10 WEEKEND THINGS

Here we go …

1 – HOLY SMOKES THIS IS FUN!: There will be a lot of things to be filed in the You Shoulda Listened category in this column and the first of which is the freight train that is Bedard Mania. 15-year old Regina Pats phenom Connor Bedard – the WHL’s first ever Exceptional Player – delivered in his Dub debut Friday night, scoring twice in a 47-second span of a 6-3 loss to Prince Albert. We told you last spring when Connor got the tag, and was then drafted #1 overall by the Pats, that this is a franchise-changing hockey player. (I still credit former Pats voice Kevin Gallant for alerting me about Bedard, whose son was teammates with Connor). If fans were allowed in the building, I swear the Brandt Centre would be soldout the rest of the way. Another crime indeed, but at least we get to watch him on TV.

2 – BIEBER ON SKATES: “Bedard” was trending on Twitter Friday night after his dazzling performance. The hockey world was buzzing and WHL Commissioner Ron Robison was positively glowing that Bedard was the talk in NHL arenas across the land. The kid delivered. My phone blew up with messages from a range of people like NHL referees, WHL alum and far-flung fans who asked if “he’s for real?” Now they’re itching to see him live. All eyes are on Regina and I’m calling the games. That’s God’s work.

The way Connor darts in and out with startling moves like a mouse, I thought for a second that could be his nickname. It would pair nicely with The Rat Dale Derkatch – the Pats icon –  who’s joined our AccessNow TV crew this season. Then I realized there’s a reason no athlete in the history of sports has been nicknamed The Mouse. (Apologies to Damon Stoudemire) That moniker would be a disservice to Connor’s gargantuan abilities. For now, #CB98 seems chic.

3 – THE GAME: Pats coach Dave Struch was unusually chipper for a man whose team just lost 6-3 on opening night in their own arena. However in retrospect, Regina outshot the reigning league champs 30-17 and were in it for most of the game. 20-year old goaltender Roddy Ross came out of the contest with a .688 save percentage and while it’s not all on him, more is expected. It was just one game, and his first as a Pat. Also as expected, Struch generally partnered Bedard with older vets Logan Nijhoff and Carson Denomie and they worked well together. Plus, Bedard quarterbacked the powerplay. AT 15! My only regret is that Sunday’s 4:00 pm date with the Saskatoon Blades is not televised due to a scheduling conflict on AccessNow. However we’ll have Tuesday’s clash with the Moose Jaw Warriors at 8:00 pm.

Getting back into hockey full-time feels like pulling on a warm sweater out of the dryer. Soooooooo good. As Paul Brandt sings, “That’s where I come from. That’s who I am.“

4 – THE SALE: I’m a little shocked how big of news it is that Brandt Group of Companies and the Semple Family have taken over sole possession of the Regina Pats, buying out Anthony Marquart and Todd Lumbard of Queen City Sports & Entertainment. Usually sports business transactions between millionaires and billionaires fly under the radar but this has been a huge buzz. People asked my thoughts so here they are: I told Todd I’m sad to see them go because their ownership made me fall back in love with the Pats again, deeply. Since they bought the team in 2015 we were always trying to find a way for me to be involved in a significant way but I had the Rider thing going on plus was slow-dancing with various NHL teams and networks. Now that I’m back full-time in the TV capacity, they’re gone. Life’s about timing. But their legacy is saving the team and attracting the 2018 Memorial Cup. Heroes.

5 – CFL/XFL PART 1: My phone has also blown up from anxious CFL types who are concerned about their immediate future and asked my take on the news of a CFL/XFL collaboration. Here it is: I have no doubt that the current CFL leaders feel they can “tap into” The Rock’s brand & contacts and give up little in return. However I believe they’re being incredibly naive if they think this is the case and that Johnson will do it out of the goodness of his heart. These owners didn’t become rich by doing that. Dwayne Johnson didn’t become the #1 global entertainment brand by giving his talents and assets away. PLUS, the CFL left him destitute when he was cut by the Calgary Stampeders in 1995 after paying him $300/week. What does he owe the CFL now?

6 – CFL/XFL PART 2: We aren’t privy to the talks between the CFL and RedBird Capital Partners of course but I think most can see – including XFL coach June Jones – that this is headed to an all-out merger. That’s the notion I’ve been championing for two decades and if you’re a regular reader of this blog, we don’t need to go over how and why it would work today. Suffice it to say, how I would do it, is have a 20-team league with 10 franchises in each country. We may even want to dabble in Mexico. Throw the American, Canadian and Global players all into one talent pool, rate them, then have a draft. The elephant in the room here is of course the CFL’s historic “ratio”, and the football guys would have to sort out how that would work. Canadian CFL alumni are adamant that it needs to be maintained but as I’ve long said, “if you want to gain something you have to let something go”. The ratio might be it.

7 – CFL/XFL PART 3: For what it’s worth, Rob Braley – the heir to the David Braley fortune – sees the same thing coming that I do. Braley Tweeted from his account @rob_braley on Friday, “Ambrosie is jeopardizing the integrity of the CFL. He is chasing his fictional Superman. He will get squashed like a bug if he isn’t careful. ‘Big hat no cattle’ as dad would say.”

Rob summed it up far better and more succinctly than I could.

7 – CFL/XFL PART 4: None of this does much good when it comes to the 2021 season and the guys I’m talking to need and want answers. Players griped as much about it on Twitter when this news broke and perhaps Ottawa QB Matt Nichols said it best when he wrote, “Does anyone know when camp is starting? Or do I need to ask The Rock?” Funny/not funny. I think we can all see the CFL/XFL merger on the other side of the burning bridge. How do we get there? As it stands now the CFL is generally broke and the only way they can play is with a guarantee that the stadiums will be open and enough CFL fans will be vaccinated in time for kickoff. However there is no such guarantee. John Frenzy reported on Friday’s RP Show that he’s been told the drop-dead date for a decision on the 2021 season is May 1. That actually sounds reasonable enough to me, but it leaves CFL staff, players and coaches hanging for another six weeks. How do you sell sponsorships between now and then with no guarantee? You can’t.

If the CFL doesn’t play in 2021, then RedBird Capital Partners is getting a 9-team league for free because it’ll be finished. If the CFL does play in 2021, they’ll be crawling on fumes to get across the finish line and will have no choice but to accept a merger/partnership with the XFL. Either way The Rock wins.

So I can’t tell those coaches if there will be a season in 2021 because as of today, no one knows. Maybe Trudeau.

8 – MISCONSCREWED: It’s not surprising that hundreds of thousands of CFL fans didn’t understand what I was saying Friday when I said if you didn’t support the league’s Grey Cup Fan Base fundraiser this summer then you shouldn’t have a say in the future of the league now. I never said you didn’t have the right to be a fan, or even a diehard. Or an opinion. You may have had season tickets for decades but what you get in exchange for that is status, fantastic live entertainment, preferred parking, reserved seats, early bird pricing, a discount at the team store, and lots of other perks. However in 2020 the CFL needed you to do more. This is the largest financial crisis the league has ever faced and all I said was that if you didn’t step up and buy spots on the trophy base for $400 each, then you shouldn’t complain if the CFL does what’s best for itself and accepts cash from The Rock. The money to survive needs to come from somewhere, and the Fan Base promotion largely flopped. I realize there was a pandemic, but so what? It seems pretty black and white to me.

People have criticized my Friday monologue for being too callous regarding those who’ve lost their jobs in the pandemic, or were forced to go on CERB. Ummmm, I lost my job in 2019 but don’t remember there being a parade. Let alone an acknowledgement from the CFL.

W-A-K-E  U-P

I didn’t buy a spot on the Grey Cup Fan Base. I’m also not complaining about the death of the CFL as we know it. If you can’t comprehend the difference, then you never will. I suggest you stop reading now and never come back.

9 – THE BRAND: A major market sportswriter wrote to me on Saturday that, “Everybody knows you only serve yourself” as it relates to my stance on Point 8. GOOD! I’m glad somebody finally noticed. I wrote on this website two years ago when I left the Roughriders job that I’ll never put my fate in someone else’s hands again. I’m a man of my word. Since then we’ve built out The Rod Pedersen Show like its own sports franchise in that we have a national TV deal, regional cable television & radio deals, a 24-hour sports talk channel, a merchandise line, internship programs, a mascot, sports tours and we’re working on a Booster Club. The acquisitions we’re working on started with the DUBNetwork website and there are more on the way. We’ve also grown significantly in the United States and are forming partnerships with teams and leagues who are consistently underserved by the mainstream media. We’ve got a nice collaboration going with the Belly Up Sports Podcast Network in the USA (look it up). We’ve grown exponentially in a pandemic. Every step of the way, I’ve written about it right here so why is it such a surprise now that all of my energies and ideas go towards a brand that benefits all the people who come to work for it everyday? That’s who I serve, Jeff. I serve the people who rely on me, not the people I rely on. Think on that awhile.

I liken it to Don Matthews’ strategy of, “Here’s what we’re going to do. Try to beat us.”

I could also provide a long list of abuse victims, recovered addicts & alcoholics and other marginalized/undervalued human beings whom I work with every single day. We call ourselves The Recovery Warriors and if you have a problem with me, you best take it up with them.

Frankly I got a huge kick out of all the backlash on Saturday. People are just now waking up and smelling the coffee.

They don’t like hearing the truth nor being forced to look in the mirror. Recovery 101.

10 – BERNIE LYNCH: I was today years old when I learned my Dad launched an investigation into misconduct towards players by hockey coach Bernie Lynch in the 1980s in the Western Hockey League. I suppose I have a foggy recollection of it but I was in high school at the time and had my head up my ass. Anyway, I learned of it when speaking to a national reporter this weekend as we compiled our findings over the past week from speaking with billets, parents and alleged victims of Mr. Lynch in his last two Junior A stops, plus former team employees in other places. It’s an extensive web. I’ve noticed there’s an underlying theme of why this was allowed to go on for so long; the victims never spoke up. That should change now. I’ve enlisted Theo and Sheldon in this effort and the army has been mobilized.

So forgive me if a football merger wasn’t my priority this week.

Y’er welcome,
RP
@rodpedersen