Stackhouse’s 10 Weekend Thoughts

2 – ARGOS MENTAL MIDGETS – If the Ottawa RedBlacks win a game this season, it will come at the expense of the Toronto Argos, who have to be (collectively) one of the dumbest teams I’ve seen in a long time.  The Argos probably should have won this game but they missed two extra points and had the one returned the distance in what, really, changed the tone of the game.  Chad Kelly threw for 295-yards in the first half but was held to 50-yards in the second half before padding the total in garbage time.  Even late in the fourth quarter after the defense made a stop on the goal line, the special teams went offside on the field goal attempt and that resulted in a Rider touchdown so instead of it being 24-24 late in the fourth, it was 28-24 and an insurmountable deficit.  They also gave up a 20-yard run on a draw play late in the fourth that sucked any chance of a comeback as it ensured the Riders would keep the ball for most of the final three minutes.  

3 – MACE BUILDING LEGACY – It’s premature but Corey Mace has to be in the discussion already as the greatest Rider head coach of all-time.  It’s only year three but Mace took a team that finished 6-and-12 in back to back years and appeared to be on the brink of perpetual cellar dweller status to a record of 9-8-and-1 in his first season and then 12-and-6 and a Grey Cup in his second.  They are 7-and-4 this season and, I believe, the favorites to repeat as Grey Cup champions for the first time in franchise history.  I just think when you look at the state, outlook, and overall lack of confidence that fans had in the team at the time of his hiring and look at where things are today, Mace is already one of the best to coach the team and I’d submit he may be the best ever if they win the Grey Cup again this year, which I fully expect them to do.

4 – BOMBERS/ALS – Friday night, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were a desperate team and it didn’t surprise me at all that they gave their best effort against a Montreal team that has gone, largely, unchallenged in the East Division.  Despite the loss, Davis Alexander is the undisputed number one quarterback in the CFL by a country mile.  My guess is that in the event of more being at stake, the Als handle the Bombers rather easily but this was an encounter where Winnipeg really needed to re-establish themselves with BC and Calgary on their heels and with the Elkimos and Riders threatening to run away with the top two slots.   

5 – HELLEBUYCK – Thursday afternoon, Ray Petkau, the agent for Connor Hellebuyck, released a statement confirming Hellebuyck has asked for a trade out of Winnipeg.  Presumably this request was made at the end of the regular season and General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff has opted to do nothing about it since that time.  Now that Hellebuyck has gone public, whatever unacceptable offers the Jets have already received for Hellebuyck are now going to be even less palatable.  This is a damning indictment on Jets management and while I don’t think their placement in the standings last year has anything to do with his request (more on that in the next point), the reality is that the Jets are on the decline and are headed further away from a Stanley Cup than they are getting closer to it.  In addition to doing nothing on Hellebuyck, Cheveldayoff has also done nothing to address issues beyond their first line and their defense is unspeakably thin.  Now with Hellebuyck gone, the goaltending will be turned over to Stuart Skinner and he, unfortunately, was the weakest link on a Stanley Cup roster so how do you think this is going to go over on a team that is, probably, about 25th best in a 32 team league?

6 – HELLEBUYCK’S REASON – Following Canada’s loss to the US at the Olympics, a significant number of Winnipeggers (including local media) took their frustrations out on not only Hellebuyck, but also his wife.  It’s not a coincidence that Hellebuyck’s tone regarding remaining a Jet changed almost immediately after the Olympics.  Hellebuyck signed a 7-year contract, which locked him up as a Jet until 2031 so the usual arguments that Winnipeg people like to use as to why players don’t want to be there aren’t going to fly this time.  The fact of the matter is this:  he was treated like shit and he doesn’t need to put up with it and so he’s not going to.  You can all spew venom and hate if you like but the Jets are a worse team without Hellebuyck and for all of your sob stories about why nobody wants to go to Winnipeg because it’s small and cold, you can add another one to it – unless you are from Canada or China, you can expect to be abused by the fan base.  

7 – WE DON’T GET IT – One other thing, for people who say they want to see Hellebuyck traded to a Canadian team…this is the entire point of the request.  My God we are so self-unaware.  I used to have hopes we’d eventually reach a point where we, as a Canadian society, would just snap out of our funk.  I no longer see that happening.  We are going to just double down and double down some more and people are willing to pay greedy politicians more money in taxes, thus losing their jobs and homes all in the name of being tough standing up to Trump as they watch people who have the ability and privilege to exit, leave for the very place most of us despise.  How come no Canadian NHLers are asking for trades back to Canada?  I’ll hang up and listen to your answer.  I’ll also say this for those of you who sit in the cheap seats – I am not pro any one government.  I have zero love for Trump (who I believe is a pedophile). He is a pathological liar but I also have zero love for the politicians in this country who are also liars and are responsible for the wreckage we find ourselves in.  Doug Ford spent thousands of dollars in just a couple of days to make a sign in a show of pettiness against Trump.  Too bad real-life issues aren’t rectified as fast as a pet project of a politician’s.  And, I’m sorry to disappoint you but I am one of the few who want to see the chess board flipped over and the people take over.  You can brand me ‘right’ or ‘left’ all you want, but I don’t fall in either category.

8 – NO MOVE CLAUSE – I don’t understand how players can have a ‘no move clause’ and then ask to be moved and still have a ‘no move clause’.  If you are asking to be moved, aren’t you defaulting on that part of your contract?  Clearly, stupid NHL GMs have not only handed out these perks like candy but also have been suckered into accepting stipulations that are along the lines of ‘I promise not to trade you, but if you ask to be traded then I have to trade you to a select list you provide me’.  This is why I seldom sympathize with owners and managers when it comes to issues involving the players.  Nobody is forcing the teams to give up their leverage.  They do it willingly.  In Hellebuyck’s case, it’s not getting much publicity but he does seem flexible on where he goes and he’s not limiting it to the ten team list he has in the contract.

9 – SPORTSNET COVERAGE – Sportsnet has announced Ron MacLean is returning to their broadcasts for the upcoming season.  I don’t know if they are still calling it Hockey Night In Canada or what they plan to do but as of earlier this week there were no announcements regarding other talking heads on the panel.  There are rumours that Kevin Sawyer may replace Kelly Hrudey and it definitely sounds like Sawyer is moving from Winnipeg to Calgary Flames games at the least.  Regardless, Sportsnet never invests in star appeal for their analysts the way the American networks do and I’m not sure it would be wise to anyway.  As someone who does not consume non-game Canadian sports television, there isn’t anybody Rogers could bring on board that would nudge me towards paying attention anyway.

10 – WNBA – I didn’t really want to write about this because doing so just acknowledges the attention the league so desperately seeks but here’s how I view this ‘league’: It’s, basically, professional wrestling with scripted storylines and that’s the only way they can stay relevant.  Sophie Cunningham isn’t a great player and when I follow sports; playing ability is really all I care about.  Yeah she looks great, sure I agree with her politics most of the time.  But she’s not an impactful player.  She averages about 2 points a game and isn’t a starter.  I couldn’t tell you who the leading scorer in the league is (it’s not Caitlin Clark) nor could I tell you who the contending teams are.  My guess is you wouldn’t know either.  Everything that is in the ‘news’ is merely a distraction from the fact it’s just not a great league but good on them for figuring out a way to have everyone talking about it.  League average attendance is over 11,000 and a couple of the teams are drawing more than CFL teams so there’s that.

(Mike Stackhouse ia freelance writer/broadcaster. Follow him on X/Twitter at @Stack1975)