10 Things
Truth & Rumours
1 – COFFEE ROW: It was early Saturday morning and I paused my daily walk to grab a coffee and five Birthday Cake Timbits at the Tim Hortons on Lillooet Street in Moose Jaw. There was a group of white-haired gentlemen at the next table and one smiled, yelling over, “These are good times to be a sportscaster eh?!” I knew exactly what he meant. The Roughriders had won the night before to go to a CFL-best 6-1 while at the end of July, the Blue Jays have the best team in baseball. So ya, these are great times to be a sportscaster around here! It was also nice to get a dose of positivity, and realize that not everyone out there is so doom-and-gloom because if you judge by social media these days, you’d think the world is ending. We have a choice everyday you know!
2 – WEEK 8 SO FAR: As far as the CFL goes, we’ve seen two upsets already this week with Montreal shocking Calgary 21-18 at McMahon Stadium on Thursday, and Toronto throttling Winnipeg 31-17 on Saturday. Upsets are amazing! And they speak to the trademark zaniness of the CFL which I’ll get to in a moment. I’ve seen people (Scruffy) poopoo’ing the Riders’ 21-18 victory over Edmonton on Friday, saying it wasn’t an exciting game. While it certainly wasn’t as “bombs-away” as the Riders’ Week 7 victory at BC, I can’t say this one wasn’t good entertainment and the fact the Elkimos had a chance to win it late had us watching to the end. Coach Corey Mace and Trevor Harris have a right to huff and puff that they aren’t putting teams away but as far as we media and fans go, I’d say it was pretty darned good entertainment. Oh, and the Riders are the best team in the CFL. Have been all year.
3 – FAJARDO: There is, obviously, a special place in heaven for God-loving CFL quarterback Cody Fajardo. It was a surprise to me that he was tabbed as Edmonton’s starter against Saskatchewan – in place of Tre Ford – but the result was the same; another Elks loss. But even Jesus himself would’ve struggled to get first downs while getting sacked eight times like Cody was on Friday. CFL On TSN’s Luke Willson Tweeted late in the game, “Fajardo is awesome. I love this guy. What a warrior.” I heard all the Sask postgame shows were trashing Fajardo after the game and it all adds up to me to being totally distasteful and childish. However since Fajardo’s messy split with Saskatchewan following the 2022 season, the Grey Cup wins total looks like this: Fajardo 1 Saskatchewan 0. And Cody was named MVP of the 2023 Grey Cup to boot. Mic drop. They continue to throw crap rather than look in the mirror. It’s just easier, and it never changes.
4 – LUKE WILLSON: Where do we start with the latest on the CFL On TSN sensation? The Super Bowl-winning tightend-turned-commentator remains the most talked-about aspect of the 2025 CFL season and he further stepped in it this weekend by calling out QB protection issues in the league and using the term “amateurish”. He also called out the Roughriders for inflating attendance numbers. One thing I’ve noticed over the years is that people don’t like being called out – especially the Roughriders – even if you’re right. In the Western Canadian Baseball League media circles, we’ve been discussing Willson and when I mentioned I don’t care for his Twitter wars, the response was, “Ya but it’s entertaining and he’s destroying people!” CFL great Daved Benefield mentioned on Facebook this week that “Willson isn’t saying anything new”, and the implication is that anybody else who’s tried to shine a light on the CFL’s shortcomings over the years has been exiled and shunned. Is that how this story ends? That’s what I’m waiting to see …
5 – COMMISSIONER: A poll question on the RP Show this week was – What’s been the CFL’s biggest story this year: Luke Willson, the 1st place Stampeders, the last place RedBlacks, or Other? CFL great Arland Bruce III wrote in and said the biggest story has actually been the hiring of new Commissioner Stewart Johnston. OOPS! AB is right. Shame on us for missing that story, and it says a lot. During an interview on TSN 1200 Ottawa this week, the hosts asked me how I feel Johnston is doing in Year 1. The answer is that he’s clearly settling into the role and for the time being, there’s not much to judge.
6 – AB IV: Meanwhile Arland Bruce’s son – Arland Bruce IV – will have a hearing with Stewart Johnston in August about reinstatement into the League. His contract with Edmonton was voided by former Commissioner Randy Ambrosie after being banned from the NCAA for gambling violations while at Iowa. Since Johnston reinstated Shawn Lemon for betting on games IN the CFL, I could see the youngest Bruce being welcome in as well. And besides, the league needs exciting, marketable players! I barely know who the current receivers are at all.
7 – NFL: If you’re looking for something entertaining on the tube this weekend, you can tune into NFL Network’s 24-hour training camp coverage. They’re tabbing it “Back Together Weekend” but all that is is slapping a name on the round-the-clock coverage they’ve done for years with hosts & analysts broadcasting from the sidelines, occasionally being joined by players and coaches. I’ll watch it for hours and hours on end, and it’s where I got a lot of ideas for In The Huddle training camp coverage in Saskatchewan back in the day. The biggest story which caught my eye? The Miami Dolphins being called “soft”. So-Flo was in an uproar when GM Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel were brought back after missing the playoffs last season. How they fare in 2025 is one of the Top 10 NFL stories IMHO.
8 – TKACHUK: Tuesday marked the 3-year anniversary of the Calgary Flames shipping Matthew Tkachuk to Florida in a package deal which landed Jonathan Huberdeau in Cowtown. With three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances since and two Cup wins, it’s being hailed as the most lopsided trade in NHL history (by some). But if you go to AI, the Top 5 most lopsided trades are actually these: 1) Phil Esposito from Chicago to Boston in 1967, 2) Gretzky to LA in 1988, 3) Patrick Roy to Colorado in 1995, 4) Brett Hull to St. Louis in 1988, and 5) Joe Thornton to San Jose in 2005. If you think of this for just a few minutes, I think you’ll agree the Tkachuk trade – based on results – was the biggest trade win ever.
9 – SHHOF: On Saturday night the Ted Knight Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame inducted its 2025 class and once again, it’s stellar. It includes: Ryan Getzlaf, Chris Kunitz, Dirk Graham, Doug Wickenheiser, Bill Liskowich, Brad Howard, Al Hubbs, Barry Trapp and the 1988 Regina Pat Canadians. To me, Getzlaf is the greatest hockey player Regina’s ever produced and Kunitz is the greatest and most-decorated SJHL alum in history. Trust me, I literally wrote the book on it.
10 – RANDOM THOUGHTS: Words aren’t the best teacher. Life experience is. … Final thoughts on the London World Junior sexual assault case where all five hockey players were acquitted this week: Nothing good happens after midnight. Rich Preston advised me of that in 1995. It hasn’t changed. … FACT: Wearing ballcaps doesn’t cause baldness. Genetics does. … Time exposes everything. … It amazes me how Tim Hortons always gets our orders straight in the double Drive Thru line. … A U.S. hockey fan and podcast listener asked who I like better: the Cats or the Bolts? My answer: whoever’s winning. … A big bull moose has spent the summer lingering around a popular Adirondack mountain hiking trail, prompting New York state wildlife officials to close the path as they monitor the potentially ailing animal. The Goodman Mountain trail in the Horseshoe Lake Wild Forest has been temporarily closed since June 6 due to the oddly behaving animal. Attempts to coax the moose from the trial have failed. “This is very unusual behavior,” agency research scientist Dave Kramer said Thursday. The moose stands about 6 feet tall at the shoulder and weighs 900 pounds. “His body condition hasn’t deteriorated to a point where we’re concerned that he’s struggling,” Kramer said. “So right now we’re just kind of monitoring periodically and assessing each time.” They have yet to give the Moose a name. … AND HOW WAS YOUR WEEK?
Y’er welcome,
RP
If the Tkachuk trade is the biggest trade win in history you can thank (or blame) the NHL referees. I’ve never seen him play a shift that he shouldn’t have been penalized.
Let me get this straight, you want positivity but then you’re happy when Luke Wilson dumps all over the CFL to help him get over his own feelings of inadequacy?