Scruffy’s This ‘N That

1 – THUMBS UP: I L-O-V-E what the Saskatchewan Roughriders did at the CFL draft. I had been told by someone about 6 weeks ago not to be surprised if the team drafted Kurtis Roarke as GM Jeremy O’Day apparently did a lot of homework on Nathan’s little brother who lit it up at Indiana last season helping them to get to the College Football Playoff. It helped that O’Day likely learned a lot from Indiana’s OC, Tino Sunseri. The only thing is I was told Roarke would be a second-round pick and not a third-round pick but let’s not haggle over details.

I think, like his brother, that Kurtis will end up coming up north of the border and could be the Riders QB as early as 2026 and beyond. Some have said Kurtis is better than Nathan. I’ll need to see that to believe it but if he is, the Riders are set at the game’s most important position for a while and they can maybe legitimately develop a quarterback for the first time since Darian Durant. BTW: Is Jack Coan still a member of the team because he is another guy that needs to be developed? I hope he is.

The team got themselves a beast with Ali Saad. The defensive lineman wasn’t the top ranked player at that position, but the Bowling Green product is a guy that if things go well should crack the opening day roster and be a member of the d-line. I felt going in the Green & White had to upgrade a little at that position as Charbel Dabire was the only Canadian in that group. The need was addressed. 

They also stayed local by drafting a pair of U of S Huskies as LB Seth Hundeby and REC Daniel Wiebe were taken.  Both are good players who can transition to the next level. I’ll be interested to see how the team utilizes Wiebe as he was one of the top receivers in Canada West and USports and could be a sneaky good addition. 

All in all, give GM Jeremy O’Day and his staff a lot of credit for what I think was a great class. As it is with all teams, let’s see how these guys pan out.

2 – SMELL WHAT THE ROCK IS COOKIN’: The Riders surprised no one last week when they released running back Ryquell Armstead. Well, maybe I shouldn’t say they surprised no one because there were many in Rider Nation asking why. I sometimes think these people just do this because of their dislike for GM Jeremy O’Day.  

When Armstead was signed by the Riders, they knew he came from Ottawa with baggage, but they needed to fill a hole because of the injury to AJ Ouellette. Armstead got into it with a coach at the end of the Western Final and that basically sealed his fate — although admittedly I do wonder why the team waited so long to get rid of him. 

Those that know aren’t criticizing the move. Those that don’t need to do some homework before voicing their discontent. O’Day and Corey Mace are trying to make this team better and guys like Armstead, who may resurface elsewhere, is not a guy that is needed in the room meaning the team is better. It’s as simple as that. 

3 – NFL DRAFT WINNERS/LOSERS: There have been a lot of different people grading last week’s NFL draft saying this team won and this team lost. The truth is we can’t make that determination officially for a few years as we see how picks panned out, but on the surface, I really like what the New York Giants did. They added a stud on defence in Abdul Carter, a stud on offence in running back Cam Skattebo and they might have the franchise quarterback they have been seeking since the Eli Manning days in Jaxson Dart ( a great name for a QB by the way). I also like what the Bears did as they gave QB Caleb Williams some more young talent to work with in TE Colston Loveland and WR Luther Burden. They are my NFL team, but I also really like what Seattle did as they addressed some needs and got a couple of late-round guys that could be stars (RB Damien Martinez and DT Rylie Mills). 

As for losers, I look no further than Jacksonville. Yes, they traded up to get Travis Hunter with the #2 pick, but they would have gotten a stud at #5. To give up their first-round draft pick next year which will likely be a top 10 pick is a real head-scratcher to me. Hunter needs to exceed expectations. 

Obviously, the biggest loser on draft weekend was Shedeur Sanders who tumbled all the way down to the 5^th round before Cleveland took him in a pick that really overshadowed the final two days of the draft. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Junior may have been a bigger loser for his rant on how the NFL doesn’t know how to evaluate QB’s — one that saw him rightfully put in his spot by a few including his ESPN counterpart Rece Davis. I’ve always wondered just why ESPN continues to give Kiper his draft platform and I wonder if some at the four-letter are wondering if enough is enough after his staunch defence of Sanders who Mel thought would go number 1. His ego was hit big-time, and he punched back but he should have shown some humility. As you know, the Argos put Shedeur on their neg list. The chances of him coming north of the border are about the same as me spending an evening with Sydney Sweeney, but can you imagine if he did. How much would he move the needle in Toronto? Yeah, you’re probably right!

4 – PRANK CALLS: It’s a good job Bart Simpson has nothing to do with the NFL. What the kid of Falcons defensive co-ordinator Jeff Ulbrich did was wrong in making a prank call to Sheddeur Sanders. Is it just me or are we making wayyyyyy too much of a big deal with this story? Others seemed to have been pranked as well and from what I understand, Ulbrich’s kid was not responsible for calls made to other players. If the NFL is using Ulbrich and Atlanta as scapegoats for the Sanders fall — which he was responsible for, that’s a major mistake. 

5 – CONSISTENCY?: We see it every year in the playoffs and this year is no different, but the reaction of hockey fans is the same. I think we all realize that a referee’s job is not easy and that one might interpret something one way while another interprets the same thing a different way, but the NHL Department of Player Safety seemingly has no clue when it comes to what is and what isn’t suspendable.

How can Brandon Hagel get suspended a game for a hit on Alexsandr Barkov which was late, but when Jake Guentzel gets hit in the next game by Matthew Tkachuk on a similar hit that was later than the one Hagel threw he gets nothing. Then you have the Brayden Schenn hit on Mark Scheifele that got two minutes on the ice, but no supplemental discipline and the Aaron Ekblad elbow on Hagel that didn’t see two minutes get called but a two game suspension was issued. 

Someone please make it make sense.

6 – STANLEY CUP THOUGHTS: So much for my Tampa winning the Stanley Cup prediction last week. Here are some thoughts about what has gone down over the last week as Round 1 comes to an end.

• Dallas/Colorado has been everything that everyone thought it would be.
• What happened to the Kings? It was more than Jim Hiller’s idiotic challenge in Game 3. Did Edmonton just flip the switch or was it something else because that series belonged to the Oilers after the Evan Bouchard goal following the challenge for no goal that was not overturned.
• Why isn’t anyone talking about Carolina? If they are, I’m not hearing it. 
• Who has the best goaltender been so far? Calvin Pickard is unbeaten, but I would lean towards either Logan Thompson or Sergei Bobrovsky. It certainly wouldn’t be Connor Hellebuyck.

7 – SECURING THE FUTURE: There are a lot of good head coaches in the SJHL. Mike Reagan in Flin Flon, Trevor Blevins with the defending league champion Melfort Mustangs and Brayden Klimosko in Humboldt are just three that have their clubs in a good position. Two more teams did that this week as Melville is keeping Doug Johnson around for three more years while Estevan did the right thing and took the interim title off of Drew Kocur who is now officially starting his head coaching journey. Good coaches pave the way for good results most of the time and in a league where there isn’t a lot separating top to bottom, it means some good hockey will be seen across the league for a while with guys like the ones mentioned above and others in charge. 

8 – WHL FINAL: It will be Medicine Hat vs Spokane for the Ed Chynoweth Cup. This should be a fantastic matchup with lots of goals being scored. I have to lean towards Medicine Hat because of Gavin McKenna who goes into the final on a 52-game point streak that has seen rack up 120 points. I don’t know who gets the honour of taking him in the 2026 draft, but whoever does will have themselves a player. Is he better right now than Connor Bedard? Some are asking that question and they might be right. Who’s kidding who, I will be looking to see when the Tigers are at the Brandt Centre to take on Maddox Schultz and the Pats next season. 

9 – BILL BELICHICK: Is dating someone wayyyyyyy younger than you worth it Bill? His new lady seems to be the one controlling the relationship and he is doing a lot of damage control because of her. Belichick has gone from the greatest coach pro football has seen to someone who is becoming the target of many jokes. He has no one to blame but himself. Bill needs to tell his new friend to hit the road ASAP or get her out of the spotlight she has put herself in and get back the credibility he is rapidly losing. Part of me does wonder what Tom Brady and Robert Kraft think of everything that is going on though. 

10 – RATTLERS TO REGINA: Two thumbs up to the Saskatchewan Rattlers. The CEBL team announced it will hold part of its training camp in Regina at the U of R. Good on them for doing so as people in the southern half of the province can get a look at these guys and help grow the game in this area. It will be good to see this team spending some time in YQR. 

RANDOM THOUGHTS:

• I’m glad I am not a Colorado Rockies fan.
• Is Tom Wilson the new Brad Marchand?
• The Riders may have found a gem in RB Mario Anderson who was signed before the draft.  The Memphis running back is a guy who might be the perfect compliment to AJ Ouellette.
• When is the last time the CFL had an “official” beer sponsor? Good on them to sign a deal with Bud Light. 
• Congrats to Moosomin.  The Steelhawks will play in the Prairie Junior Hockey League this season and I am guessing the rink will be full most nights as will the Red Barn when visiting teams grab some post-game chow before heading home.

That’s all I got! Have a great week!