I remember eating at The Main in Montréal in my travels. Excellent smoked meat. The best? I don't want to disagree with the prime minister of Canada. I liked the smoked meat at The Main and Schwartz's, across from each other on St. Laurent Boulevard in Montréal.
The fun in Montréal is the competition. The Main and Schwartz's for smoked meat. St-Viateur and Fairmount for bagels. While I don't have a smoked meat preference, I do have a bagel preference: St-Viateur.
Our sibling blog, BalanceofFood.com, took a look at the closure of The Main as part of a bigger restaurant when you lose one of your favourite restaurants.
The smoked meat battle was also about style. Schwartz's had more flash and style while The Main quietly went about its business. If the line at Schwartz's was too long, you could go across the street.
I hope to get back to Montréal this summer. A city I adore and have not been there in too long. I have a list of favourites in Montréal and plan to try some places where I have never eaten.
"The ArriveCAN app is optional." That might be the most glorious Canadian travel news of 2022.
We have feigned hope for more travel in the last couple of years but that hasn't been a reality. Canadians, who were vaccinated, were encouraged to come to the United States. Americans to Canada? Not so much.
Let's hope 2023 sees a return of Americans to Canada, swayed by beautiful scenery and landscapes as well as a cheap Canadian dollar.
Making up for lost travel time is an ideal goal for 2023, provided you have the time and money.
Your humble narrator finally got to be on Canadian soil. As tempting as kissing the ground might be, didn't get that literal in my appreciation for being in Canada. Poutine, ketchup chips, butter tarts, even a decent shawarma were on the menu. All of that went well with legal marijuana in Canada.
The most famous person who isn't Canadian who came to Canada in 2022 was Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church. The trip was mostly to Alberta with a brief stop in Quebec and an even briefer stop in Iqaluit in Nunavat.
The trip was good in that attention was brought to what happened in residential schools. Unfortunately, after the trip, the issue of reconciliation disappeared from the headlines.
Making travel plans for Canada in 2023 will be a lot easier now that restrictions have been lifted. You should be vaccinated but that isn't a requirement. Just a healthy suggestion.
We are partial to Nova Scotia and happy for those who finally got to see a CFL game in that province. The 2023 version will be in Halifax proper. The donair is a beautiful local food to enjoy as well as amazing seafood.
Toronto, among many other Canadian cities, are great eating destinations. We aren't sure how many of those places are still in business. The pandemic did a lot of damage to restaurants.
If you want to travel by bus and haven't done so recently, Greyhound abandoned Canada in 2021 with the grand exception of incoming buses to Toronto, Montréal, and Vancouver. If we travel by bus, we will share our experiences.
A trip back to Montréal. A first trip to Saskatoon. A chance to see relatively new CFL stadiums in Regina and Hamilton. The Icefield Parkway in Alberta. Cape Breton in Nova Scotia. Gander in Newfoundland. Churchill in Manitoba, though that might be a pipe dream. The interior of British Columbia, a world not Vancouver or Victoria.
I've been to Quebec City but would like to try areas of the city I didn't get to see. Stratford, Ontario as an adult: have been there as a kid. Explore the Acadian part of New Brunswick.
The previous 2 paragraphs look familiar for those who remember our 2022 travel guide. We made a trip to Windsor for the film festival. Would love to go deeper into Canada in 2023.
Even if you are able to travel, right now, travel sucks. Not what it used to be or what it should be. Do research. Hope that trip will be what you want that to be. Someday. Please make it soon.
The 2022 Windsor International Film Festival was a grand 11-day celebration of Canadian film. A plethora of Canadian film. Perhaps as many French Canadian films in a single festival as your humble narrator had seen in the previous 3 years. The wait between festivals was so very long.
We are repeating a split of English, French (and Spanish), and Documentaries. We even thought about having a separate column for the 2022 WIFF Prize in Canadian Film nominees; we will note those that qualified under that banner.
Grouping the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film entries in a 2-day period early in the festival meant a new significance for your humble narrator. I saw 4 Canadian films in a row (one of them not a WIFF prize nominee) to end the first Friday and 5 Canadian films in a row to end the first Saturday. That hasn't happened in the many years of attending the film festival.
There were also stretches without a Canadian film, as will happen over 11 days. As we noted, there were Canadian films in the festival that we had already seen and a few minor ones we were unable to view. We saw 9 of the 10 WIFF Prize in Canadian films entries with To Kill a Tiger drawing the odd straw out. I did see Falcon Lake before the festival (because of 10 films in 8 slots) and including that review.
The judges had a difficult decision in determining the 2022 WIFF Prize in Canadian film.
Our sentimental favourites from the list were I Like Movies, North of Normal, and Falcon Lake. When you get asked a lot on the streets of downtown Windsor "what have you liked so far?" — these titles kept coming out of my lips.
Brother, Riceboy Sleeps, and to a lesser extent, Eternal Spring were strong portrayals of difficult stories to tell. Norbourg was very straightforward, The Swearing Jar was a pleasant surprise, and Something You Said Last Night was the only real disappointment. Thoughts on To Kill a Tiger are still to come but since this was the most non-Canadian of the entries, the wait is just a reality.
The festival includes Canadian films we have already reviewed: The Grey Fox (1982), Indian Horse; and Peace By Chocolate. We did not get to see such titles as Unloved - Huronia's Forgotten Children and a local film, A Year in the Forest. There were Canadian film titles viewed outside of the festival that may receive a future review: Slash/Back definitely will get a review while there is a debate over The Last Tourist and Aline.
We saw Women Talking during the festival and will explore that film with the opening of that film in U.S. theatres on Friday. I got to meet Sheila McCarthy at the end of the Q&A for the film. McCarthy was an absolute delight. Truly fun to hear a Canadian film star say there isn't a star system in the Canadian film world. We had a lovely chat about Cardinals, a Canadian film she described (and I concurred) as a film that didn't take off.
I jumped into a conversation of several people, including Maxime Giroux, who I met when he was promoting Felix et Meira. I told him I still wanted to see his previous film to Norbourg — La grande noirceur | The Great Darkened Days. Giroux told me that film is on Apple TV (in Canada).
One cool advantage to the WIFF Prize in Canadian film is that the directors want to come to Windsor to talk about their films.
We should note that the 2022 festival pass itself was comped for the first time in a very long time. We don't feel like that changed our interest in writing and tweeting about the Windsor International Film Festival. Disclosure is paramount.
We have talked considerably about the idea that people would come to Canada to experience marijuana in a country where the drug is completely legal, regardless of where you are in the country.
The marijuana tourism idea got derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic, where travel was difficult and getting into Canada had unnecessary barriers (ArriveCAN).
Having visited Windsor and being barely in Canada, I wanted to see what, if any, potential perils of purchasing pot there were in Canada.
Despite edibles being legal in Canada in the fall of 2019, Windsor didn't have any visible ways of getting them. The fall of 2022 was an entirely different scene. The average tourist would have 5-6 different places (at least) to purchase marijuana just in the downtown core.
Marijuana is legal in many locales in the United States. Missouri and Maryland just legalised marijuana in those states. The difference is that the shopping experience can be, well, not so pleasant, depending on state rules. Buying edibles in California was a marvelous experience. Buying edibles in Illinois? Not as pleasant. Had to pay for edibles in cash (due to banking issues since marijuana is illegal on a federal level).
I selected a place at random very close to places I was in my travels. I wanted to see what the shopping experience would be like as well as the product I received.
The place I tried had great hours: 14 hours a day, 7 days a week. No hassles at the door over ID. A nice young person helped me. She talked me through a number of cookie options (cookies are my go to) that I haven't always had in other places. Low pressure sales. I went in mostly for research purposes, figuring I would purchase later. To my surprise, I bought the product in that visit.
Tried a cinnamon cookie and a spicy ginger cookie. The cost was around $4-$7 per cookie, even cheaper if you convert U.S. dollars to Canadian dollars. They were quite fine in terms of taste. Not a gourmet cookie but a pleasant taste. My smoking days were limited and I can't smoke it too well. Also edibles help you get past a number of concerns, such as not being able to smoke in apartments or Airbnb type setups.
I tried different levels within my stay. A whole 10 mg of the cookie is more than I would take in a dose. The packets were resealable so the cookies stayed fresh. In a group setting, you might split a cookie all at once. For those who travel as single people, portion control is a concern.
We do suggest if you get the munchies on Canadian soil to indulge in such Canadian treats as ketchup chips, all dressed chips, and poutine.
As we have noted, 30 grams is the limit to carry on your person (28 grams = 1 ounce). 2 cookies each with 10 mg is not a threat to that limit.
Each province has rules involving the consumption of cannabis and you should follow those laws and rules in that province. Alberta has an 18+ requirement. All the other provinces and territories except for Quebec (21+) are 19+. There are specific rules about transportation with the general requirement of having the product in a sealed package. Consumption in public places is also a concern, depending on where you are in Canada.
Your shopping experience will vary, depending on province and where you are in that province. More competition helps bring better service, even if the prices are comparable. The fact that the experience in Windsor was significantly better than my California experience (my best one in the States) is a very encouraging sign.
The other amusing part was that I also bought acetaminophen with codeine, which you can legally bring into the United States in limited portions under specific rules. The aspirin with codeine was out due to supply chain issues. Buying the pain reliever isn't arduous but there is a dance you need to do.
A very significant point: Even if Ontario and Michigan (as an example) have legal marijuana, you can't legally transport marijuana between the countries. The penalties are not worth the risk. Buy what you will consume in Canada and don't bring back the leftovers.
The marijuana shopping experience in Canada is very friendly. If you come to Canada and choose to participate (provided you are of age), marijuana tourism is an extra incentive to dust off your passport and make a trip to Canada.
Editor's note:There is no specific endorsement of any company mentioned in the article.
The 2019 Windsor International Film Festival had 10 days and lots of amazing momentum. One of the worst days in 2020 and 2021 was the cancellation of that film festival. 2022 brings an 11-day film festival with plenty of Canadian film, U.S. film, and cinema from around the world.
The 2022 version kicks off this morning. The Windsor International Film Festival is Canada's biggest volunteer-run film festival.
Seeing a bunch of Canadian films and films from other countries is only part of the experience. We've been watching films on various computer screens and on demand for the last 3 years. The joy of film festivals, especially the Windsor International Film Festival, is comparing notes with other people. Their enthusiasm can draw you into a film you wouldn't have thought to watch but then glad you did. Even if you can't fit them all into your schedule, you have a well-crafted list to draw from in the upcoming year.
We've shown this photo (my photo) of the WIFF Alley in 2019 a few times. This was a nice reminder of where this festival had grown to over the years and a notice that we can return to this splendor once again.
The Windsor International Film Festival is once again awarding a WIFF Prize in Canadian Film. The award carries a $25,000 cash value given to the director of the chosen film. The winner will be selected by a jury of film professionals.
All 10 of the nominated films will be screened during WIFF's opening weekend. The festival will announce the Canadian Film Prize at a special event during the festival on October 30.
These are the Canadian films contending for the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film:
Brother (Clement Virgo) Eternal Spring (Jason Loftus) Falcon Lake (Charlotte Le Bon) I Like Movies (Chandler Levack) Norbourg (Maxime Giroux) North of Normal (Carly Stone) Riceboy Sleeps (Anthony Shim) Something You Said Last Night (Luis De Filippis) The Swearing Jar (Lindsay MacKay) To Kill a Tiger (Nisha Pahuja)
Eternal Spring is the Oscars entry for Best International Feature Film. All but Norbourg and Eternal Spring were at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival.
Kuessipan won the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film award in 2019. That film received a $10,000 cash award so the stakes are a lot higher in 2022.
The other Canadian films that contended in 2019 were And The Birds Rained Down; Antigone; Castle in the Ground; Easy Land; Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind; Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger; Matthias and Maxime; Prey; and Willie.
Your humble narrator saw all of the 2019 films list in that year's festival, except for Prey. We will run a film review of Prey during this year's festival.
We normally run a count and list all the Canadian films. Instead, we recommend checking out the list of films and synopses of the Canadian films.
Some of the other Canadian film highlights include:
Wolves
Family of the Forest
Babysitter
Unloved - Huronia's Forgotten Children
The Origin of Evil
Ice-Breaker: The Legacy of the '72 Summit Series
Arsenault & Fils
Geographies of Solitude
The Middle Man
Slash/Back
Maria
So Much Tenderness
Rosie
Goodbye Happiness | Au Revoir Le Bonheur
A Year in the Forest
Coyote
Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On
Hands That Bind
The Long Rider
The Last Tourist
Ever Deadly
Aline
The festival includes Canadian films we have already reviewed: The Grey Fox (1982); Indian Horse; and Peace By Chocolate. This is far from a complete list.
Women Talking will also play in the festival, a film technically not Canadian. Plan to see and write about the film in some fashion. We are good at writing about Canadian films in name only, an easier task than doing the opposite.
This isn't just about a film festival. Opening up the borders means more cross border travel across the world's longest undefended border between Canada and the United States.
Ketchup chips and butter tarts. Spending loonies and twoonies.
These were 2 of the most difficult stories to write, outside of stories that involved someone dying. The cancellation of a film festival is never an easy call to make. The memories of the 2019 festival had to stretch out longer than we wanted them to stretch. The hope of returning to that world kept a lot of us going.
If this festival isn't within reach, hope you got a chance or will get a chance to discover the joy of seeing films in a local film festival.
The 2022 Windsor International Film Festival runs today through November 6.
Twitter capture: @WindsorFilmFest photo credit: me
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announces the lifting of #COVID19 border measures, including vaccination & testing requirements for all travellers & mandatory use of ArriveCan app. Mask requirements on trains & planes will also be lifted. The changes take effect Oct 1.#cdnpolipic.twitter.com/pT8Garg9Ed
The news has been leaked for a few days but is now official: Getting into Canada will be a lot easier as a travel destination when the month changes to October.
The ArriveCAN app will be optional when the change is made.
This had been a great concern especially for border cities whose officials were concerned because American travelers were much less likely to cross into Canada, especially for cross border shopping. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made things easier for Canadians to shop within the U.S. on quick cross border trips but not the other way around.
Travelers won't have to submit public health information through the ArriveCAN app or website or provide proof of vaccination. There are other provisions that will be dropped.
The restrictions led to actions such as the service of the Windsor Tunnel Bus to be suspended. You have an international border, the busiest crossing between the countries. Greyhound went to Windsor before the pandemic but now Greyhound doesn't go to Canada (outside of Toronto and Vancouver from the United States). You couldn't cross on foot on the Ambassador Bridge or the tunnel.
We hope the Tunnel Bus and other suspended service will return shortly after the government's announcement this morning.
For those who criticise us for not being critical enough of the prime minister, well, you should read our border crossings coverage. We appreciate the overall diligence of the Trudeau Government on COVID-19 during the height of the pandemic. We do feel the government has carried on good policies far too long.
This change affects the sports world in that unvaccinated athletes can travel to Canada as of October 1. The Toronto Blue Jays had to deal with that in terms of visiting MLB players and in the acquisition of the previously unvaccinated Whit Merrifield from Kansas City. The Blue Jays host Boston on October 1-2. The team might not play any home playoff games in the opening round, depending on the playoff seeding.
This is more relevant to the NHL teams that won't have to worry about unvaccinated players playing in Canada.
Ideally, people would be vaccinated in coming to Canada. The issue was that the good intentions produced a policy that made traveling to Canada not worth the hassle.
The obvious time to make the change would be heading into a travel summer. Hopefully, people can make travel plans to Canada in the beautiful fall and for those who enjoy winter. Our look at where to visit Canada in 2023 is going to be a lot brighter.
The schedule includes 9 homilies and addresses and saying 2 Masses. The primary focus for Pope Francis is an expected apology for the Roman Catholic Church’s role in residential schools.
The pope will arrive in Edmonton on Sunday and be in the area July 24-27. He will be in Quebec City July 27-29. His stay in Iqaluit will be less than a day.
While the apology will be welcome, there are other pressing concerns from the church. 48 Catholic church entities signed on to fundraise $25 million for survivors as part of a settlement agreement with the term "best efforts." Somehow, those "best efforts" resulted in just under $4 million. The Catholic Church can afford to write out a check for the difference.
The church could also release all residential school documents and records to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.
Theoretically, the pope has the power to make all of that happen. The requests aren't for anything extra but to get justice for those damaged by the residential schools system.
We hope that the relevant population gets some relief from the papal visit to Canada. Quite frankly, more transparency and compensation, too.
If you still don't know too much about residential schools, especially if you are deeply Catholic, we invite you to read our Indigenous coverage to get some idea before Pope Francis lands on Canadian soil.
There's a saying in Atlantic Canada that if you're not of this place then you're from away, but if you come to this place, come to stay.@TSNScianitti takes a closer look at the CFL's Touchdown Atlantic tradition, and what makes this CFL event and Atlantic Canada so unique. pic.twitter.com/zukf1Nljmt
Wolfville was not Halifax; the CFL finally played a regular season game in Nova Scotia with Touchdown Atlantic 2022. The wind off the Atlantic Ocean played havoc with some of the kicks, not unlike the wind at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton.
The streets of Wolfville and Halifax were filled (mostly) with the green of the Saskatchewan Roughriders fans who made the trip. There were a number in double blue, rooting for the Toronto Argonauts.
The Argos, a seafaring team based on the nickname, were victorious 30-24 at Raymond Field in Wolfville, home of Acadia University. Sure the cliche is true: everyone involved were winners on Saturday.
Brett Lauther's family and friends represented 180 of the 10,000 fans. Lauther is from nearby Truro, Nova Scotia and played university football at St. Mary's Stadium in Halifax (where the 2020 Touchdown Atlantic was scheduled).
This is one of the selling arguments to having a presence in Atlantic Canada. Players from the region making the CFL and either playing for the Atlantic Schooners or coming as a visiting player. The TSN crew interviewed Acadia University head coach Jeff Cummins, a former CFL player.
We know the NHL uses this as a theory for keeping a particular team in a city where the maximum capacity next season will be 5,000 because of Auston Matthews. The theory in Atlantic Canada and the CFL is a lot stronger.
Lauther made 3 of 4 field goal attempts for the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
The seafood is amazing on the East Coast. TSN used part of the halftime to talk seafood. The Bar Down segment was a bit baffling. 3 Saskatchewan players looked at pictures of seafood. Their reaction was mostly negative based on pictures, especially the player in the centre who wasn't into seafood.
The seafood is way better than what was portrayed in that segment. We needed to see them eat Atlantic Canada seafood.
Wolfville is normally a town of 4,000 people. There were 10,886 fans plus the TSN personnel and other relevant people. That is a lot to ask on a place without that kind of infrastructure. Credit to Wolfville for rising to the occasion.
McLeod Bethel-Thomson played for Toronto in Moncton in 2019. Boris Bede played for the Alouettes in 2019 and the Argos in 2022 for Touchdown Atlantic. Brandon Banks signed with Hamilton in 2013 after the Touchdown Atlantic visit to Moncton.
We noted Brett Lauther's local roots earlier in this story. Toronto linebacker Hénoc Muamba played his second Touchdown Atlantic, having played for Montréal in 2019 in Moncton. Muamba played for St. Francis Xavier University in nearby Antigonish, Nova Scotia.
.@ESPNPR@ESPN WTF? Show the @CFL game from @TSN. Huge game in terms of the league and you won't show us the feed. We literally pay your salary. Give us what you promised.
We hate to mention the major blemish on the U.S. streaming side. ESPN+ picked a horrible time to be asleep at the wheel. The U.S. fans lost the pageantry and the first 2:01 of the game.
Who knows how many American viewers left because the game wasn't on their screen.
ESPN made things even worse by refusing (at press time) to carry the rebroadcast of the game. Every other CFL game is available, except for Touchdown Atlantic 2022.
TSN lost its own feed and missed the first Toronto Argonauts touchdown live.
As for the actual game itself, Toronto linebacker Wynton McManis picked a great time for a Pick 6, returning an interception from Cody Fajardo to give the Argos a 30-24 win. Saskatchewan had won 8 straight over Toronto dating back to 2016.
McLeod Bethel-Thompson went 26 for 37 for 276 yards with 2 TDs and an interception. Fajardo was 24 for 34 for 284 yards with 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions.
Andrew Harris passed TSN panelist Milt Stegall and is now 4th all-time in yards from scrimmage. Stegall finished with 15,209 yards.
Harris had 39 yards rushing, 25 yards receiving for 64 yards for the day. He only needed 46 to pass Stegall.
The veteran running back is still short of 10,000 rushing yards. When Harris reaches that mark, he will be the first Canadian and the 6th CFL player to hit that mark.
Rod Smith and Glen Suitor called the game on TSN with Matthew Scianitti on the sidelines and in the crowd.
The panel made the trip with Kate Beirness, Davis Sanchez, and Milt Stegall there on Friday and Saturday. Matt Dunigan made the trip from Winnipeg on Friday to be there on Saturday in Wolfville.
Stegall talked about how this was his first trip to Atlantic Canada. Sanchez says he thinks Stegall would be someone from Atlantic Canada if he were Canadian.
We know the idea of building a stadium in Halifax to house a team got sidelined during the pandemic. We know the decades-long uphill battle this has been. Let's hope Touchdown Atlantic is a CFL game every year until the Atlantic Schooners start playing for real.
Touchdown Atlantic 2022 is unique because the game won't be in Moncton, NB. The game will finally be in Nova Scotia. Halifax? Nope. Wolfville. Just 90 km away from Halifax.
The week actually starts with the Edmonton Elks in Montréal on Thursday night. ESPN2 will suppose to carry this game but switched out for a game in August.
Calgary travels to Winnipeg for an outstanding showdown on Friday Night Football. This is the second straight week where Winnipeg is in a battle of undefeated teams.
The times shifted for the Saturday doubleheader. The Touchdown Atlantic starts at 3 pm Atlantic time, 2 pm Eastern, and 11 am in Vancouver. This is a Toronto "home game" as Saskatchewan will bring fans even to Wolfville.
Ottawa travels to Hamilton for the (sorry to say) anti-climatic conclusion early on a Saturday evening.
A reminder for our U.S. fans is that any CFL game not on an ESPN cable channel is available on ESPN+. The TSN feeds are used.
The BC Lions will get ready with brunch to watch the Touchdown Atlantic game on Saturday.
Not a lot Ottawa could do to change the tide. The West is now 12-1 against the East in 2022 in the CFL.
Edmonton scored as many points as the Peyton Logan 122-yard missed field goal return for Calgary. Logan added a 21-yard touchdown run for the Stampeders. Linebacker Cameron Judge added a fumble recovery for a 63-yard 4th quarter touchdown.
The 1-hour plus weather delay didn't change much in terms of momentum. The Elks liberally used their 3 quarterbacks. Kai Locksley had been the leading receiver when he went into the game as the 3rd quarterback. Tre Ford injured his right shoulder early in the game. Nick Arbuckle was in the game in between injuries to other quarterbacks.
Ford could be out 4 weeks with a collarbone injury.
The Elks are 1-4, playing much better football on the road than at Commonwealth Stadium. The team now has a 10-game home losing streak dating back to the fall of 2019.
Winnipeg and BC went in undefeated. The Blue Bombers went into Vancouver and showed in meeting 1 which team was still the best. The Lions did bring in some late first-half magic to make things fun. The teams play twice more many months down the line. They will remember this game well.
Janarion Grant started the game for the Blue Bombers with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Grant had a second kickoff return called back for a penalty, thwarting a potential $1,000,000 prize for a lucky fan.
Winnipeg ran the ball well, which kept the ball away from Nathan Rourke. Zach Collaros has been the precise, high-percentage play quarterback yet took things up a notch against the Lions. In a battle of impressive quarterbacks, Collaros made sure people remember his performance.
Hamilton signed a new punter. He is 40 years old. Except that punter is Jon Ryan. Ryan has mixed in CFL appearances before and after the NFL career with Green Bay and Seattle. He is one of a few Canadians to throw a TD pass in a NFL playoff game.
Ryan played in the CFL for Winnipeg (2004–2005) and then Saskatchewan (2019–2021).
So why Hamilton and why now? All good questions. Ryan has been on a Super Bowl winning team (Seattle, 2014) and would love to have a Grey Cup title.
Ryan averaged 48.1 yards per punt in 28 games in his last 2 seasons.
Tiger-Cats need a good punter for home games in particular since the winds make an impact on wins and losses.
Saskatchewan does travel to Hamilton on October 7.
The running game often is pushed to the back seat in the CFL offence game. The Saskatchewan Roughriders has a running quarterback in Cody Fajardo who can't run much these days with a knee brace.
Fajardo threw a pair of touchdowns though the running game was the star of the show.
Jamal Morrow had 145 total yards on 16 carries and 6 catches. Frankie Hickson had 92 rushing yards on 5 carries with a 63-yard touchdown run.
This would be the time of year to compare Hamilton with Dane Evans and Ottawa with Jeremiah Masoli. The two were Tiger-Cats teammates. The logical step happened in the offseason where the quarterbacks no longer had to compete with each other on the same sideline.
Both teams being 0-4 is not the best comparison point. Neither team has played a division game yet. The RedBlacks have been close in all but the last game. The Tiger-Cats should have defeated Calgary.
A cheap hit by Garrett Marino on Masoli late in the last game changes that dynamic. The fact that the TSN cameras caught Marino flexing his muscles after the cheap hit should mean a long suspension. When Glen Suitor thinks it's a cheap hit, you know how cheap that was. The move appeared to be retaliation for another cheap hit against Saskatchewan. Milt Stegall on the panel used the word "gutless."
There is a logic that Marino should sit out as many games as Masoli will. No league has done that and it won't start now. A 15-yard or a 25-yard penalty isn't enough. Feel free to punish the incidents that led up to that incident. The longest CFL suspension for on-field incidents is 2 games.
Marino will be out for 4 games under 3 different suspensions. The 2-game suspension for the actual hit matches the previous high mark. We will be curious as to whether he stays on the Roughriders once the suspensions have been served.
Masoli vs. Evans was going to be the highlight of the first division game with the teams. The cheap hit delays that moment significantly.
Nick Arbuckle will finally wear an Ottawa uniform. The Elks traded Arbuckle this week for a 4th round pick in the 2023 CFL Draft. Arbuckle was set to play for Ottawa in the 2020 season but never hit the field for the RedBlacks.
The teams will meet in the "forgotten game" following Touchdown Atlantic.
Dustin Nielson and Duane Forde with Sara Orlesky handled the backend of the Battle of Alberta in Edmonton. Rod Smith and Glen Suitor with Sara Orlesky were in Regina for the only interdivision game of the week. Nielson and Suitor with Blake Price called the big game with the Blue Bombers in Vancouver. Price was in for Farhan Lalji, who filled in for Kate Beirness on the panel.
video and logo credit: CFL Twitter capture: @BrianSwane
The idea of Touchdown Atlantic has been to spark interest in a potential expansion franchise in the Atlantic Schooners. The team would be based in Halifax, the largest city in the region or possibly a split with Halifax and Moncton in New Brunswick.
The first CFL game in Atlantic Canada was on June 11, 2005, a preseason game with Hamilton and Toronto that finished in a 16-16 tie. That game was played at Huskies Stadium at St. Mary's University just south of downtown Halifax. The game drew 11,148 with expanded seating.
The CFL scheduled a 2006 preseason game on June 3 for that same stadium. That game was cancelled since the Ottawa Renegades, the host team against Montreal, folded.
When the concept returned in 2010, the CFL focused on the regular season in Moncton since the city has an established stadium. Moncton Stadium, now known as Croix-Bleue Medavie Stadium, hosted regular season games in 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2019. The attendance was around 20,000 for the first 2 games, falling to about 15,000 in 2013 and 10,000 in 2019.
The CFL finally figured out that putting a game in Nova Scotia was a smart move. The league scheduled a game at Huskies Stadium in 2020. Oops.
— Acadia Athletics (@AcadiaAthletics) July 5, 2022
The league shifted the 2022 version to Raymond Field in Wolfville, 90 km north of Halifax.
The facilities in Atlantic Canada have been a concern. Huskies Stadium and Raymond Field needed considerable temporary seating to get to 10,000-11,000. The Atlantic Schooners would have been a reality long ago if there was a viable stadium in Halifax.
There are high schools in Texas that have a nice enough stadium that if you put that structure in Halifax along the water, there would be a 10th team in the CFL.
There has been a hesistancy to build a stadium of any kind in Halifax, despite the potential for expanded tourism. The soccer team HFX Wanderers FC of the Canadian Premier League play at Wanderers Grounds on the Halifax Commons. A larger stadium to suit both teams would be highly logical.
Hopefully, that is a great sign for enthusiasm for the CFL in this region.
We don't know much about Wolfville, so we are intrigued. Touchdown Atlantic starts Saturday at 3 pm Atlantic time, 2 pm Eastern, and 11 am in Vancouver. Saskatchewan serves as the "road team" and Toronto is the "home team": the same teams scheduled for the 2020 contest.
TSN will have the game in Canada with ESPN+ taking the TSN feed in the United States. Rod Smith and Glen Suitor are scheduled to call the game from Wolfville.
Traditionally, the prince searches for the person who fits the glass slipper. Cities beg for teams to come their way. If Halifax showed any kind of enthusiasm for a stadium, this would be a done deal. Playing a regular season game in Nova Scotia is a step way over due, and quite frankly, in the wrong location. Small steps indeed.
