Canadian Crossing

2021 CFL Week 11 preview

The CFL is back to starting its week on Friday night.

Winnipeg and Edmonton play the second half of a back to back with the trip on Friday night to the home of the Elks.

The Montréal-Ottawa rivalry also has a back to back with a late afternoon start in the nation's capital on Saturday.

Calgary plays a team other than Saskatchewan going to the west coast for a late afternoon start in Vancouver.

Speaking of Saskatchewan, the Roughriders along with Hamilton and Toronto have the week off. The Argonauts played 2 games last week so the players and staff deserve some rest.

TSN

Friday
Winnipeg @ Edmonton, 9p
Saturday
Montréal @ Ottawa, 4p
Calgary @ BC, 7p

Bye week: Hamilton, Saskatchewan, Toronto

🥲♥️🎙Sad to say goodbye today to my friends at CTV and TSN but so excited for my next chapter which will be as amazing the last. Thank you. Had the time of my life. Cheers🇨🇦👊

— Rod Black 🇨🇦 (@RodBlackTSN) October 14, 2021

The 3 individuals trusted to call the CFL not that long ago were Chris Cuthbert, Rod Black, and Gord Miller. TSN has expanded that list lately, especially after Cuthbert left for Rogers Sportsnet and the NHL and Miller is not to expected to call any CFL games in 2021. Now Rod Black is leaving TSN and the CFL.

Name a sport and Rod Black has likely been involved in some way. Like recent retiree Jim Hughson, Black also called MLB games: Toronto Blue Jays on CTV Sportsnet (1999-2000) and TSN (2002-2009). He also had hosting duties for Toronto Raptors games.

Then there is the CFL. Rod Black has called games, mostly in the east, since 2005. Black did fill in on CFL telecasts in 2002.

We have poked fun at Black for his TD calls before the ball got in the end zone and his obsession with sons of NFL players. Black was enthusiastic for Canadian football and we love him for that.

Rod Black had a few more years left in his career. This looks like he's being forced out. Rod Black deserved a lot better exit, regardless of his peculiarities. Hello Canada indeed.

Rod Smith was promoted for the big games where Rod Black seemed content in the #2 role for the CFL on TSN. We are a bit stunned at the news and the timing, though we may not find out why.

We factored in that Rod Smith would go out west for the playoffs. Now we may see Smith stay east while Dustin Nielson calls playoff games out west.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

The Toronto Argonauts went 2-0 since we last met. The Ottawa RedBlacks went 0-2 in that stretch. Ottawa and Toronto played 14.29% of their seasons from Wednesday to Monday last week.

In the opener for both teams, Toronto remained undefeated at home. A blocked punt and a pair of Pick 6 for major scores were exciting plays. Ottawa got a blocked punt for the team's only touchdown in the 4th quarter.

Toronto had good weather, celebrating the 1991 Grey Cup winning team, with an opponent the Argos would likely beat. The game drew 6,788. Ouch.

Hamilton seemed like the team would put away the tired Argos on Monday. McLeod Bethel-Thompson and the Argos offence kept up the push, getting the leading touchdown after a roughing the passer penalty. Hamilton kicker Taylor Bertolet missed a conversion that would have been the difference.

The Tiger-Cats also should have had a touchdown on the late drive that produced a field goal giving Hamilton a small lead. Hamilton has now lost 2 home games in a row.

This was the first regulation win for Toronto in the history of Tim Hortons Field.

The Toronto Argonauts get to rest. They earned that rest.

2021 CFL Week 10 preview

Rod Black said, paraphrased, it's how you start and how you finish. The phrase is rather lame, though in context, described Montréal's offence to a T, as in touchdown. The Alouettes had a beautiful opening drive, a great closing drive, and scattered field goals in between.

The RedBlacks stayed in the game with 4 field goals and 2 safeties. Vernon Adams Jr. had the opening TD drive for the Als while Matthew Shiltz had the closing TD drive for Montréal. Adams was placed on the 6-game injured list.

Ottawa could have been tired from playing 2 games in 6 days. The RedBlacks pattern: Wednesday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Monday, and Saturday this week.

The Alouettes won their first home game of the season. Montréal has now crawled into second place, 1½ games behind Toronto and ½ game ahead of Hamilton in the CFL East Division.

Canada observes the initial National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are off to an 8-1 start, the team best since 1960. Bud Grant was the coach for that team. The 1960 team started 10-1 and finished 14-2. I've seen the Bud Grant statue outside IG Field.

Edmonton conceded 3 safeties and a punt single in the 30-3 loss. The Winnipeg kicking game struggled again with Ali Mourtada going 1-4 in field goal tries, hitting from 24 and missing from 42, 47, and 46. Tyler Crapigna got injured early and the Blue Bombers kicking game is a potential issue.

Taylor Cornelius is back at quarterback for the Elks. No matter what happens this weekend, Edmonton can't catch Winnipeg in the standings. The Blue Bombers have the tiebreaker over the Elks.

2021 CFL Week 9 preview

Calgary needed to get the better of Saskatchewan to climb out of its self-dug hole in the West standings. The Stampeders have not blown out the Roughriders but did just enough to gain momentum. Calgary now has tied BC in points (with an extra game) and are 2 points behind Saskatchewan for 2nd place. The Stampeders have the tiebreaker with the Roughriders after the 2 wins.

Saskatchewan, BC, and Calgary are bunched up behind Winnipeg. Still too early to tell if there will be a crossover team this year so one of those teams might not make the CFL playoffs.

Winnipeg and Saskatchewan are now the only CFL teams to have a starting quarterback start every game for their team.

Jake Maier won't be the Calgary backup quarterback for awhile. Maier has reportedly tested positive for COVID-19.

2021 CFL Week 8 preview

Ontario shifted to full capacity as of 12:01 am Saturday morning. This affects ⅓ of the teams in the league. The change kicked in for the Thanksgiving game in Hamilton. The Ottawa RedBlacks get that added capacity starting Saturday. The Toronto Argonauts crowds will have plenty of social distancing.

Vancouver might get a boost closer to the NHL Canucks home opener on October 26. The BC Lions would get a small boost with a full capacity. The upper deck will still be closed at BC Place.

A 24,000 seat Grey Cup is not ideal but that is the revised CFL plan. The details are out for a much scaled back presentation. The league awarded the 2023 Grey Cup to Hamilton to make up for a diminished 2021 Grey Cup. The 2022 Grey Cup is set for Regina, the scheduled home of the 2020 Grey Cup.

Getting to BMO Field in Toronto should be a good experience

We helped out a CFL fan to find a better way to the Argos home in Toronto. Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton offer local train options to get to the stadium. Ottawa, Hamilton, and Winnipeg have strong bus service. You can walk from downtown Regina to the stadium. Montréal requires an uphill walk from the McGill stop off the Green Line.

Getting to BMO Field can be tough in rush hour, depending on how far away you are from the downtown core. The Exhibition stop is only a single stop from Union Station.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Marshall Ferguson did his second CFL game of the season, working with Duane Forde in the Wednesday game in Toronto. Ferguson will get a lot more work with the sudden exit of Rod Black.

Rod Smith teamed up with Glen Suitor in Winnipeg on Friday. Dustin Nielson was back and working with Suitor in Regina on Saturday.

Rod Black and Forde gathered in Montréal for the early game on Thanksgiving Monday. Turned out to be Black's CFL swan song. The news is still a bit of a shock.

Smith and Matt Dunigan drove out to Hamilton for the Thanksgiving nightcap. This was Dunigan's second game in the booth in 2021.

Milt Stegall sat out Wednesday with Davis Sanchez via remote. Stegall was back on Friday and Jim Barker in for Sanchez. Sanchez was back in the studio on Monday with Barker in for Dunigan.

While everyone in Ottawa is eagerly waiting for Brady Tkachuk to sign…I’ll casually drop in to say I’m joining the @TSN_Sports team in #YOW!

So excited for this opportunity & I can’t wait to cover all the major sports stories in our nation’s capital 🇨🇦🍁 pic.twitter.com/03gtmapxQA

— Claire Hanna (@clahanna) October 9, 2021

If you wondered why Sara Orlesky was in Regina the day after being in Winnipeg last week, Claire Hanna shifted her focus from CTV Regina to covering sports in Ottawa for TSN.

Hanna hosted the Ottawa Senators home opener on TSN5. She also may work the sidelines for RedBlacks games, shifting Matthew Scianitti to only working Argonauts games.

My favourite @RodBlackTSN call of the @CFL. Frantic, excited, wrong. This captures his long career calling the @CFLonTSN. Will be missed. @TSN_Sports https://t.co/d89eYktMGb

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) October 14, 2021

This is my favourite Rod Black CFL on TSN call. It's not excellent or completely correct. Black says the last kick went out of the end zone even though the ball didn't reach the goal line. Duane Forde steps in to describe what happened. Neither Black nor Forde point out that an Argonauts player knocked punter Noel Prefontaine out of the end zone so he couldn't do the kicking.

I've used that footage to sample new phones in the store and to show casual fans how wild the CFL can be. Rod Black is enthusiastic on this call yet misses so much. This is why I love it so.

Thanks to the CFL YouTube page for the footage. Best of luck to you, Rod Black. Thanks for all you did.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter captures: @RodBlackTSN; @clahanna; @canadian_xing

Getting to BMO Field in Toronto should be a good experience

Toronto is the largest city in Canada so getting around the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in rush hour can produce some heartbreaking stories.

3 Down Nation, a Web site devoted to the CFL, featured such a story. This person was traveling from Mississauga to BMO Field for last week's midweek CFL game with the Ottawa RedBlacks in Toronto.

He was staying in town for a conference in a Mississauga hotel. We don't know which one; he did note that BMO Field was 17 kilometres away.

He left his hotel at 5:45 pm, took a free shuttle to Pearson airport, took the UP Express to Union Station, and finally traveled on the GO train on the Lakeshore West line one stop west to Exhibition.

He arrived at Union Station at 7 pm — kickoff was 7:30 pm — but had to wait 45 minutes for the GO train at that hour. He ended up missing the first quarter.

"Two hours and 10 minutes to get to a place 17 kilometres away. Yikes."

I would bet good money that the concierge didn't give him the best possible route. My business trip past shows that people who normally drive don't know good transit options.

Let's help out the weary CFL traveler. I took a cursory look at the GO train map as well as the Toronto subway map for about 10 minutes.

We don't know where he was staying within Mississauga. He might not have known there were GO train options in Mississauga (cheaper than the UP Express $12.35 cost). He really might not have known there was a GO train station in Mississauga on the Lakeshore West line: Port Credit (30 Queen Street East) is on the Lakeshore West route, 3 stops west of Exhibition.

A cab ride to Port Credit might have been a lot. There might be buses from his hotel to the Port Credit station but we don't know where he stayed. Getting 3 stops away on the GO train would have cut a lot of time off his trip, bypassing Pearson and Union Station.

CanadianCrossing.com travel coverage

This is not to say every traveler is going to know how to navigate well in a strange situation. Having good travel options, researched as well as you can, improve your travel odds. I thought I had researched how to get to the football stadium at Moncton, New Brunswick for Touchdown Atlantic. Finding a bus stop proved harder since there weren't that many signs.

Waited a long time for a bus to get to the Green Line to get to a Montréal Expos game in 2004 and missed the beginning of the game. Back then, tracking transit wasn't viable on a phone.

He wasn't the only one concerned about more trains between Union Station and Exhibition. 

I had my own fun trip to get to BMO Field. My plan was to take the King streetcar west to the Dufferin Gate Loop. The King streetcar suddenly stopped at Bathurst not going any further west.

The Bathurst streetcar went to the Exhibition Loop, so a longer walk to get to the stadium. I took the GO train back to Union Station after the game.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

"Getting to BMO Field in Toronto is a terrible experience" — the 3 Down Nation headline on the story.

The BMO Field attendance figures have been dismal. The Toronto Argonauts have spent most of the season at the top of the East Division and are undefeated at home. The team didn't even draw half of what they were allowed for that Wednesday game and that night was a celebration of the 1991 Grey Cup winners.

The walking distance from Union Station to Rogers Centre (below map) is 900 metres, about a ½ mile walk. The GO train trip is only one stop west and puts you in a great position to get to the stadium. The TTC streetcars get you pretty close to the stadium.

The BMO Field facilities are gorgeous with great sightlines for football, much better than SkyDome. I've seen Argos games in both places, not even a close comparison. TTC and GO could work on improved transportation on the days of Argonauts home games.

We know fans of Toronto FC of MLS don't have trouble getting to BMO Field.

Getting to BMO Field may never be a great experience but should be a better experience, even if traveling from Mississauga. The trip isn't the primary reason why attendance has dropped for the CFL in Toronto. Every little improvement will help draw football fans to the Exhibition place.

photos credit: GO Transit
map credit: Google

Canadian Thanksgiving 2021: Slightly more thankful

Welcome to Canadian Thanksgiving 2021 aka Thanksgiving. We are thankful for:

• the federal election being over
• the promise of more truth and reconciliation with Indigenous people in Canada
• most Canadians being fully vaccinated
• Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig being in Canada and Meng Wanzhou not being in Canada
• the Toronto Blue Jays 2021 season, even if they didn't make the AL playoffs
• having a rather decent Canadian film for the Oscars
• a NHL season that opens for Canadian teams on Wednesday
• the border to be sort of open
• having 2 CFL games on Thanksgiving

CBC News has some advice for those holding Thanksgiving celebrations. An outdoors version, where possible, would be a nice option. This is an advantage to holding Thanksgiving in relatively warm temperatures.

We know military nurses went to work at an Edmonton hospital in part due to Alberta's woeful response to the 4th wave of COVID-19.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said all would-be travelers must be fully vaccinated by October 30 before boarding planes, trains, or marine vessels. There will be a "short transition phase" where travelers can show a negative COVID-19 molecular test result (in lieu of vaccination proof) until November 30.

Canadian Thanksgiving 2020: Trying to remain thankful

A few random tweets of note:

.@globalnews portray @JustinTrudeau trip as #vacation yet describe him as working thru the day. Be critical about his location (could have been at #residentialschool site). Don't make stuff up. The creepy stalker footage on the beach doesn't help. https://t.co/5pTVat1GfE

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) October 1, 2021

The Indigenous population of Canada should have been the focus on the first National Truth and Reconciliation Day. Global News decided to make it about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Political journalists don't like when politicians say they will be one place and then be somewhere else. They don't seem to care if the politician is hiding (Doug Ford, Jason Kenney) but that may depend on the colour of stripes.

The "vacation" label was effective if imprecise. The prime minister did participate in a ceremony Wednesday night and did spend the day speaking on the phone with residential school survivors.

The Global News anger was topped off by sending a reporter to hunt down the prime minister and his daughter walking on the beach in Tofino, BC.

We would find numerous errors in how Trudeau handled the situation. Trudeau himself acknowledged a "mistake." The issue isn't in Global News drawing attention; the lack of objectivity and extra creepiness were significant problems. We have noticed the Twitter hashtag #CdnMediaFailed.

Be consistent: use a competent focus to all political parties.

The Supreme Court of Canada upheld changes to an election DURING an election. A 5-4 vote, but chilling nevertheless. The people of #Toronto and #Canada deserved something better than a #ThirdWorld sense of democracy. https://t.co/mY7vyfsDwJ

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) October 1, 2021

Canada Supreme Court 5-4 decisions are much rarer than what happens in the United States. Our objection was the implementation of the Doug Ford law AND when it was implemented (during the election). The latter point was part of Toronto's objection: that the law violated certain unwritten constitutional principles, such as democracy.

From the Supreme Court of Canada synopsis on the case:

• Majority: Chief Justice Richard Wagner and Justice Russell Brown dismissed the appeal. They said the new law did not violate the freedom of expression of candidates and voters contrary to section 2(b) of the Charter. They also said unwritten constitutional principles cannot serve as the basis for invalidating legislation (Justices Michael Moldaver, Suzanne Côté, and Malcolm Rowe agreed.)
• Dissenting: Justice Rosalie Abella would have allowed the appeal. She said the timing of the new law violated section 2(b) of the Charter and was not justified, and that unwritten constitutional principles can in fact serve to invalidate legislation. (Justices Andromache Karakatsanis, Sheilah Martin, and Nicholas Kasirer agreed.)

Abella, who was appointed to the Court by Paul Martin, retired on Canada Day. Though Trudeau appointed Wagner to chief justice, Stephen Harper appointed Wagner, Brown, Moldaver, and Côté to the Court. Rowe was the only one in the majority who was appointed by Trudeau.

In the minority, Trudeau appointed Martin and Kasirer while Harper appointed Karakatsanis.

Trudeau can appoint a successor to Moldaver in 14 months.

Toronto city election damaged by Doug Ford bully move to threaten notwithstanding clause

There was plenty of confusion during the Toronto election cycle as a result of the new law. Changing the rules in the middle of the election causes confusion. Sadly, there isn't an argument about Ontario doing this to Toronto. There was no reason for the change other than the petty nature of Ford, who used to serve on the Toronto City Council.

One of millions of examples why #Canada and #UnitedStates should have more of a #Schengen situation. @Jackie_Redmond https://t.co/DDNPoob4ky

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) October 1, 2021

The pandemic is one of the millions of reasons why the border should be more open. We've focused on countless border issues heightened during the pandemic: Northwest Angle, Point Roberts, and Haskell Free Library & Opera House to name a few.

Les Oiseaux Ivres is Canada's selection to the Oscars for Best International Feature Film

2021 Toronto Blue Jays have a lot to celebrate, just not the playoffs

Canada observes the initial National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig finally on their way home

Justin Trudeau, Liberals win a third government with back-to-back minority governments

Football and Thanksgiving have been a consistent tradition in the United States and Canada. Imagine if the NFL tried to remove games on Thanksgiving Day. The league now has 3 games on the holiday.

The CFL did take games off of Thanksgiving 2019 when there were 0 games that year. Most years had 2 games. A few years had a single game. In earlier times, some years had 3 or 4 games on the holiday.

The Thanksgiving games aired on CBC until TSN took over the full contract in 2008.

Canadians can watch the NFL Thanksgiving games. ESPN hasn't put a single Thanksgiving game in the TV contract, even though the day is also a holiday in the United States. The last time a U.S. outlet showed a live CFL game on Thanksgiving was 2009.

Opening Day for fully vacccinated Americans to cross into Canada with caveats

August 9 is the date fully vaccinated Americans can cross into Canada with some fine print

Hoping next year will have much more travel between Canada and the United States. Will be more thankful when that happens.

photo credit: me
Twitter captures: @canadian_xing

2021 CFL Week 10 preview

Welcome to the longest week. Ottawa finishes up its midweek football adventures as the RedBlacks travel to Toronto on Wednesday.

Winnipeg hosts Edmonton on Friday Night Football. The Blue Bombers beat them in the Alberta capital in Week 7.

Saskatchewan and Calgary play again, this time in Regina. They will play each other yet again in 2 weeks.

The eastern teams get to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving (or Thanksgiving as it is known in Canada). The Highway 417 rivalry is in Quebec in the early game with the RedBlacks and the Alouettes. The southern Ontario rivalry gathers for the holiday at Tim Hortons Field.

Toronto and Ottawa play twice in 5 days. This is the league's first 5-game week since 2017. The BC Lions get a restful holiday week off.

TSN

Wednesday
Ottawa @ Toronto, 7:30p
Friday
Edmonton @ Winnipeg, 8:30p
Saturday
Calgary @ Saskatchewan, 7p
Monday
Ottawa @ Montréal, 1p
Toronto @ Hamilton, 4p

Bye week: BC

We finally had an overtime game. Montréal won with a dramatic comeback, breaking the long Hamilton home winning streak that stretched for all of 2019 and 2021 until Saturday night.

The Alouettes, down 17-3, scored 17 straight points to take the lead late in the 4th quarter. The 55-yard field goal from Hamilton's Taylor Bertolet sent the game to OT.

A bad handoff in OT led to a Tiger-Cats fumble. Montréal kicked a field goal for the overtime win.

Vernon Adams Jr. was in and out of the game for the Alouettes with an ankle injury. Matthew Shiltz kept the Als in the game. Jeremiah Masoli was back for Hamilton along with Braley Addison and Brandon Banks; the offence just dried up in the second half.

Montréal was involved in the only 2 overtime games in 2019. The Alouettes lost 30-27 to Ottawa at home on August 2 and defeated the Stampeders in Calgary 40-34 in the second overtime.

2021 CFL Week 9 preview

Cody Fajardo headed for a second straight road comeback for the Saskatchewan Roughriders but the drive fell short.

Calgary had 0 touchdowns in the 1st quarter before last week. The Stampeders had a pair of offensive touchdowns against Saskatchewan. That was a large difference.

Calgary is the opponent for Saskatchewan's next 2 games.

The head coaches (Dave Dickenson, Craig Dickenson) are brothers. They normally meet for dinner before the night of the game. They didn't meet this time, likely due to COVID-19 protocol.

2021 CFL Week 8 preview

831 days between home wins for the Ottawa RedBlacks. Caleb Evans, in his first CFL start, tying the team lead for touchdown passes (3) just from a single game. DeVonte Dedmon scoring on a punt return.

Ottawa is 2-0 vs. Edmonton this season while 0-5 against the rest of the league after the 34-24 win. The Ottawa defence threw up some roadblocks on Taylor Cornelius for the Elks.

Former Edmonton wide receiver Kenny Stafford caught one of the TD passes along with Ryan Davis and Timothy Flanders.

The Elks are 2-3 against the rest of the league but 0-2 against Ottawa. The RedBlacks snapped a 5-game losing streak since winning the opener.

The Ottawa home losing streak is done at 11, the third-longest in CFL history.

Canada observes the initial National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

The battle with dealing with a punt deep in your own end is letting it go, giving the other team a point, or possibly getting pinned in your own end. Winnipeg ended up with the ball on its own 6-yard line. The announcers were quick to say they should have given up the point.

For some reason, your humble narrator said, "No. This will work out for the Blue Bombers."

Winnipeg had a 9-play, 104-yard drive that took up 4:15 in the latter half of 2nd quarter for the Blue Bombers in Vancouver.

Not a Nostradamus but had a hunch. The Blue Bombers were playing really good football. Sometimes those scenarios work themselves out.

Kenny Lawler had a great game at receiver for Winnipeg. Lawler had 205 receiving yards on 12 catches, 126 yards in the first half. Zach Collaros threw for 417 yards, a unusual mark in 2021 but not so in recent seasons. Lucky Whitehead was injured for BC against his old club. Whitehead broke his hand and will be out 2-4 weeks.

Lawler unfortunately made headlines for the wrong reason on Monday. The Blue Bombers suspended Lawler for this week's game after they learned he was arrested operating a motor vehicle while impaired.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Tonight's Ottawa-Toronto contest is a wormhole into a parallel universe for Nick Arbuckle and Matt Nichols. The quarterbacks were going to play for the opposing team in 2020. Nichols went from Winnipeg to Toronto to Ottawa while Arbuckle went from Calgary to Ottawa to Toronto. Neither quarterback played for their middle team.

Arbuckle has seen success in Toronto with a familiar relationship with coach Ryan Dinwiddie while Nichols has struggled in Ottawa even with a familiar relationship with coach Paul LaPolice. Toronto has done much better on the field than Ottawa has in 2021.

The irony within the parallel universe is that neither quarterback is starting for their team in tonight's game. The teams will also battle November 6 in the nation's capital.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Rod Smith and Duane Forde made the midweek trip to Ottawa and visited Hamilton on Saturday. Rod Black joined Glen Suitor out west in Vancouver on Friday and Calgary on Saturday. Dustin Nielson had the weekend off.

Milt Stegall was out Tuesday and was back on Friday. Davis Sanchez checked in remotely on Tuesday but had the weekend off. Jim Barker was there on the desk.

Memo to TSN: please use more drone shots like we saw in Calgary. The run in on a Rene Paredes field goal was amazing to watch.

Memo to Rod Black: Telling us "red zone or green zone" is confusing. Just say "red zone" and we know what you mean. Thank you.

logo credit: CFL

Canada observes the initial National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Today is the first annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. September 30 is set aside to "honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process" of the Indigenous population. This is according to the calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action.

Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island give the holiday official status; the other 7 provinces have varying degrees of acceptance.

Here's hoping the holiday gets more official acceptance in subsequent years.

2021 CFL Week 9 preview

2021 CFL Week 8 preview

Edmonton CFL team is now the Edmonton Elks

The day has also been Orange Shirt Day in the past so you might run across this term. We saw the orange shirts in Vancouver on Friday the BC Lions of the CFL had as their way of acknowledging the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. TSN analyst Glen Suitor pointed out this was a rare time that they would wear something that represented one of the teams in the game.

Dustin Nielson and Suitor interviewed Phyllis Webstad on the legacy of the orange shirts. Webstad told her story of her first day at a residential school as a 6-year-old. She wore a shiny new orange shirt, bought by her grandmother. They took the shirt from her.

The ESPN2 audience got to see that interview in the United States. Americans know even less about residential schools than Canadians know about their residential schools. 

The Ottawa RedBlacks had a Game of Reconciliation with the Edmonton Elks in the nation's capital on Tuesday. The Edmonton team recently changed its nickname to an animal from a racial slur against the Inuit.

CFL games this weekend will also honour the holiday.

From the CBC Facebook page: "Contributing CBC Art Director Emily Kewageshig, an Anishinaabe artist raised in Saugeen First Nation #29, redesigned the CBC logo marking the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Her work captures the interconnection of life forms using culturally significant materials from the land."

CBC television has extensive prime time programming for the holiday. All times are local; add 30 minutes to the time in most of Newfoundland.

• 7 pm Tonight's lineup starts with Through Our Eyes: Indigenous Shorts, a 4-part compilation of CBC Short Docs by Indigenous documentary filmmakers.
• 8 pm National Day for Truth and Reconciliation honours the stories and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples on the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
• 9 pm We Know the Truth: Stories to Inspire Reconciliation recasts Canada's history and future through the empowerment of Indigenous people.

There are other related programming on CBC radio and television. Radio-Canada also has relevant programming.

Inuk leader Mary Simon will be Canada's first Indigenous governor general

Canada Day 2021: A time for reflection and some celebration

Rutherford Falls a first for Indigenous people on U.S. television

The new minority government needs to do more about the truth part of the truth and reconciliation. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is correct that his government has fixed more than 100 boil orders to bring fresh water to reserves. Everyone agrees that more needs to be done on the remaining boil orders.

Canadian films that might explain a bit about the world of residential schools

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

CanadianCrossing.com Indigenous coverage

You are likely working on September 30. You might be interested and not even living in Canada. There are a strong list of Canadian films, fiction and documentaries, that are an asset in learning more about what Indigenous people have been through over multiple generations.

TIFF recognized Alanis Obomsawin and a number of her films at the 46th Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month.

The TV audiences have seen Indigenous stories lately with Rutherford Falls (Peacock), Reservation Dogs (FX on Hulu), Mohawk Girls (Peacock via APTN and CBC), and Trickster (CW via the CBC).

We wrote a story earlier this year with a few titles we've seen that can be educational for those who want to learn more.

photo credit: BC Lions/CFL

2021 CFL Week 9 preview

Ottawa gets another midweek football adventure as the RedBlacks host Edmonton on Tuesday.

Winnipeg has a late night in Vancouver Friday night as the Jets go as far west as they can. ESPNews makes a surprise appearance, the final scheduled U.S. TV game of the season. Unbelievable.

Montréal visits the 2021 Grey Cup site as the Tiger-Cats welcomes the Alouettes. The East teams need to make up for lost time not playing each other.

Saskatchewan hasn't played Calgary since 2019. Get ready for the soon to be familiar battle as the teams play each other 3 times in the next 4 weeks. The head coaches aka the Dickenson brothers (Dave/Calgary; Craig/Saskatchewan) add extra depth to the rivalry.

Toronto gets to rest as much as the team can. The Argonauts prepare to host Ottawa on Wednesday next week.

ESPNews

Friday
Winnipeg @ BC, 10p

TSN

Tuesday
Edmonton @ Ottawa, 7:30p
Friday
Winnipeg @ BC, 10p
Saturday
Montréal @ Hamilton, 4p
Saskatchewan @ Calgary, 7p

Bye week: Toronto

Saskatchewan and BC had the best finish so far of any CFL game. The Calgary-Winnipeg game was a close second. The drama of the final Roughriders scoring drive was driven by the shrinking time on the clock. Surprisingly, Saskatchewan managed to score another touchdown on the ensuing kickoff.

Jimmy Camacho, who had hit every field goal attempt to that point for the Lions, picked a bad time in the 4th quarter to miss wide right on a 43-yard attempt. Stefan Flintoft also picked a bad time for a 26-yard punt just before that Roughriders drive for a major.

Team wins and losses come as a team. These BC kickers have done well overall. Most Lions fans wondered why the team didn't go for a 2-point conversion on the final BC touchdown.

Saskatchewan took second place all alone in the West and the Roughriders have the tiebreaker with the BC Lions.

2021 CFL Week 8 preview

2021 CFL Week 7 preview

Toronto doesn't really have a quarterback controversy. They have 2 quarterbacks who share the experience. McLeod Bethel-Thompson was back in charge of the Toronto offence.

The Argonauts play well at home, 3-0 to start. The fans aren't showing up, pandemic or otherwise. 7,758 was the announced attendance.

Vernon Adams Jr. looked beat up but stayed in the game for the Alouettes. Matthew Shiltz got ready but never went in for Montréal. That last interception was thrown from someone who was hurting physically.

2021 CFL Week 6 preview

2021 CFL Week 5 preview

The Tiger-Cats went 3-1 in 4 games in 16 weeks. Hamilton even managed to win a game in Calgary without an offensive touchdown. The Tiger-Cats found their offence in the pouring rain in Ottawa last Wednesday. The only RedBlacks points came on a DeVonte Dedmon punt return in the 4th quarter.

Matt Nichols did come in the second half for Ottawa. Wide receiver Nate Behar finished the game at quarterback with 2 carries for 3 yards and a pass completion for 3 yards.

Ottawa hasn't won at home since June 20, 2019, the longest current home winless streak. The RedBlacks have lost their 11 straight home games.

That streak is the 3rd longest in CFL history: Ottawa owns both as the Rough Riders with 12 (1928-1932) and 14 (1987-1988). If the RedBlacks go winless tonight, the 2021 version will be tied for second worst all time.

Contrast that with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats riding an 11-0 home streak. Orlondo Steinauer has been the coach since 2019 and has never lost at home. 2 wins in 2021 and 9 wins in 2019 for the Tiger-Cats..

We've heard as many words (0) from the @CFLonTSN panel as the @REDBLACKS have points (0). Will #Ottawa score before @TSN_Sports figures out how to restore the audio from the studio? @CFL

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) September 23, 2021

Good news for ESPN+: This was not your fault. We've seen more times than we can count moments where the CFL on TSN studio audio isn't there where the background music could be heard. Sometimes the audio eventually comes back. The audio did not return for the whole game.

Rod Black responded to what they said coming out of the teaser at the 3 minute warning in the first half. Rod Black can hear them and the audience can't? TSN doesn't apologize for the audio issues, which doesn't help.

The audio worked just fine on Friday.

Ottawa is doing its own version of Game of Reconciliation with the upcoming holiday on Thursday. The live music is a nice touch.

We should note in the marketing e-mail we received from the RedBlacks of a presumably all-you-can-buy $5 cans sale of a very popular American beer. The deal applies from 6 pm to kickoff at 7:30 pm. Given the abuse of residential schools and the correlation to alcoholism in Indigenous communities, a beer sale of this kind should have been applied to a different game.

We did edit out the beer ad section of the e-mail, but you can read about that offer.

According to the CFL, the league plans to feature a virtual on-field image that depicts an Every Child Matters logo during games and on-field officials will wear orange pins recognizing the Every Child Matters movement.

We will have more coverage on Thursday on the actual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation holiday on September 30.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

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Rod Smith, Rod Black, Dustin Nielson, Glen Suitor, Duane Forde, Matt Dunigan, Marshall Ferguson

Rod Black and Duane Forde stayed east with a quick midweek trip to Ottawa and back in Toronto on Friday. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor went westward to Vancouver on Friday.

Rod Smith filled in for Kate Beirness in the studio on Friday. Jim Barker got to sit at the adult table, filling in for Milt Stegall on the panel.

Smith mentioned Marshall Ferguson was doing the Friday night game in Toronto. A mistake, perhaps. Maybe just a shout out since Ferguson hasn't done a game in awhile.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing
photo credit: Ottawa RedBlacks/CFL

2021 CFL Week 8 preview

Welcome to Wednesday night football? The Ottawa RedBlacks start their midweek excursion, playing 3 straight games nowhere near the weekend.

Something to do with coffee would make a good sponsor for these midweek games.

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will be the first midweek guest. Playing in the nation's capital 2 days after the federal election is a nice distraction.

Montréal-Toronto used to be an intense CFL rivalry in the days of Anthony Calvillo and Damon Allen. The teams meet Friday night at BMO Field.

Saskatchewan goes to Vancouver in the nightcap on Friday night in a battle of 4-2 teams. ESPN2 pops up again to join the party.

The Alberta teams and Winnipeg gets to enjoy some late September time. The Elks do have to prepare to play in Ottawa on Tuesday.

ESPN2

Friday
Saskatchewan @ BC, 10:30p

TSN

Wednesday
Hamilton @ Ottawa, 7:30p
Friday
Montréal @ Toronto, 7:30p
Saskatchewan @ BC, 10:30p

Bye week: Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg

Hamilton and Montréal couldn't score an offensive touchdown last week. The Tiger-Cats kicked 5 field goals and added a Pick 6 from Simoni Lawrence. The Alouettes kicked 6 field goals and couldn't get a touchdown in any manner.

Calgary could only score 2 touchdowns in Hamilton while BC had 3 touchdowns in Montréal.

The Tiger-Cats crawled out of a rough start to a 3-3 record. The Hamilton schedule is in rather good shape. Hamilton and Toronto are tied at 3-3.

The lowlight in Hamilton was fumbled kick returns by the Stampeders and Tiger-Cats.

The Argos couldn't keep up as Saskatchewan returned to form as long as Winnipeg wasn't the opponent.

Taylor Cornelius struggled with 2 significant turnovers that led to majors in his debut for the Elks, not enough for a win against the top team, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The Blue Bombers debuted a new kicker, Ali Mourtada, who missed 3 field goal attempts.

Only Montréal, Winnipeg, and Saskatchewan have started the same quarterback through the first 7 weeks of the 2021 season.

U.S. viewers might wonder where @sskroughriders game is. The game is actually on U.S. TV on #ESPNews. That was a genuine surprise. @espn @CFL

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) September 18, 2021

We didn't think ESPN would actually make up for the Labour Day fiasco. Then we saw that ESPNews picked up the Toronto-Saskatchewan game on Friday, which took us by surprise.

Turns out ESPN switched out the games, no longer carrying the Hamilton @ Toronto game on November 12 on ESPNews. This means the last U.S. TV game is on October 1, about 8 weeks before the playoffs. ESPN+ will be there to help, most of the time.

Don't want to keep kicking ESPN+ but this error message greeted U.S. based CFL fans at the beginning of both games on Saturday.

The fans in the early game missed the first BC touchdown. The fans in the late game missed the first 3 minutes before the Blue Bombers scored the initial touchdown.

There were some technical difficulties during telecasts from the TSN end.

We wanted to check if the awkward CFL starting times — the 2:45 windows — meant overlapping the end of one game and the start of another game. Couldn't figure that out because the Friday night game was on TV and the technical difficulties at the start of the Saturday game.

Canada Day 2021: A time for reflection and some celebration

CanadianCrossing.com Indigenous coverage

The BC Lions and Saskatchewan Roughriders will be wearing orange spatting as part of their uniforms in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The federal statutory holiday on September 30 was recently established. The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a commemorative orange t-shirt. We wrote about the orange shirts that honour the residential school survivors.

2021 CFL Week 7 preview

Last week, we rushed the news on Chris Jones being back in Canada as a defensive consultant for the Toronto Argonauts. His first game won't be in Regina. Otherwise, everything else is relevant. Carry on.

2021 CFL Week 6 preview

2021 CFL Week 5 preview

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Rod Smith and Duane Forde stayed in the east Friday in Hamilton and Saturday in Montréal. Rod Black went out west to hang out with Glen Suitor in Regina on Friday. Dustin Nielson joined Suitor in Edmonton on Saturday night.

Smith reportedly doesn't like to travel too much. Doing more east games would send Black out west at times. We have noted that Black and Suitor were better suited while Chris Cuthbert and Forde made a good combo.

No announcer will have to do back-to-back games this week. Will be curious who will draw those mid-week games in the east.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing
photo credit: ESPN+

2021 CFL Week 7 preview

Editor's note: Toronto-Saskatchewan is on ESPNews.

The revenge games transition to regular play with 3 East-West contests this week. The Calgary Stampeders make their first trip to the east with a stop in Hamilton on Friday night.

The Argos, unlike the NHL Maple Leafs, play in a late game on national TV with a trip to play Saskatchewan.

BC Lions have the team's longest possible road trip with its annual trip to Montréal to start the Saturday night doubleheader.

Winnipeg goes back on the road to Edmonton in the Saturday nightcap.

Ottawa seems to have a cushy week to relax but the team hosts Hamilton next Wednesday.

This week has a deliberate scheduling nightmare where the late games start at 9:45 pm, short of the usual 3 hours allotted for the early game. This sadly reminds us on NBCSN's insistence on doing the same poor NHL scheduling.

This is particularly bad in the Friday night scenario. Does TSN4 finish the Hamilton game or start the Toronto game?

Somehow a 7:45 pm local start (Regina, Edmonton) looks better than 8 pm. This causes unnecessary anxiety. A good week for the CFL not to be on an ESPN channel. Much less anxiety when you watch on ESPN+.

ESPNews

Friday
Toronto @ Saskatchewan, 9:45p

TSN

Friday
Calgary @ Hamilton, 7p
Toronto @ Saskatchewan, 9:45p
Saturday
BC @ Montréal, 7p
Winnipeg @ Edmonton, 9:45p

Bye week: Ottawa

119 yards?

Only made possible with the three-down game: ⤵️#RiseWithUs pic.twitter.com/lFPJzveZnC

— CFL (@CFL) September 14, 2021

The CFL on TSN panel had some fun with the idea of talking about kickers. Michael Domagala missed an extra point that cost Hamilton a tie in Toronto. Marc Liegghio missed the first 2 extra point attempts for Winnipeg but did hit the final 3 attempts.

Lewis Ward had a rare field goal miss for Ottawa that Lucky Whitehead of the BC Lions ran back for a 119-yard touchdown run.

Winnipeg's regular kicker Tyler Crapigna is on the six-game injured list. BC fired its first kicker Takeru Yamasaki.

The extra ways to score in the CFL is usually connected to the kickers and punters. They matter. We don't know Justin Medlock's reasons for not playing in 2021. He would be really valuable.

2021 CFL Week 6 preview

Montréal coach Khari Jones tested positive for COVID-19. Jones had received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the past months. André Bolduc, assistant head coach and running backs coach, will be in charge on Saturday. Montréal had the week off.

2021 CFL Week 5 preview

The CFL hasn't played an overtime game since Montréal beat Calgary 40-34 in 2OT in Calgary on August 17, 2019. We thought Toronto and Hamilton were headed to overtime on Friday. Then, Hamilton kicker Michael Domagala’s extra point attempt hit the right upright.

The Argonauts got their revenge win after losing badly in Hamilton on Labour Day.

In the western revenge games, Saskatchewan is still the second best CFL team despite Winnipeg sweeping them over the course of 7 days. The teams won't play each other for the rest of the season. The Blue Bombers will have the tiebreaker and home field advantage.

The rivalry has intensity from the field to the fans. The fight near the end of the first half was really bad. The consensus from the announcers and the panel was that Winnipeg got off lightly by not having players ejected. Saskatchewan's 2 ejected players deserved their fate.

Edmonton's first forced turnout was a Pick 6, accounting for the Elks only major. Calgary got its revenge and a bit of topping. Calgary might have been seen as piling on by scoring a late touchdown with the game out of reach. Trying to score late doesn't mean you will succeed. The late Calgary touchdown gave the Stampeders a 52-48 point total against the Elks.

The teams don't play each other for the rest of the regular season, so Calgary has the tiebreaker against Edmonton.

Winnipeg-Saskatchewan also don't play each other again. The Blue Bombers have the advantage at 2-0.

While the west rivalries are done, Hamilton and Toronto still have a home-and-home with the Tiger-Cats hosting on Canadian Thanksgiving and the Argos hosting on November 12. The teams split their rivalry games, each winning at home.

We do obsess a bit about tiebreakers. In a shortened 14-game season, this could be the difference between home field or maybe getting a playoff spot.

2021 CFL Week 4 preview

Dane Evans got hurt late for the Tiger-Cats so David Watford finished the game at quarterback. Original starting QB Jeremiah Masoli may be available against Calgary. Evans will be out for 4-6 weeks.

Trevor Harris will be out for awhile as the Edmonton Elks placed their quarterback on the 6-game injured list with a neck injury. Elks fans are hoping Taylor Cornelius will be like Jake Maier. 

Ottawa has 2 presumably healthy quarterbacks in Dominique Davis and Matt Nichols. The RedBlacks have generated very little offence and get a week to figure out its game plan.

The team has a stretch of 3 weekday games coming up, the first 2 at home. The RedBlacks need to figure out ways to be more interesting: the defence back to its form in Week 1, the offence gets better, or both.

2021 CFL Week 3 preview

We noted the logjam last week of 2-2 teams where 56% of the CFL teams had that record. Toronto and BC went in a positive direction to 3-2; Hamilton and Edmonton went in a negative direction to 2-3. Montréal stayed at 2-2 with a bye week.

Saskatchewan joined the 3-2 gathering after losing 2 straight to Winnipeg.

2021 CFL Week 2 preview

The BC Lions did something in the first 3:05 that neither Calgary or Edmonton could do in the first half: score a touchdown. The Lions did something in the first 17 minutes that Calgary and Edmonton couldn't do on Saturdays: score 4 touchdowns.

2021 CFL Week 1 preview

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Chris Jones is returning to the CFL, this time as a defensive coach for the Toronto Argonauts. The irony of being in Regina for his first game back may not feel that ironic to Roughriders fans. They watched Jones resign from being the Roughriders head coach, general manager and vice-president of football operations in January 2019, only a week after he signed a contract extension.

Jones spent 2 seasons as a head coach in Edmonton where they won a Grey Cup in 2015. He coached Saskatchewan for 3 seasons before leaving to be a defensive assistant with the Cleveland Browns in the NFL in 2019.

Previously, Jones won Grey Cups served as a defensive line coach for Montréal (2002); defensive coordinator for Calgary (2008) and later assistant coach; and defensive coordinator in Toronto (2012).

Glen Young (defensive coordinator) and Joshua Bell (defensive backs coach) are on leave from the Toronto Argonauts until further notice.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Rod Smith and Duane Forde spent time in Toronto on Friday night. This gave Smith a CFL weekend where he didn't have to travel.

Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor worked the Banjo Bowl in Winnipeg. This was a great reward for Nielson. Smith will call the big games out west in the playoffs as well as the Grey Cup. Nielson will get an opportunity to call big games out west in the regular season. This could mean Nielson will call a Thanksgiving game.

Rod Black and Forde, known for covering the east, called the Battle of Alberta, Part II.

When Farhan Lalji was listed on the CFL on TSN play-by-play roster, your humble narrator circled last Saturday's game for Lalji to call. Lalji worked with Matt Dunigan in 2019 and 2021. We don't know how much time Lalji had to prepare in 2019 but get the impression he knew this day was coming.

Lalji sounded a lot better Saturday night in Vancouver. He might only do games late in tripleheaders with Matt Dunigan in Vancouver but he could provide a good call in an emergency. The drawback is that since Lalji is normally the sideline reporter (SLR), TSN doesn't give them a reporter when Lalji is in the booth.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @CFL

2021 CFL Week 6 preview

The revenge games get underway this weekend as we see the first tripleheader of the season.

Thursday night football disappears after Labour Day and 2021 is no different.

Hoping for a good crowd at BMO Field Friday night as Hamilton visits Toronto. Some (a lot?) of that crowd will be Tiger-Cats fans wearing black and gold.

The Banjo Bowl starts the tripleheader on Saturday in Winnipeg. This is Saskatchewan's first road game of the year; the Roughriders did have a bye 2 weeks ago.

The Battle of Alberta Part II is the middle game in Edmonton.

Ottawa in Vancouver is at the end of Saturday evening without a rivalry element. Someday, we might get the Atlantic Schooners in Vancouver at this time of the year.

U.S. viewers will have to rely on ESPN+ for virtually the rest of the season. The next TV game in the States isn't until September 24.

TSN

Friday
Hamilton @ Toronto, 7:30p
Saturday
Saskatchewan @ Winnipeg, 4p
Calgary @ Edmonton, 7p
Ottawa @ BC, 10p

Bye week: Montréal

The Saskatchewan Roughriders had won 14 of the last 15 Labour Day games. The Roughriders had a slim 1-point lead at the half but couldn't score in the second half. The previous Winnipeg win in the streak was in 2016.

Zach Collaros is now 5-0 on Labour Day games with 3 different teams. Collaros went 3-0 for Hamilton over Toronto and 1-0 for Saskatchewan against Winnipeg.

Edmonton got its first Labour Day win since 2011. The Elks offence looked more like we thought the offence would go.

Montréal now has a 3-2 advantage over Ottawa in the Highway 417 rivalry. The Alouettes offence was quite impressive as Vernon Adams Jr. showed flashes of previous brilliance. Dominique Davis replaced Matt Nichols for the RedBlacks and had some success.

The Alouettes won in 2014 and 2018 while the RedBlacks won in 2016 and 2017. The teams didn't play each other on the holiday weekend in 2015 and 2019. CFL officials: schedule these teams to play each other on every Labour Day weekend.

Hamilton showed the Tiger-Cats were missing some home cooking. The Tiger-Cats have won the last 7 Labour Day game over the Toronto Argonauts. The Argos can get revenge tonight against Hamilton while the RedBlacks have to wait until Canadian Thanksgiving to travel to Montréal.

The other 2 revenge games are on Saturday. A sweep for last weekend's winners will make a huge impact in a shortened 14-game season.

We talk parity about the CFL. Well, through the Labour Day weekend games, 5 of the 9 CFL teams are 2-2. Edmonton, BC, Hamilton, Montréal, and Toronto have split their first 4 games. Winnipeg and Saskatchewan are the only teams above .500 while Calgary and Ottawa are the only below .500 teams.

.@CFL game well into 2nd quarter. @espn @ESPNPR asleep at the wheel. App isn't working. @RedSox let in the tying run so the game won't be on TV anytime soon. Would be able to watch if U.S. had @TSN_Sports.

— Chad Rubel (@canadian_xing) September 6, 2021

ESPN had a MLB doubleheader. ESPN2 had U.S. Open tennis coverage. ESPNews was scheduled to have the Battle of Alberta on Labour Day. The early MLB game in Boston ran really slow. There was an umpire injury in that game but the game itself ran very behind. The second MLB game in Denver switched to ESPNews. We could argue that ESPN overbooked the MLB doubleheader and could have moved the beginning of the game in Denver to MLB Network.

So the CFL game was theoretically available on the ESPN app. Except … the app told viewers that the game "hadn't started yet." The game had started but the app was not working.

The game wasn't available in any form until 4:40 remaining in the 2nd quarter. U.S. viewers missed the first 23 points of the game. A Stampeders extra point was the first point of the stream. The game finally ended up on ESPNews 100 minutes into the coverage in the middle of halftime coverage.

If you had a life and didn't realise the game wasn't on TV, that is a single level of frustration. For those who were around a computer AND couldn't watch the game, the levels of anger resembled a baklava. Check out our Twitter feed for samples.

We would argue for the lack of TV coverage, ESPN owes us an apology AND an extra TV game. That would be especially true over the streaming snafu. ESPN has had similar issues with games on TV and has never given a makeup broadcast. Don't hold your breath.

2021 CFL Week 5 preview

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Robert C. Wetenhall, who owned the Montréal Alouettes during a crucial time from 1997 to 2019, passed away on September 3.

Wetenhall, an American businessman, bought the Alouettes a year after the team came back into the league. The Baltimore Stallions from the U.S. expansion sort of became the Alouettes.

Under Wetenhall's ownership, Montréal had a streak of 8 Grey Cup appearances in 10 years with 3 championship wins.

He sold the team to the CFL in 2019 after being unable to find a buyer. Sid Spiegel and Gary Stern purchased the franchise; Spiegel passed away in late July of this year.

Canadian politics coverage on CanadianCrossing.com

Our American readers who watch the CFL on ESPN+ may notice that the last part of the last ad in a break sometimes shows up in the feed during CFL games. These days, some of those ads are political ads. I've seen the trailing part of ads for the Liberals, Conservatives, and the NDP this season.

Most Americans don't have a clue that there is a federal election. Sports fans generally don't like to mix politics and sports. The parties know there are potential voters and CFL games draw well in Canada.

Occasionally, an athlete becomes a politician. Ken Dryden was a legendary goalie for Les Habs and later represented the Liberals in the York Centre riding (Toronto) from 2004-2011. Jacques Demers served as a senator from 2009-2019; a Conservative senator until 2015 and then an Independent senator until his retirement. Demers was a legendary coach and also a former broadcaster.

Normie Kwong was a stellar running back for Calgary and Edmonton as well as Lieutenant Governor of Alberta from 2005-2010.

Larry Smith was a running back for the Montreal Alouettes, president of that team, CFL commissioner, and current Conservative senator. Smith has served as a senator since 2010, though he took a brief hiatus in 2011 to run for a seat in the House of Commons. Smith finished third in that race and was brought back into the Senate. He served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate from 2017-2019.

Gene Makowsky kept it all in Saskatchewan, playing 17 seasons in the CFL for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The 2011 CFL season ended on November 4, 2011, a rare year when the Roughriders were not going to the playoffs. 3 days after the end of that season, Makowsky won a seat in the provincial parliament and has represented the Saskatchewan Party in the Regina Gardiner Park (previously Regina Dewdney) riding since his CFL retirement.

A couple of old time Toronto Maple Leafs played their position on and off the ice. Howie Meeker played right wing for the Leafs and spent two years as a Progressive Conservative MP (1951-1953) while an active player for Toronto. Frank Mahovlich ("The Big M") played left wing and won 6 Stanley Cups. Mahovlich served as a Liberal in the Senate from 1998-2013.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Good morning from Regina! First game of what's truly a broadcast bucket list weekend for me!

Bombers in town to battle the Riders! Sask has won 14 of the last 15 Labour Day Classics. WPG won ‘19 West Final at Mosaic.

I’ll be calling the ACTION with @GlenSuitor & @saraorlesky pic.twitter.com/MZvgpmy03f

— Dustin Nielson (@nielsonTSN1260) September 5, 2021

Matt Dunigan and Milt Stegall are on Canadian soil. They were working from home aka the United States on the CFL on TSN panel to start the season. We figured Dunigan would need to be in Canada for the tripleheader this weekend.

Rod Smith worked with Dunigan Friday night in Ottawa. As we noted last week, Dustin Nielson took the Chris Cuthbert role and called both western games with Glen Suitor. Nielson was really excited to be calling both games last weekend.

Rod Black and Duane Forde reunited for the first time since 2019 in Hamilton on Labour Day.

Suitor kept up his 2:1 ratio of games vs. Duane Forde: now at 12-6 with 1 for Dunigan.

TSN has some flexibility with the tripleheaders where a play by play person doesn't have to call games on back-to-back days. One of the colour analysts will have to do double duty unless there is another prospect.

logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @canadian_xing; @nielsonTSN1260

2021 CFL Week 5 preview

By Labour Day weekend, the CFL usually has a lot more games already played. Still, the weekend is a good marker to see where we are as a key point in the season.

The CFL is smarter to have 8 of the 9 teams playing this weekend. The BC Lions and Atlantic Schooners rivalry will hopefully, someday be a reality.

Thrilled that the Highway 417 rivalry with Montréal in Ottawa starts out Friday Night Football for the long weekend. This rivalry game needs to be permanent on the holiday weekend.

The prelude to the Banjo Bowl: the Sunday Prairies game with Winnipeg in Regina will have a loud crowd.

The Battle of southern Ontario and Battle of Alberta are on time and in that order on Labour Day 2021.

ESPNews will have both of the western CFL games on this long weekend.

ESPNews

Sunday
Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 6p
Monday
Edmonton @ Calgary, 4:30p

TSN

Friday
Montréal @ Ottawa, 7:30p
Sunday
Winnipeg @ Saskatchewan, 6p
Monday
Toronto @ Hamilton, 1p
Edmonton @ Calgary, 4:30p

Bye week: BC

The Calgary-Winnipeg game promised to be a truly great football game. If you are feeling less than thrilled with the CFL level of play, hope you watched Sunday's game.

Winnipeg kicker Marc Liegghio was cited to be the goat (not GOAT) of the game for a missed extra point. Rene Paredes kept putting Calgary in front by that missing point. Liegghio missed the field goal that would have put the Blue Bombers on top. A whistle. Time count violation: 10 yards back (at that point in the game). Liegghio makes the field goal and puts Winnipeg in front.

Paredes barely missed a 52-yard field goal attempt at the end of the game to keep Winnipeg undefeated at home. The last Winnipeg home loss was September 27, 2019 against Hamilton.

Calgary quarterback Jake Maier started with 17 straight completions.

Andrew Harris played for the first time since winning the Grey Cup MVP trophy. Harris ran for 81 yards on 17 carries. Brady Oliveira filled in for the Blue Bombers, starting with 126 yards in Week 1. Oliveira was held to 57 combined yards in the 2-game set with Toronto. Harris and Oliveira, both from Oak Park High School in Winnipeg, would be a prime 1-2 running punch especially when the weather turns colder.

2021 CFL Week 4 preview

2021 CFL Week 3 preview

The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are the last CFL team to open at home, playing its home opener on Labour Day.

The Tiger-Cats have had a rough travel start. The reward: the team will not leave Ontario except for one game for the rest of the season.

Hamilton will travel to Edmonton on October 29 to take on the Elks. Otherwise, the Tiger-Cats are at home with road trips to Toronto and Ottawa. Hamilton is in the best position for unvaccinated players who may not be able to fly.

The Tiger-Cats finally won a game last week so every CFL team has at least 1 win. Toronto is at 2-1 with the "extra bye" last week while the rest of the East is 1-2. The East has only had a single division game so far: the Tiger-Cats win over Montréal. We have 2 division games just this weekend.

No CFL team wants to identify with penalties: The Montréal Alouettes are starting to get that rep based on the last 2 weeks. Both the Alouettes and the RedBlacks lost their home openers. Montréal had 14,753 while Ottawa had 15,000. Attendance in the east is limited due to regional COVID-19 restrictions.

The RedBlacks loss to the BC Lions showed their missing offence wasn't under the cushions of the couch at home. Ottawa had plenty of time down 22-12 but you didn't feel like the team could move down the field. The RedBlacks had a similar concern in Edmonton but got a lucky bounce on an interception run back for a touchdown.

The home opener loss was the first time for the RedBlacks in its team history going back to 2014. Previously, Ottawa went 4-0-2 in home openers with ties with Calgary in 2016 and 2017.

The Ottawa Renegades won the home opener in 2004 and 2005. The ill-fated team lost their other home openers in 2002 and 2003.

2021 CFL Week 2 preview

2021 CFL Week 1 preview

Fact: All 9 CFL teams have a plan to have spectators be fully vaccinated or provide negative COVID-19 tests for admittance. The catch is that there is a long learning curve.

Saskatchewan has a September 17 target date with Toronto in town for the new policy. That isn't too bad with Sunday's game being the only home game between now and the new policy. The Edmonton wait is so long you will be buying Halloween candy without a speck of irony. The new protocol for the Elks starts October 15 with Winnipeg in town. Ouch.

Being fully vaccinated requires 2 weeks after the second COVID-19 vaccine shot. While Edmonton is more progressive than the rest of Alberta, the delay gives some breathing room for Elks fans and employees.

The Elks were back at practice on Wednesday after several days without more positive COVID-19 results. The team ended up with 14 (ouch) positive COVID-19 cases, though one turned out to be false positive. We will be curious if more players get vaccinated as a result. Mortal human beings have had side effects after the inoculations but perhaps players in shape won't be impacted as much.

Edmonton released offensive lineman Jacob Ruby for breaching the team's COVID-19 protocols. The CFL reportedly issued a directive not allowing any other CFL team to sign Ruby for the rest of this season.

2021 CFL preview

We have a CFL schedule update so get those proverbial erasers out where we can see them. The changes are designed to be minimally invasive to the teams that aren't Edmonton.

Saskatchewan and Edmonton switch destinations on November 5 and November 13. The Winnipeg-Montréal game on November 13 and the game later that day now in Regina move up 3 hours earlier.

The Edmonton Elks will play 42% of the team's road games in 7 days: November 13 (Regina in Saskatchewan); November 16 (Toronto); and November 19 (BC in Vancouver).

Toronto plays home games on that Friday (Hamilton) and Tuesday (Edmonton) but draw a bye in the league's last week.

The CFL and the Canadian Football League Players Association agreed that both teams can add 5 extra players to their active rosters for the Edmonton games in Toronto and Vancouver.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Montréal sports fans had a tough dilemma Friday night. CF Montréal played Toronto FC at Stade Saputo at the same time Friday night.

Rod Smith and Glen Suitor talked with the new owner Gary Stern (his father-in-law and business partner Sid Spiegel passed away before the 2021 season).

The Alouettes struggled without direction in the last few years. Now the Alouettes are aligned throughout the management. Wasn't too long ago when Kavis Reed was the GM and Mike Sherman was the coach.

The Alouettes talked about playing a game in Olympic Stadium in 2018. That feels so long ago. The last game the team played at Olympic Stadium was the 2012 East final.

Montréal has hosted 8 Grey Cups: Molson Stadium (1931); Autostade (1969); and 6 championship games at Olympic Stadium. The last Grey Cup in Montréal was in 2008.

There is theoretically a 2022 Heritage Classic, hopefully in Montréal. The speculation is the The Olympic Stadium roof is a concern over snowfall, even for CFL playoff games, including the Grey Cup.

We are curious what the new ownership thinks about incorporating Olympic Stadium into plans for the Alouettes.

Short-term solutions for TSN to replace Chris Cuthbert on CFL telecasts

Tomorrow morn on 'The Eh Block' I'm joined by none other than my partner Saturday night in Ottawa @DuaneFordeTSN!

We talk about the @CFLonTSN process, @CodyFajardo17's 2021 MOP campaign and get Duane's five fav foods to cook.

Subscribe for more! #CFL

🎧:https://t.co/VaZs5xQG35 pic.twitter.com/lObTAj5ifm

— 🇨🇦 Marshall Ferguson 🏈 (@TSN_Marsh) August 27, 2021

Marshall Ferguson made his CFL on TSN debut in Ottawa with Duane Forde on Saturday. Ferguson has done work for TSN and has experience calling the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on radio. Combining the two is a different experience.

Ferguson's debut went well enough. Ferguson and Dustin Nielson will get a lot more experience, especially with Rod Black only calling the opening game of the season.

Ferguson did note during the telecast that Black would be back next week.

Been listening to Ferguson on podcasts; he has a good voice and knows a lot. Turns out Ferguson was a quarterback at McMaster University in Hamilton.

Rod Smith and Glen Suitor were in Montréal on Friday night. Suitor was likely in Montréal for the Gary Stern interview. Nielson and Suitor were in Winnipeg on Sunday night.

Smith got a chance to sit at the CFL on TSN desk filling in for Kate Beirness on Saturday and Sunday.

Suitor kept up his 2:1 ratio of games vs. Duane Forde: now at 10-5.

As for the Labour Day weekend, Dustin Nielson will call both western games. Rod Black should be in Hamilton on Monday.

photo credit: CFL
logo credit: CFL
Twitter capture: @TSN_Marsh