10 WEEKEND THINGS

Taking shots …

1 – UP WEEK: Just when you could feel the noose tightening in the Rider Nation, the Green Gang went out and saved the day. The Saskatchewan Roughriders trailed Montreal 13-11 at halftime Saturday at sun-splashed Mosaic Stadium, and the knives were sharpening, but a 30-point second half powered the Riders to a 41-20 rout of Les Alouettes and a spiffy 3-1 record coming out of Week 4. What are we gonna complain about now?

2 – MORE: Saskatchewan quarterback Cody Fajardo, whom Leader Post columnist Rob Vanstone opined this week is being severely, unfairly critiqued, threw for 224 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INT, plus he rushed for a score. It’s remarkable that the stat sheet only shows two sacks registered by Montreal since Cody spent the first half running for his life. It sounds like head coach Craig Dickenson challenged his charges at halftime (I’m sure there were some tweaks made by offensive coordinator Jason Maas as well), and Sask came out and dominated the final 30 minutes before an announced crowd of 27,717. Again, I’m significantly wondering what people will find to complain about now.

3 – YARDSTICKS: The Roughriders won the turnover battle 5-1. … They won the sack battle 6-2. … Penalties were an Achilles heel for Sask again, taking 16 for 155 yards compared to the Alouettes’ 105 yards. … I noticed a lot of complaining about the officiating. There always is. … Fajardo used eight different receivers. …. Anthony Lanier led the Rider sack attack with a hattrick; three of them. … It’s sad the official CFL stats no longer keep track of Quarterback Pressures. Montreal had many. Willie Jefferson used to run away with that stat. … Sask hosts Ottawa next Friday in what used to be a red-hot rivalry, believe it or not. I’m not sure it is anymore. … Don’t look now but four teams in the CFL West have three wins to lead the division.

4 – WEEK 4 NOTES: The week isn’t over yet as Toronto – which thinks it’s American – will host Winnipeg on Monday, July 4 at 7:30 pm at BMO Field. Many feel this is the marquee game of the week! I do not. Winnipeg is favoured by 5-points at BetRegal.ca. … The Riders covered the 5-point spread against Montreal at BetRegal. … If you’ve watched the RP Show recently on Game+ TV, you’ll recall I’ve noticed that we seem to be on the cusp of a renaissance in Canadian sport. Canuck quarterbacks Nathan Rourke (BC) and Tre Ford (Edmonton) – both of whom won this week – are being celebrated by Canadian sports fans rather than being scorned for being “second rate”. What a boon this could be for the CFL! … Despite being swept by Winnipeg in a season-opening home and home series, the Ottawa RedBlacks were being touted as a “team on the rise” in the Power Rankings. Now head coach Paul LaPolice is *supposedly* on the hot seat at 0-3. What a business. … Nobody can figure out why the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are 0-4 and that is scary as hell for anyone in Steeltown. … We noted here last week that the Chris Jones-led Edmonton Elks were getting better, fast. Their upset 29-25 victory at Tim Hortons Field in Week 4 should come as a surprise to no one. … Somebody said the East Division was supposed to be better than the West Division this year? As of today, West teams are 13-4 while East teams are 2-8. Try again.

5 – BURNING BRIDGE: It’s not like Brandon Bridge – aka Air Canada – was the recipient of bad timing in his career, although I do feel that Canada wasn’t ready to celebrate a Canadian QB during Brandon’s time in the league (2015-2019). Doesn’t it feel like longer? The Toronto product played for four teams during that span, including Montreal twice! … But Bridge got his big chance on Saturday, June 30, 2018 when he got the start for Sask against Montreal at Mosaic Stadium. On the opening series Bridge unfurled a 60-yard bomb to Marcus Thigpen on a wheel route, right on the numbers, but Thiggy dropped it. Brandon ended up getting pulled in that game – which Montreal won 23-17 – and he admitted afterwards that he couldn’t recover mentally from the Thigpen drop. It help that Chris Jones’ and OC Stephen McAdoo’s leash was one inch long. Bridge was never the same in his career after that, and is now a police officer in the Peel Region of Ontario. … That’s the pressure these guys face. The window is small and if you don’t seize the brass ring when it’s offered, it could be curtains for your career. Yowza. … I was around Brandon a lot back then and he’s an incredibly likeable guy. He just wasn’t as serious about his craft as it required. And I don’t feel guilty about saying that because I was that way, way back when as well. … But it’s not like Brandon didn’t get his opportunities. Nathan Rourke is getting his, and is making the most of them. (May I suggest the nickname ‘WestJet‘?).

6 – STAMPEDERS: The Calgary Stampeders are one of those teams atop the CFL West Division at 3-0 and celebrated Canada Day long weekend with a bye. Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell ripped up a golf course with his good friend, and neighbour Ben Hebert. Week 5 gets rolling Thursday with football’s latest Battle of Alberta with Calgary at Edmonton on Thursday. The Stamps and Elks met in Week 3 at McMahon Stadium with the Horsemen taking a 30-23 come-from-behind victory. This is a game that’s tough to say no to! We may have to make the road trip northward. … A young lady named Jayla stopped me in Indigo/Chapters at Chinook Centre Mall this weekend and the conversation went like this: “Excuse me? Are you Rod Pedersen? I just have to say I love your show and listen everyday. I searched ‘CFL podcasts’ and your show was #1. The only suggestion I’d make is to have more Stamps coverage!” … How about that.

7 – DON’T GO JOHNNY GO: Hockey is still #1 in Calgary and the absolute #1 question around here is: Will the Flames be able to re-sign Johnny Gaudreau? It stands to reason that Flames fans feel since the NHL All Star forward hasn’t re-signed yet, that he’ll sign elsewhere when the free agency period opens this month. Even the pundits seem to think he’ll head home to sign with the Philadelphia Flyers. BUT not every player wants to play at home (see: Steven Stamkos, Drew Doughty, etc). Free agency and star players is a tale as old as time, and it causes plenty of anxiety in a fanbase. But that’s why we love it.

8 – ELSEWHERE: With free agency opening on July 13, the #1 story I’m following is the future of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. He’s listed as the fourth-best goalie available by NBC Sports, and maybe he is, but I’ve heard out of Las Vegas two scenarios: 1) The Golden Knights will make him an offer and 2) The Golden Knights will NOT make him an offer. So, again, that’s why I’ll be watching that scenario more than any other. Plus they’re my favourite team. But the futures of Gaudreau, Evander Kane, Nazem Kadri, et al are exciting to watch too. … A Flyers alum said free agent forward Claude Giroux is a great player but was far “too nice” to be team captain in Philly. … Rumour out of Pittsburgh is the Penguins have made signing Kris Letang a priority over Evgeni Malkin and that’s not sitting well with the big Russian. … The hiring of Rick Bowness by the Winnipeg Jets is a bit of a surprise. The majority of Winnipeggers I’ve heard from have given the hire a thumbs-down.

9 – MEMORIAL CUP: With the Saint John Sea Dogs winning the Memmer as the host team in 2022, it’s drawn plenty of scorn across the country from Junior hockey enthusiasts who feel the format needs to be changed. I am n0t one of those scorners. This format was adopted in 1972 and there’s a reason it’s stayed in place for 50 years. THERE ISN’T A BETTER ONE! … We are a hockey country but local fans won’t buy tickets to watch out-of-market teams. Would Vancouverites pay top dollar to watch the Senators play the Jets? Not on your life. So when somebody complains about the Memorial Cup format, I ask for a better one. They can never provide it. … And by the way we in Regina have hosted the Memorial Cup three times and never won any of those times so DON’T TELL ME IT’S EASY FOR THE HOST TEAM TO WIN! /rant off

10 – RANDOM THOUGHTS: The CEBL’s Saskatchewan Rattlers visit the Newfoundland Growlers Sunday on CBC Gem and CEBL+. Check it out. … I enjoy the CEBL more than the NBA.  … I also enjoy Junior hockey over pro. … Why do they call them “sliders”? … Run, don’t walk, to Elvis – The Movie, at your local Landmark Cinema as soon as you can. I thought I knew everything about The King but clearly that wasn’t the case until I saw this picture featuring Austin Butler as Elvis Presley. People *who would know* tell me this is as accurate portrayal of Elvis’s life as there has ever been. Go enjoy it! … We took in Top Gun – Maverick for a second time this week as well. It gets two thumbs up from The Monday Morning Goalie but it’s still not as good as Elvis. … This week The RP Show will be broadcasting live from a rodeo arena and Cody Snyder’s Bullbustin’ at Grey Eagle Resort & Casino. We air at 10 am MT daily on Game+ TV and YouTube Live. Holy smokes have we been treated well out here! Eternally grateful. … We’re also announcing two new huge sponsorships with national brands this week on the air. Please tune in! Again, grateful for the support of this country. … A few weeks ago I saw a poster on a telephone pole in Canmore, AB promoting the town’s first-ever Spirituality Expo on July 2 and wanted to make sure I went back for it. On Saturday I checked it out, and wound up staying for the whole day. You may think I’ve gone mad for exploring this new world – certainly some have suggested it – but you can’t argue with how great things are going and the fact my Fitbit regularly shows a heartrate of 49 bpm. I regularly have people here, and Florida, come up and say “Excuse me sir, but you are radiating positive energy.” Namaste!

Y’er welcome,
RP
@rodpedersen