10 SUNDAY THINGS FOR CAPITAL AUTO MALL

1 – NO RUSH: After considerable ballyhoo the Saskatchewan Rush didn’t show up for their home-opener, losing 12-8 to New England Saturday before a typically raucous crowd at Sasktel Centre. Goaltender Evan Kirk “Make ‘Em Work” was sub-par and was eventually pulled in favour of Adam Shute. However the back-up wasn’t much better and that had me yelling from my season seats to put Evan back in. Ahhh to be a fan again. I love it. The Rush are now on the road for a pair (at New York and San Diego), and won’t be at home again until Saturday, January 18 against the Colorado Mammoth.

2 – GREAT SCOTT: 3DownNation’s Justin Dunk sniffed out the Scott Milanovich hiring by the Edmonton Eskimos about a week before it was eventually announced. Eskimo fans were getting antsy, seeing Rick Campbell and Paul Lapolice go elsewhere but GM Brock Sunderland knocked this one out of the park, signing a former CFL Coach of the Year and Grey Cup winner. The talent is there, and this seems turn-key for Milanovich. Meanwhile football maven John Frenzy predicts free agent assistant coach Stephen McAdoo will land in Edmonton with Milanovich.

3 – CANADIAN MAFIA: The gang is all back together (minus Lapolice) in Winnipeg after Head Coach Mike O’Shea and GM Kyle Walters signed contract extensions on Friday. This spells doom for every other CFL West Division team. I recall coming home from the 2017 Canadian Football Hall of Fame inductions in Hamilton thinking, “O’Shea’s going to be a pain in the neck for the Riders for years to come. He’s a grinder, a champ, and he does things the right way.” And at the moment, he’s standing atop the mountain.

4 – DONE LIKE DINNER: Not many saw the hiring of Ryan Dinwiddie as Head Coach of the Toronto Argonauts coming down the pipe before it was announced on Thursday. Saying the franchise needed a culture change, GM Pinball Clemons torched Head Coach Corey Chamblin on the spot and immediately replaced him with Dinwiddie, all in one Tweet. Fans are comparing Dinwiddie to Justin Trudeau, saying “He’s just not ready” but the insiders know this is a shrewd hire. If you look up the word “Confidence” in the dictionary, you see Ryan Dinwiddie’s picture. He exudes it, he inspires it, and he was born for this role. At age 39, if now’s not his time, when is?

5 – TWEET OF THE WEEK: From Joey Abrams, once seen as a rising star in the front office of the Montreal Alouettes but is now selling real estate in Ottawa, likely because of the CFL football operations cap: “You can’t present a high profile job with no organizational structure and expect to reel in top candidates. Owner, President, GM, Coach. Shame on the CFL for bumbling this ownership transfer with no transparency.” As we sit here today, the clock still ticks on the hiring of a GM in Montreal. And, finding an owner.

6 – THE RUMOUR THAT WON’T GO AWAY: Everywhere I go, the same rumour persists: that Saskatchewan oil & gas/real estate tycoon Gary Drummond is in line to buy the BC Lions. Apparently TSN Vancouver’s Rick Dhaliwal reported as much on the RP Show a few weeks back, on one of the episodes where I was away. This is all well and good, because the former Arizona Coyotes owner wants to get his hands on his next pro team, but where does that leave the Atlantic Schooners project? If true, what does this rumour say about Drummond’s commitment to Halifax? With so many loose ends and balls in the air, this opens things up to speculation and rumours.

7 – FINS UP: Credit my Armed Forces buddy Brad who came up with this one — “If the Dolphins sign Willie Jefferson and Derrick Moncrief, with Sam Eguavoen already on their roster, they’ll become the CFL’s 10th team!” He didn’t stop there. Brad posed the question of who were Ryan Dinwiddie’s back-ups in the 2007 Grey Cup and what are they doing now? The answer is Kliff Kingsbury (Head Coach of the Arizona Cardinals) and Zac Taylor (Head Coach of the Cincinnati Bengals). Youth is “in” in pro football these days. Nice call Brad!

8 – 3RD QB: The talk persists that the CFL will eliminate the third QB position beginning in 2020 in favour of another global player. For me, the notion is simply too preposterous to ever come to fruition. As one former NFL coach told me recently, having only 2 QB’s and forcing a position player into service in emergency situations “Would make the CFL look high school-ish”. If they cut the 3rd QB, you can expect coaches and personnel people to picket outside the CFL head office on Wellington St. in downtown Toronto.

9 – GO PATS GO: We very much enjoyed the Regina Pats effort in Friday’s 4-3 win over the Kelowna Rockets. It was somewhat of an old school game, with some grit & sandpaper, the odd melee, and a lunch bucket effort. That’s all the Regina hockey fan wants. EFFORT! As Brian Sutter recently said on stage in Paradise Hill, SK, all Canadian hockey fans want to see are goals and physical play. Friday’s game had both. ENTERTAIN US! The Pats are home to Winnipeg Sunday at 4 pm and the first 1,000 fans get a Pats Christmas tree ornament. I’ll be in line for mine.

10 – RANDOM THOUGHTS: “Just a few minutes” in airline-speak actually means “30-45 minutes”. … Congrats to referee Adam Byblow for winning the WHL Milestone Award this week. He’s spent 21 years in the Dub, 16 as a referee. … The department store The Bay is verrrrry underrated. It’s much like Macy’s in the USA. … While in Houston, I learned the Texans were working out offensive lineman Travis Vornkahl of the Saskatchewan Roughriders (?). He must have a great agent. … Our book Heart & Soul of the SJHL has sold out at Indigo Chapters but a new shipment is arriving today. At $30, it’s the ideal gift for the hockey fan in your life and ALL proceeds go to the SJHL Assistance Fund for players mental health.

Merry Christmas,
RP
@rodpedersen