10 Monday Things For Suds Car Wash

Truth & Rumors:

1 – NO-KAY BLUE JAYS: Ruh roh. Hands up for everyone who thought George Springer’s leadoff home run was a sign the Blue Jays were going to take Game 1 of the ALCS against Seattle? Mine is. Sadly that’s all the offense Toronto could muster as they fell 3-1 to the Mariners Sunday night. The beautiful thing about baseball is that – unlike hockey and baseball – they waste no time in between playoff games and Game 2 goes Monday afternoon at Rogers Centre. Trey Yesavage versus Logan Gilbert. Jays skipper said after Sunday’s game that this will be a long series and his guys are up for it. Can’t wait!

2 – CFL WEEK 19: So far the games played this weekend have been titillating. Saskatchewan downed Toronto 27-19 on Friday to clinch first place and home field in the West Final. Calgary upset Hamilton 37-20 on Saturday to snap a 4-game slide and prevent the Ticats from clinching first and later on Saturday, Edmonton stayed alive with a 25-20 must-win victory over Winnipeg. … Don’t forget Ottawa visits Montreal on Turkey Day and the Alouettes still have an outside shot at claiming first place. … Riders head coach Corey Mace refused a Gatorade shower because the job’s not done however Saskatchewan continues to do enough to win games and seem unchallenged on their way to the Grey Cup. Beleaguered kicker Brett Lauther was 5/5 on field goals so Rider fans have nothing to complain about besides all the empty seats at Mosaic Stadium (maybe fans are waiting to buy West Final tickets?) … I was always told offering $20-$30 tickets to Rider games wasn’t possible. Now they are. Go figure! … People feel the best Grey Cup match-up is Roughriders-Blue Bombers in Winnipeg in November but if the Blue Bombers don’t get going, that’s not gonna happen.

3 – CFL ATTENDANCE: To steal the line from announcer Harry Doyle in the movie Major League, “In case you haven’t noticed, and judging by the attendance, you haven’t!”, the crowd at Saturday’s Bombers-Elks game at Commonwealth Stadium was alarming. It felt like the TSN cameras were doing all they could to avoid showing the empty stands but the fact is we had more people at Roughriders practice back in the heyday than showed up in the Alberta capital on Saturday. The apologists are blaming the weather and the fact the Oilers were home Saturday night but those things never used to matter. Especially when the Elks are playing meaningful games in October! … It’s crisis time in the CFL and while this isn’t the doing of Commissioner Stewart Johnston, it is his mess to clean up. It’s taken 10-15 years to get into this sad situation. Will it take that long to get out of it? Where does one start? … The fact the Grey Cup isn’t sold-out and the halftime act hasn’t been announced yet are simply not good signs.

4 – NHL: Saturday marked the first of two days this season where 16 games were featured – all 32 teams in play – and the 110 goals scored were the second-most on one day in NHL history (they never seem to want to tell us what was #1!) … San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini registered his fourth career 3-point game, tying him with Jeff Friesen and Pat Falloon for the most by a teenager in Sharks history. … Islanders #1 overall pick Matthew Schaeffer scored his first career goal and became the youngest defenceman in the expansion era to score to light the lamp, and 2nd youngest all-time (the Leafs’ Ross Johnstone was the only younger D-man to score, back in 1943) … The Florida Panthers are 3-0 and just the third reigning Stanley Cup champion in the past 25 years to begin the next season undefeated behind the 2020-21 Tampa Bay Lightning and 2023-24 Vegas Golden Knights.

5 – BEDARD: The Next One deserves a point unto himself. It was a treat to watch Connor on opening night in Sunrise on Tuesday, and to exchange a brief hello with him after the game (a 3-2 Panthers win). What struck me first is that Bedard is no longer a boy. He’s a man, at age 20. Secondly the weight of the world is on his shoulders each and every night as his Chicago Blackhawks are even worse this year than last. They are 0-2-1, God knows when they’ll win their first game, but at least Connor is already at a point-per-game clip, with two goals. We’re assured a new deal with Chicago is imminent and Sportsnet’s Elliot Friedman says it’ll be in the “8-figure” stratosphere. However as a friend pointed out this weekend, that could be anywhere between $10M and $90M per season. Quite a range!  … The hockey guys have noted Bedard’s commitment to playing hard in all three zones this year but I wonder how long that’ll last on a last-place team. But McDavid’s always done it, so perhaps this Connor can too. Still, just like in junior, I’m checking the scoresheet nightly to see how he’s doing and Bedard never lets us down.

6 – BARE KNUCKLE ICE WARS: A few thousand blood-thirsty hockey and fight fans turned out to Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, FL on Friday for the seven-bout card of hockey fighters going nose-to-nose on a scaled-down ice surface in the home of the NHL’s Panthers. About 70% of the fighters were Canadian hockey players – two from Saskatchewan – and the results were around 50/50. We had a blast! In true Canadian fashion, one of the fighters told the crowd “I’m sorry” after losing his scrap, while another personally DM’ed me to apologize for his showing. As I told him, ‘Hey! There’s nothing to apologize for.’ They showed up! Most people don’t even have the nuts to do that. … The event owner & promoters were pleased with how it came off and don’t be surprised if B.K.I.W. comes to an arena near you. My phone blew up with business & hockey types who want to bring the event to their venue. … Frankly I’m surprised at the negative reaction the event caused. If you don’t like it, don’t pay any attention. I thought we were past that. Next!

7 – NFL WEEK 6: The headline scrolled across the ticker on CNN this week “Uproar Over Non-American Super Bowl Halftime Act Bad Bunny”, and I wondered if that’s the biggest news in the world these days? … The Sunday Nighter was the Game of the Week and the Kansas City Chiefs proved they’re still “all that” by spanking Detroit 30-17. It may have served as a Super Bowl preview as well. … The headline on ESPN Monday morning after the Cowboys’ 30-27 last second loss at Carolina was “DALLAS DISGRACE”. Wish I could say I’m surprised. … And Dolphins fans are inconsolable after Sunday’s 29-27 last-second loss to the Chargers. “We’re a laughing stock,” wrote one Dol-fan on Twitter. How about some positive news?! … Vegas got a much-needed win, 20-10 over hapless Tennessee. … The Buccaneers are being touted as Super Bowl favorites by some after a 30-19 home win over San Fran. … Monday morning ESPN analytics to win the Super Bowl are: Kansas City (11%), Buffalo (10%), Detroit (9%), Green Bay (9%), Indianapolis (7%). … Really, there were no particular upsets on Sunday. Enjoy the Monday Night double-dip: Buffalo at Atlanta and Chicago at Washington! 

8 – COLLEGE: The Longhorns beat Red River rival sixth-ranked Oklahoma 23-6 on Saturday. It saves their season for now. 4-2 Texas should be back in the next AP poll, and in the CFP for a third straight year. … Heisman candidate Fernando Mendoza threw for 215 yards and a key fourth-quarter touchdown and No. 7 Indiana remained undefeated with a 30-20 victory over No. 3 Oregon. … No. 8 Alabama edged out No. 14 Missouri in a Southeastern Conference thriller, while No. 25 Florida State’s slump worsened with a loss to Pitt. … It’s been a no more or less exciting College season than ever. Just very entertaining! … Was surprised to hear 5-0 Miami Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobel going off on Miami sports radio during their bye this week, railing on critics who say they “bought” their team through NIL. (Canes QB Carson Beck is earning $4M this season). I mean, who cares what they say? Go win a championship.

9 – BE ALL YOU CAN BE: In a 12-step meeting this weekend, two Armed Forces veterans got going back and forth during their shares. One survived deployment in Afghanistan while the other served in Desert Storm (Iraq). “They don’t teach you in basic training how to deal with watching someone’s head get cut off with a sword,” one of them said. I stared at the floor and wondered to myself, “What was bothering me when I walked through that door again?” … Somebody said to me once, “Rod you can’t use the military as a baseline for mental strength.” I replied, “Why not?” They had no response.

10 – RANDOM THOUGHTS: Don’t pass on the right side. … Not everybody was lucky enough to have a Dad like I was. Fortunately you can get his tips here every week. … Nice to see Doug Gilmour greeting patrons at the door of the annual Weyburn Red Wings fundraising dinner at McKenna Hall. … We did a sports dinner with Gilmour in Moose Jaw back in the day. He said “Ask me anything you like but don’t ask me about the Gretzky high stick in ’93”. … We work real hard to get over things, but some people just can’t, or won’t. … Canada West football always takes Thanksgiving Weekend off. … This month Halloween candy takes center stage. With a variety of options available, from classic mini chocolate bars to the divisive candy corn, there is something for everyone. Americans are projected to spend $3.9 billion on Halloween candy this year. Although Americans spend money on costumes, decorations, and Halloween-themed cards, candy remains the top purchase for many. Additionally, 96% of households plan to buy candy for Halloween in 2025. Each year, over 35 million pounds – or about 9 billion pieces – of candy corn are produced, according to the National Confectioners Association and most are eaten around Halloween. It’s the No. 3 rated Halloween treat, behind chocolate and gummy candy. .. And how was your week!

Y’er welcome,
RP