rise mean the teams are tied for second in the East. Montréal has the tiebreaker and is done with Toronto. The Tiger-Cats have now won 3 of its last 4 games, including BC on the road and Winnipeg at home.

Edmonton and Saskatchewan went back and forth with scores. The Elks scored the final 16 points of the game, including an ill-timed safety that forced the Roughriders to need 2 scores to win.

Tre Ford had 2 scrambles of note: one to free himself to throw a TD pass to Eugene Lewis and the other, a 20-yard run to score the clinching touchdown. Saskatchewan needed a win to keep in a playoff position but Edmonton outplayed them down the stretch.

The Elks have won 4 of their last 5 games.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Marshall Ferguson and Matt Dunigan were with Kenzie Lalonde in Montréal on Friday night. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor hung out with Brit Dort in the battle of green in Regina in the Friday nightcap.

Rod Smith and Duane Forde with Matthew Scianitti handled the Hall of Fame game on Saturday afternoon in Hamilton. Farhan Lalji made his 2023 play-by-play debut in Vancouver with Suitor with Claire Hanna on Saturday.

The CFL on TSN panel were in Hamilton for the Hall of Fame festivities.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @3DownNation
photos credit: CFL/TSN (x2)

Canadian TV notebook: Fall 2023 premiere dates on both sides of the border

You ready?

Stream Shoresy Season 2 starting September 29 on @CraveCanada and October 27 on @hulu. From @newmetricmedia. pic.twitter.com/qvE7TraOLW

— Shoresy (@ShoresyHockey) September 15, 2023

Fall TV premieres are normally an over-the-air concept in the early fall. Well, we are in a different world thanks to the writers and actors strikes.

We do have some premiere news for Canadian TV fans on both sides of the border. While Letterkenny debuts are a day apart (Christmas Day in Canada, Boxing Day in the United States), Season 2 of Shoresy had a longer wait time in the United States.

Canadian streamers of Crave can start watching Shoresy on September 29 while Hulu subscribers have to wait until October 27. Crave subscribers via satellite will have to wait for the show to appear on its schedule. Crave used to issue a monthly schedule but Bell Media scrapped that back in May. (Boo!!)

Season 2 will have 6 episodes, just like Season 1.

You could plan a trip to Canada and find an Airbnb that has Crave. A worthy road trip, especially since you can buy ketchup chips and butter tarts, snacking while you binge on Jared Keeso and the cast.

We begged and begged (and begged) for NBC to finally let us know when the U.S. network would air Season 3 of the CTV show Transplant. The last implication we had was a longer wait, like spring of 2024.

We have better news: NBC will run Season 3 of Transplant on Thursday nights beginning October 12 at 9 pm Eastern.

CTV or CTV2 might simsub those episodes, depending on its own mostly U.S. TV lineup. Season 3 ran on CTV in Canada last fall and winter. There are 13 episodes. Here's hoping NBC will air them in a row instead of screwing up, like the network did for Season 2.

Canadians can catch up via CTV.ca while Americans can watch episodes (after they have aired on NBC) on Peacock.

Canadians can watch Season 4, the final season, on Fridays at 9 pm starting October 6 on CTV. There will only be 10 episodes in Season 4. This would free up NBC to air Season 4 next winter, though there are no guarantees.

"I'd always intended a four-season window into Bashir's life as he completes his medical residency for a second time, sets down roots in Canada, and learns to shed some of his past, and it's incredibly fulfilling to be able to tell his complete story,” said Joseph Kay, Transplant creator, executive producer, and showrunner. We expect CTV would want more of Dr. Bashir Hamed (Hamza Haq) and the group.

We are not talking out of school to say John Hannah (Dr. Jedediah "Jed" Bishop) is not back for Season 3. We still miss Grace Lynn Kung as Viv, the social worker who only appeared in Season 1.

The CW finished its runs of Season 2 of Family Law (from Global) and Season 1 of Moonshine (from CBC). The network is running through its comedy lineup with Son of a Critch, Run the Burbs, and Children Ruin Everything.

Those comedies are running on Monday nights instead of the intended switch to Tuesday nights. The shows will switch to Thursdays on October 19.

The U.S. network will run Sullivan's Crossing at 8 pm Eastern and The Spencer Sisters at 9 pm Eastern on Wednesdays starting October 4 on the CW. Both dramas aired 10 episodes last winter and spring on CTV.

Son of a Critch has 2 seasons, 13 episodes each season. Run the Burbs has 2 seasons, 12 in the first and 13 in the second. Season 3 for both shows will air this winter on CBC.

The Season 3 premiere of Children Ruin Everything on CTV airs Wednesday evenings, starting September 27 at 9 pm. The Bell Media release says Season 3 of Children Ruin Everything will premiere on The CW, though with no set date.

2023 CBC television fall preview

Son of a Critch fans should know VOCM is a real radio station in St. John's

Actors and writers strikes could bring some advantage to Canada but others are suffering

CW announces summer schedule filled with Canadian television

Canadian TV notebook: A much longer wait for Season 3 of Transplant on NBC

SurrealEstate Season 2 will finally air on SyFy in the United States and CTV Sci-Fi Channel in Canada on October 4.

You might recall that the drama, which was cancelled and then renewed, starred Tim Rozon and Sarah Levy as heads of a real estate agency dealing in haunted houses. The cast also features Adam Korson, Maurice Dean Wint, Savannah Basley, and Tennille Read.

We had little expectations of the show beyond a Season 2. Anything else would be gravy though we feel the show deserved a Season 2.

2023 Canadian TV upfronts highlights

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian TV coverage

We mentioned Little Bird, a 6-part series about a young Indigenous woman raised by a Montréal Jewish family. The show ran on APTN Lumi and Crave. 

Now the show will have a run on APTN in Canada and PBS in the United States. The debut date on those platforms is October 12.

FNX was a great outlet for Indigenous programming in the United States, though the outlets are scattered. Glad to see PBS filling a needed gap south of the 49th parallel.  

CanadianCrossing.com television coverage

CanadianCrossing.com CBC coverage

Let us know if we missed an upcoming premiere date for a Canadian TV show.

Twitter capture: @ShoresyHockey
video capture: Crave
photo credits: CTV (x2)

2023 CFL Week 14 preview: Banjo Bowl and Battle of Alberta, part II

The CFL promised CBS Sports Network would carry the key Labour Day weekend games. The U.S. network is missing for the revenge games.

Hamilton at Ottawa starts out the week, division rivals on some level just not a revenge game. This is the only CBS Sports Network telecast of the week.

Revenge Saturday has Montréal in Toronto. Formerly significant rivals, again not revenge rivals. This game starts out the Saturday tripleheader.

The prairie teams play in the Banjo Bowl in Winnipeg with the tiebreaker on the line.

The Battle of Alberta ends the tripleheader with the Elks looking for revenge and a home win against Calgary.

BC gets to recover from its longest road trip of the season to bask in the sun on the West Coast.

CBS Sports Network

Friday
Hamilton @ Ottawa, 7:30p

TSN

Friday
Hamilton @ Ottawa, 7:30p
Saturday
Montréal @ Toronto, 1p
Saskatchewan @ Winnipeg, 4p
Calgary @ Edmonton, 7p

Bye week: BC

The CFL says quarterbacks need to be protected. Zach Collaros is a quarterback of high prominence in the CFL. Collaros would disagree with the first sentence.

Collaros suffered a late hit to the neck that went unpunished against Edmonton. Defensive lineman Pete Robertson headbutted Collaros on Sunday in Regina. There was a penalty called eventually, thanks to the command centre. Robertson did get a 1-game suspension, though he could have been removed for the rest of the game.

Usually in sports, we complain that the most talented get breaks other don't. Not the CFL. All quarterbacks should be protected, even the good ones.

2023 CFL Week 13 preview: Labour Day rivalries

Zach Collaros normally enjoys Labour Day weekend, headbutts aside. Before Monday, Collaros had been 6-0 on Labour Day weekend: 3-0 with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 1-0 for Saskatchewan, and 2-0 with the Blue Bombers. Collaros struggled in the pocket to start the game on Sunday.

Saskatchewan snapped a 2-game losing streak on Labour Day weekend. The Roughriders had taken 14 of the last 17 games before Sunday.

Adam Korsak scored 2 punt singles for Saskatchewan in the 4th quarter, helping the Roughriders to tie the score and force overtime. Talk about Collaros and Jake Dolegala all day but don't forget the kickers.

Edmonton Elks end long home CFL losing streak at 22

Down 28-13 in the fourth…

12 and co. pulled off a Labour Day Maier-acle 😤 pic.twitter.com/GIFIhBKgG2

— Calgary Stampeders (@calstampeders) September 5, 2023

Tre Ford was a balanced attack on his own, setting a Canadian quarterback record by rushing for 135 yards. Ford went 14-for-23 for 136 passing yards. Yet Jake Maier and the Calgary Stampeders, trailing by 15 points going into the 4th quarter, came alive at the end to pull off the comeback in front of the home crowd.

Though Calgary won a last minute victory over Saskatchewan in Regina, the Stampeders have lost 6 games this season in the final 3 minutes.

Elks wide receiver Kyran Moore threw a touchdown pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. for a nice trick play.

The 4-point win for Calgary is significant to note since the teams only play twice. If the Elks win on Saturday at home, the margin of victory would be the tiebreaker. That could be the difference for which team might crossover into the East for the playoffs.

Tre Ford. Escape artist.#Elks #ElksCharge #Stamps #CFL #LDCpic.twitter.com/5rGrINT4cY

— 3DownNation (@3DownNation) September 5, 2023

The Labour Day game almost didn't happen on Labour Day. The CFLPA was greatly concerned about the air quality in Calgary. The air quality read between 8 and 10, registering a 9 at 4 hours after kickoff. Games are supposed to be halted if the air quality registers a 7.

The CFL and CFLPA say an independent third-party organization will test air quality and provide measurements for future games.

2023 CFL Week 12 preview

Toronto has now won 2 straight Labour Day games in Hamilton, the first 2 such wins at Tim Hortons Field since the stadium was introduced on Labour Day 2014. The rivalry has been one-sided of late with the Argos being the dominant team.

AJ Ouellette threw a TD pass to go with the regular quarterback Chad Kelly, who threw for 201 yards and 2 touchdowns. Hamilton's Taylor Powell threw for 296 yards and 3 touchdowns in a losing cause. The Argos are 3-0 against the Tiger-Cats in 2023.

2023 CFL Week 11 preview

Vernon Adams Jr. had a nice return back to Montréal, going 21-for-33 for 306 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Alouettes didn't get a touchdown until the 3rd quarter.

BC and Montréal are not rivals in any sense but do play often on Labour Day weekend.

2023 TIFF preview

Our TIFF 2023 preview featured a lot of Canadian films but not Running Back Relentless, a new documentary coming out in 2024 about CFL running back Andrew Harris. The documentary, which will air on Apple TV, showcases Harris' final year in the league and a look back at his story.

CBS Sports Network was clearly going to run over on Sunday with NWSL coverage. A few minutes wouldn't be terrible. 8 minutes of extended time, a commercial break, and a recap cost U.S. viewers the first 3 playing minutes of the Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan game.

What did the U.S. audience miss? A beautiful onside kick recovered by Roughriders kicker Brett Lauther. You can watch the CFL game recap.

Compared to ESPN, CBS Sports Network has been a breeze outside of what happened on Sunday.

This is the part of the year where the U.S. audience loses its TV package for the most part. There are only 3 games after this week left on the U.S. schedule, playoffs and everything.

Friday September 22 Saskatchewan @ Ottawa, 7p
Friday October 6 Edmonton @ Toronto, 7p
Monday October 9 Ottawa @ Montréal, 1p

That's it. CFL+ or watch the video recaps, even for the playoffs. Ugh.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Rod Smith and Duane Forde started out the holiday weekend on Saturday in Montréal with Kenzie Lalonde and then went to Hamilton with Matthew Scianitti on Monday. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor were a matched set with Brit Dort in Regina on Sunday and Claire Hanna in Calgary on Monday.

We haven't seen Hanna on the CFL sidelines since she was in the Southern Hemisphere for the Women's World Cup for TSN. As we noted, TSN doesn't have a regular reporter in Calgary.

The CFL on TSN panel made their way to Hamilton on Labour Day, including Paul LaPolice. This week with the tripleheader will likely mean a return of Marshall Ferguson and Matt Dunigan, possibly in Toronto.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @calstampeders; @3DownNation
video credit: YouTube/Upper Canada Films

2023 CFL Week 13 preview: Labour Day rivalries

Labour Day weekend means the major CFL rivalries are on centre stage.

BC at Montréal is not part of the rivalry on Saturday night. The CFL hasn't figured out that the Alouettes and RedBlacks belong together on this weekend. The teams do play on Thanksgiving. Someday BC will play the Atlantic Schooners on Labour Day weekend.

Usually, the "other" game runs on Friday on the long weekend but the CFL has this game on Saturday night in 2023.

The prairie teams play in Regina Sunday night. Winnipeg already has a win over Saskatchewan this season. 

Labour Day means the battle of southern Ontario in Hamilton and the Battle of Alberta in Calgary. The games start in late afternoon in the east.

Toronto is 2-0 against Hamilton so far this season. Edmonton and Calgary have not played each other.

CBS Sports Network carries the Sunday game and the Monday doubleheader.

Ottawa gets to relax and enjoy this holiday weekend.

CBS Sports Network

Sunday
Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Monday
Toronto @ Hamilton, 3:30p
Edmonton @ Calgary, 7p

TSN

Saturday
BC @ Montréal, 7p
Sunday
Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Monday
Toronto @ Hamilton, 3:30p
Edmonton @ Calgary, 7p

Bye week: Ottawa

Edmonton Elks end long home CFL losing streak at 22

We wrote extensively on the Edmonton Elks winning a home game for the first time since 2019. The Ottawa RedBlacks suffered their 5th loss in a row in the 30-20 Elks win. Edmonton has a 2-game winning streak going into the Labour Day classic in Calgary. The Stampeders are a game ahead of the Elks.

2023 CFL Week 12 preview

The running joke at halftime was that Zach Collaros had thrown 4 touchdown passes. 2 of them went to Montréal. Collaros finished the night with 4 TD passes for the Blue Bombers and 2 for the Alouettes. Easy to laugh when your team scored the final 33 points of the game.

Montréal and Winnipeg came into the game with 4-game winning streaks and had veteran quarterbacks coming back from injury.

Brady Oliveria was fantastic on the ground for Winnipeg. William Stanback wasn't much of a running force for the Alouettes.

2023 CFL Week 11 preview

Toronto had its best CFL crowd (17, 906) of the season with the CNE in town. That crowd saw an exciting 39-31 Argos win over the Calgary Stampeders.

Toronto had struggled against Calgary, especially at home. The Argos had been 1-15 in the last decade against Calgary and the only win was on the road.

Javon Leake now has 4 punt return touchdowns, a new franchise record for Toronto. The latest was an 84-yard return. The league record is 5.

2023 CFL Week 10 preview

Hamilton running back James Butler got some revenge over his former club with 21 carries for 118 yards and 2 majors. The 30-13 win over the BC Lions was a bit of a shock. The Tiger-Cats snapped BC's 6-game home winning streak.

Taylor Powell finally won a start with the Tiger-Cats, going 18-23 for 222 yards and a touchdown. Vernon Adams Jr. threw for 311 yards, one touchdown, and one interception for the BC Lions.

This was the first Hamilton win over a .500 + team this season: the previous 3 wins had come against Ottawa (x2) and Edmonton.

Edmonton went 0-8 with Taylor Cornelius and Jarrett Doege at quarterback. Chris Jones was adamant about not giving Tre Ford a chance, even at the end of a game. The Elks switch offensive coordinators. Jarious Jackson goes with Tre Ford. The Elks are 2-1 since then, and the one loss featured an amazing Winnipeg comeback.

The bias against Canadian quarterbacks is very powerful, especially if that Canadian quarterback went to USports (Ford did, Nathan Rourke did not).

The Elks have been running the ball more. Ford has shown some immaturity with a limited number of starts. Jackson deserves a lot of credit. Edmonton looks a lot better with Ford in charge.

With all the quarterbacks who have gone down, Canadian QB Michael O'Connor is still a free agent.

We aren't saying Canadian quarterbacks are the answer, just part of the equation. If Ford starts both of the games against Calgary, he jumps up to third on this list.

We love that the CFL is colour blind to quarterbacks but wish Canadian QBs get more love from the league.

2023 CFL Week 9 preview

Toronto has used up its 3 byes. Montréal and Hamilton have had 2 byes already with the 3rd bye for both teams in Week 20. Ottawa had had a bye so far, a bye this week, with the final bye on Week 20.

Having 9 CFL teams means each team gets 3 byes. They should be spread out more, especially for the East teams.

CFL in Halifax: 2023 Touchdown Atlantic observations

2023 CFL Week 8 preview: Touchdown Atlantic finally comes to Halifax

Touchdown Atlantic 2023 preview: CFL finally comes to Halifax

Defensive guru Rich Stubler passed away this week at 74. Stubler coached with 6 different CFL teams, starting in 1983 as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats defensive coordinator.

He also spent time with Toronto, Edmonton, BC, Calgary, and Montréal. Stubler finished his CFL career in 2021 in Toronto as a defensive assistant.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Rod Smith and Glen Suitor stayed out west for the Thursday game in Winnipeg with John Lu and the Saturday game in Vancouver with Farhan Lalji. We thought by now that Lalji would do play by play on a BC Lions game. Maybe when the tripleheaders start later in the season.

Marshall Ferguson made a return along with Duane Forde outside the CNE in Toronto with Matthew Scianitti on Friday night.

Dustin Nielson and Matt Dunigan formed a nice combo with Brit Dort to watch history with the first Elks home win in the 2020s on Sunday night.

Dave Naylor and Jim Barker filled in on the CFL on TSN panel. Scianitti filled in on another Sunday night for Kate Beirness.

logo credit: CFL
photos credit: TSN/CFL