Dupont’s 10 Things
Things are moving fast. But for the next five minutes let’s slow down and dive into what’s going on:
1. Hockey is officially back – Hockey season is upon us. Hard to believe, I know. Pre-season is well underway in major junior hockey across the country and NHL training camps are opening up as rookie tournaments wrapped up on Monday.
I’m off to London, ON today for my first hockey broadcast of the season. It’ll be a chance to knock the rust off and get back in the rink. I never take these opportunities for granted.
2. PTO – As training camps open across the NHL I’m always intrigued at veteran players who sign PTO’s and love to follow who sticks and who doesn’t. Looks like JVR is in Columbus and Max Pacioretty is headed for Toronto.
I’ve seen that 38-year old Nikolai Kulemin has signed a PTO and will be in camp with the Ottawa Senators. His last season in the NHL was 2017-18 where he has three points in 13 games. Kulemin has been in the KHL ever since. Also surprising is 24-year-old Calen Addison signing a PTO with the Sens. The former Lethbridge Hurricane has struggled to find a regular home and could come with upside if it works out in Ottawa.
3. USports – I’m back home after 12 days out West for three Canada West TV broadcasts. September football in the conference is a highlight of my year and this was no different. The air was crisp, the sun was out and it was good to see plenty of family this trip.
To the football, and the West is wide open as we head to week 4. At this point all we know is the Manitoba Bisons have a veteran group and sit atop the conference at 3-0. Beyond that, it’s wide open.
4. Old School – The Saskatchewan Huskies have mirrored the Oregon Ducks at times with the number of different uniforms and helmets they’ve rolled out. They’ve always been among the best-looking in the country but on Friday they went a little old-school.
Gone is the barking dog, gone is the S on the helmet, and returning is the classic U of S athletics logo with the Huskie between a large U and S.
I love it. It really popped and gave a throwback feel. Then, the Huskies played like teams of old running the ball with purpose in a double OT win against Calgary. Ryker Frank rushed for more than 200 yards and added three touchdowns. The Dogs needed that win, their first of the year. Oh, and it was homecoming so the students were running the track in their togas at halftime. Gotta love university football!
5. The Hec – Laurier QB Taylor Elgersma took a big step towards solidifying himself the award as the nation’s MVP on Saturday. Elgersma and the Laurier Golden Hawks knocked off the Western Mustangs 42-28 due in large part to the QB throwing for 385 yards and accounting for four touchdowns. It was his most impressive outing in a game everyone had circled on the calendar. It also marked the end of Western’s 30-game winning streak in the OUA.
6. NFL Madness – Baltimore and Cincinnati are both 0-2 after week two in the NFL and both fan bases are starting to panic. They’re also jumping OFF the bandwagons in Dallas, LA and Jacksonville.
Meanwhile the New Orleans Saints are off to the most surprising start of anyone in the league and look like a team you might want to put some change on. Their offence has scored on 15-straight possessions. You can get them at +3500 on Draft Kings.
Before you go and empty out your life savings on two weeks of football, take a breather and remember it’s a long season.
7. MVP – Mahomes, Allen, Stroud, Hurts, and Burrow. Those are the top-5 MVP favourites entering week 3. Here are some other notables:
Baker Mayfield (T-9), Kyler Murray (T-9), Derek Carr (13), and Sam Darnold (T-15).
8. CFL Notes – I hated to see the news of Ottawa Redblacks’ star Adarius Pickett being out for the season. This is a big blow to that group and he was obviously disappointed when he took to social media on Tuesday. You never know how long a career is or when and injury will be your last. Here’s hoping he’ll be back.
It’s a week full of exciting games including Hamilton needing a win in Toronto and I’m very curious to see Winnipeg travel to Edmonton on Saturday.
It’s mostly Friday and Saturday night games now the rest of the way as the league is avoiding the NFL on Thursday and Sunday. I’m ok with that. For me, it’s always been Friday Night Football that’s been what I love the most.
9. More Trouble In Sask – The practise week isn’t get off to a good week in Regina. Ahead of what has to be considered a must-win in Calgary, head coach Corey Mace pulled the team off the field and into the locker room midway through their session on Tuesday. The team eventually came back out to resume practise but it did not sound great. Quarterback Trevor Harris was quoted as saying “It pissed me off.”
Oh boy. Friday night, 9:30pm ET. Can’t wait.
10. Randoms – I’m loving Belichick as an NFL analyst and he’s not holding back. Tom Brady improved too in week 2 as we all should have expected… Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn has been my favourite new show of the summer. I think I’m five episodes deep… Michigan (18) home to USC (11) is the NCAA game of the week. The Trojans want to establish themselves as a legitimate top-10 team in the nation. As it is, they may be a top-3 team in the B10 already. Tennessee (6) @ Oklahoma (15) should also be very good this weekend… My Tennessee Titans had the best defence in the NFL allowing the fewest yards through two weeks and are 0-2. Mistakes will cost ya… Rachel Homan won her first event of 2024-25 over the weekend. On the men’s side Matt Dunstone started slow at the AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic (hell of a name) but after going 0-2 he worked his way back into the final 8 before falling in the quarters to Bruce Mouat. Switzerland’s Yannick Schwaller would beat Mouat in the final.
Now, off to London and back to work. Enjoy the rest of the week!
