Scruffy’s This N That

1 – WHAT A MESS!! As head hit pillow just after midnight, I couldn’t help but think of the late great Leader-Post sports editor Bob Hughes. As many of you know, Bob was one of those that did not tolerate BS. A column from him on what transpired at Mosaic Stadium Friday night would have been legendary. 

To think this all could have been avoided had a decision been made much earlier in the day to say that the Riders-Stampeders would not be played because of the smoke-filled air.  To his credit, Riders president and CEO Craig Reynolds did his best to explain the situation and hearing his comments as angry people filed out of the stadium, I am empathetic with him as he was in a no-win position. However, this could have been handled sooooooo much better and to me it seems as if the league left the Riders hanging out to dry.

The CFL was seemingly a virtual no-show on this one. At some point, a league official had to step in much earlier and say enough was enough. That didn’t happen. The league should have said no later than 8 pm that there would be no football played and the message that the start time would be delayed should have been made much earlier, like around 4 PM, to appease the many who travelled from out of town to be at the game. Would it have fixed the problem for everyone? Of course not, but the message would have been out there.

The Riders lack of communication was also glaring. They let fans, many who should be commended for sticking it out, sit for over two hours not knowing what was going on. This only increased the level of anger that those who decided to stick around were feeling. They wanted what they came for and they didn’t get it. I understand that frustration — frustration that was elevated because there was no word coming from the football team.  Transparency was needed! Reynolds should have made a statement much earlier in the evening to let fans know what was going on. In this day and age, you can put that message on the scoreboard for all to hear. 

I remember back in 2007 when a huge storm rolled through Taylor Field causing a power failure. Then-GM Eric Tillman read a statement to media about what was happening and what would occur. He said he would have an update in 90 minutes if one was needed. One wasn’t needed as the game went on and no one left in what was one of the more amazing environments I ever experienced at the facility.

There was also a claim of the forecast being misread as conditions were improving with the wind in Moose Jaw making people believe that would move into Regina. As we know it didn’t. We have lived here long enough to know numerous times that what the weather is in Moose Jaw is not like it is in Regina and what the weather is in Regina is completely different than what it might be in Weyburn and so on and so on. We also know that one end of Regina can get fierce rain and hail, and another area can remain as dry as a bone. 

There are still questions being asked. Why Reynolds is the one who is answering them is beyond me because it is time the CFL stepped in. At of the time of writing this, there has been zero from them on their seemingly weak weather protocol which appears to have been edited a little at some point overnight.  

I understand the want to get a game in. Baseball teams have it happen all the time when rain is threatening. They try to get the contest in because they know of the logistical nightmare that occurs if it doesn’t. However, at some point, like around 6 PM if not earlier, admit that it is not going to happen and send everyone home. You wouldn’t please everyone, but you would have done the right thing.

Good on Craig for saying the club will do whatever they can to accommodate the many, especially out of towners who are understandably choked. To some, it won’t be enough but the football team is attempting to right the wrong. However, it was something that shouldn’t ever have been approached had the team and the league acknowledged much earlier that there would be no game. It’s better to be safe than sorry and in this case, there is a lot of sorry.

We move on and see what today brings. By the way, how many of you checked out the Air Quality Index for Regina when you got up?

2 – TARP TIME: If the last few paragraphs didn’t do it, I’m sure this will have the couple of people who aren’t enamoured with yours truly at Mosaic Stadium bristling. The capacity of Mosaic is just over 33,000. However, the Riders only sell just under 29-thousand leaving those in the extreme upper decks unsold. Other teams tarp off their upper decks to make it visibly look better so perhaps it is time for the Riders to do the same. Some say you can’t do so because season ticket holders sit up there. To me it is simple: either accommodate those season ticket holders by moving them elsewhere or put a tarp up. If reluctant to put a tarp up then sell those tickets at an affordable price that some can afford. If those who can afford it don’t want to go because they are too high up well then that’s on them. This can be done so do it knowing the tarp can come off if the demand is there as other teams have done. The Lions are doing that for their Week 7 game against the Riders as they are opening up the upper deck. 

3 – WHY?: How can the CFL continue to allow teams to have both benches on the same side of the field? I think it looks terrible and as we saw at the end of the B.C-Montreal game on Saturday, there was a big brawl that probably is avoided if the two teams aren’t on the same side of the field. 

If this is going to continue, and you know it will, teams need to have better security and a better exit policy.  It is as simple as that.  I am so glad the Riders weren’t stupid when it came time to designing Mosaic Stadium and making sure benches were on different sidelines.  The same for Winnipeg.  When Calgary finally gets a new venue to replace McMahon Stadium, I hope they realize it too. 

4 – THAT’S NOT RIGHT: I’m guessing this wasn’t the case last night in Saskatchewan because of the Riders game, but for the last two Fridays, I have been in establishments where the CFL game has not been on. The NHL draft and the Blue Jays were on in the place I visited two weeks ago, and it was the Blue Jays and what I think was a replay of Wimbledon last week. I have been at bars in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver over the years where a CFL game was being played, yet there was no sign of it on TVs anywhere. One of them was in Edmonton on what was the second Saturday of the NHL season, and the Elks were playing. You can say what you want about fan apathy in the CFL and there is a lot of it, but I am guessing if it was an NCAA game or an NFL game that it would be on. Would it help if the CFL and its teams had specials like what you find on a Monday night at most bars during the NFL season? I know some of them are team-specific which is fine as you can get a Riders jersey at some places, but you gotta go one step further sometimes. I feel that is one big problem with the CFL is that the league is content with team-only promotions and not league ones. Make Friday Night Football an event around the country at watering holes no matter who is playing! It’s not that hard is it?

5 – WHO’S NUMBER 5?  We are eight weeks away from the NFL season starting. Former Vikings and current ESPN analyst Randy Moss had a great question this week. He said you could Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson. Josh Allen and Joe Burrow as the top four quarterbacks in the game right now but who would you have as number 5? To me, I would think it is Jayden Daniels, but you could make a great argument for guys like Jalen Hurts, Justin Herbert and Jordan Love.  Who is your number 5? 

6 – SEE YA GAVIN: Not good! Not good at all. The profile of junior hockey in Canada is changing before our very eyes. Gavin McKenna is leaving Medicine Hat to grab a bag of cash and take what is rumoured to be $700-grand to go play NCAA Hockey at Penn State. Some are already saying he might be the best athlete to be a Nittany Lion since Micah Parsons which is pretty heady stuff. 

McKenna, who as you know was the top player in the CHL last season and will be the number one pick in the NHL draft, is the latest and biggest name to leave the WHL and head south of the border to a program that isn’t necessarily one of the bluebloods in the NCAA. 

Not every junior player will get this, but there are two first-round picks in the recent WHL draft to leave their clubs to head to the NCAA and while we are a long ways away from the 2026 NHL draft, there is talk that the first two picks (McKenna and Keaton Verhoeff) are now NCAA players instead of WHL ones. If the best players in the Western, Ontario and Quebec leagues are going to leave to play in the NCAA, what does it mean for the viability of the three leagues and its franchises especially smaller ones like Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Swift Current and Prince George in the WHL. I had someone tell me a long, long time ago that those three Saskatchewan teams would end up being in the SJHL.  I think that is a bit of a stretch, but you just never know.

I have heard rumblings about NCAA teams having to pay junior teams a good chunk of change if they take a player from them moving forward. Whether or not that is true is something I don’t know.  The CHL to me is still the best developmental league going, but a solution is needed to make sure junior hockey in this country does not suffer because the floodgates are now open. It makes me wonder how much Landon Dupont will be offered when he turns 18 and the same with Maddox Schultz and others.  It makes being the GM of a junior hockey team that much tougher. 

7 – THANKS GARY! NHL fans do not like Gary Bettman.  That is very clear and it is something I think Bettman relishes. It is time for NHL fans to recognize the commissioner and give him some props for brokering a new collective bargaining agreement and doing it without any fear of a possible stoppage.  Hockey fans can breathe easy knowing that there should be no labour issues until the after the 2029-30 season meaning close to two decades of peace.  The players association has to take some credit too for allowing everything to happen smoothly, but Bettman and the owners could have played hard ball when the current deal was to expire and they didn’t.  You can question some of the moves Bettman has made and you can question the desire for more games on the sked and possible expansion, but Bettman has done a lot of us a tremendous amount of good.

8 – BASEBALL AT THE BREAK: The unofficial first half of the MLB season comes to an end on Sunday as the all-star break is on us with the game itself going Tuesday in Atlanta. Looking back at some pre-season predictions, some are accurate, some are wayyyyy off base. 

No surprise to see the top teams in the National League as many expected Philly and the Mets to battle for the East, the Cubs and Milwaukee to fight it out in the Central and the Dodgers to win the West. 

The Blue Jays are a surprise to everyone to be leading the AL East, but I don’t think anyone can be surprised to see Detroit and Houston atop their divisions. At the start of the year, I had the Baltimore (what happened to them!!), Tigers and Mariners winning their division in the AL with the Yankees, Kansas City and Texas grabbing wild-card spots.  In the National League, I had the Phillies, Cubs (DUHHH!!) and the Dodgers taking their division with wild-card spots going to the Mets, Cincinnati and San Diego.   There are a lot of teams that still have a shot at a wild-card spot so it will be interesting to see who is buying and who is selling at the trade deadline and how much the buyers are paying for guys—especially pitchers.  The fun is about to start in earnest now. 

9 – SCRAP ALL-STAR GAMES: For many years, I have thought all-star games should be scrapped. The NHL, NBA and NFL ones are jokes.  MLB’s game doesn’t see guys go all out, but at least the game didn’t change.  However, it is evident that major leaguers and its clubs don’t want a game.  Last Sunday, the teams for both leagues were announced and all this week, we have seen this player is opting out or that player is opting out.  Players are complaining that all teams shouldn’t be represented and now players aren’t happy over the fact that Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski has been named as an all-star replacement despite only having five major league starts under his belt.  We aren’t seeing the best and even Monday’s home run derby won’t have Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani participating.  Why bother? 

10 – GOOD LUCK: A couple of years ago it was a group of young Regina baseball players that had a summer to remember as they represented Canada at the Little League World Series. This year, it is a group of young football players. 

The NFL Flag Football World Championships happen in Canton, Ohio with a Regina team representing Canada in the 14 and under division. The Canadian team will face international competition from places like Germany, Great Britain, China and England.

Let’s hope these kids have an experience they won’t forget. 

RANDOM THOUGHTS: 

• If you haven’t seen the Brett Favre documentary on Netflix, I recommend it.
• Would Saskatoon be a candidate for an expansion team in the PWHL? Would those in the Bridge City and Saskatchewan support women’s pro hockey the way they have with lacrosse and basketball?
• Henoc Muamba has been a great addition to CFL games on TSN
• If the Riders had two byes in the first six weeks of the schedule, there would be a lot of crying.  That being said, it is extremely stupid for the CFL to have Winnipeg on its second bye already.  The CFL needs a new schedule maker. 

That’s all I got. Have a great weekend!