Imperssions From First Ones With The Blades To Bad Ones With Brian Burke, And Sad Ones In Toronto…It’s Dave’s Dis N’ Dat

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Once again I’ll try to make sense of all that was in the world of sports…. It’s more of Dave’s Dis N’ Dat to wind up the week.

Let’s start with the dominant story in Saskatoon this week; The Sale of the Saskatoon Blades. Mike Priestner was introduced in the Bridge City as the new owner of the club yesterday. His son Colin will be the managing partner of the team while Steve Hogle will assume the role of President.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and the first impression from the group was an interesting one. The trio does not lack in confidence, enthusiasm or focus. They also seem very sincere and humble in their commitment to the history and tradition of the Saskatoon Blades franchise.

The next chapter of the Saskatoon Blades book begins now.

That chapter hopefully will include the support of the alumni. The unsuccessful bid to purchase the team, hopefully, won’t sour the relationship that the new owners have with former members of the Bridge City Bunch. Time heals all wounds and I’m inclined to think that these wounds aren’t as deep as some would perceive. Here’s hoping that’s the case.

To the CFL and while the league prepares for the second half of their home and home Labour Day match-ups one has to wonder what happens to the back to back tradition when the Ottawa REDBLACKS return to the league next season. In my humble opinion the league has been very short-sighted adding just one team to the circuit next year which will increase an unbalanced schedule and some major logistical headaches.

On the field, the move this week from Rider General Manager Brendan Taman that flew under the radar is the signing of Running Back Chris Garret. The former Winnipeg standout running back, who amassed more than 600-yards on the ground in six games in his last stint in the CFL prior to injury, was inked by the club this week. The obvious part of the move is that it provides the team depth at tailback behind Kory Sheets and a banged up Jock Saunders. More importantly it puts a succession plan in place for the Riders for next season.  Kory Sheets record rushing pace is turning heads both north and south of the border and with his contract up at the end of the season odds are very likely that he will get a look and a shot with an NFL team. Taman has quietly figured out what happens next year.

What happens next in Edmonton is anyone’s guess. The franchise that seemingly was OK with a rebuilding season had everything turned upside down when General Manager Ed Hervey went on a rant this week. From dictating who should and shouldn’t be in the line-up, to who should call the plays even undermining his head coach, Hervey did it all this week. Time will tell how the team responds but many inside the organization are questioning whether the team will turn their back on its’ leader.

One of the points from Hervey’s outburst was the closing of the locker room to reporters. This was met by a tweet from amazing Edmonton writer Terry Jones, “Guess I’ll be writing more Oiler stories now.” To be honest I don’t get the fascination with being in the dressing room! The Riders for years at practice have limited their player interviews to the field. And that seems to work fine to me. In my opinion the locker room is the players territory that should not be infringed upon. Needing to be in there seems very backwards.

In Winnipeg, Blue Bomber Quarterback Justin Goltz has come under fire for his end zone celebrations during the Labour Day Classic. I also know that some in Rider Nation were enraged. To me if you get there you can do what you want. Mocking Kory Sheets may not have been the best idea in the world but give a young guy a break. Remember how upset people used to get with Jermaine Copeland’s celebrations in Montreal and Calgary? To tell you the truth I actually miss those.

More CFL and the league is apparently banking on rumours that Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment wish to purchase the Toronto Argonauts from David Braley. The league is doing everything in their power to destroy the team. The Labour Day match-up in Toronto was played on Tuesday night. Even without knowing a thing about demographics or the Argos market I could tell you that it isn’t going to work. Back to work/school from the summer months is always on the Tuesday and the last thing a lot of people have time to do is go to a football game. The evidence is the 18,000 that showed up at Rogers Centre, including the U of T students that came for the first half of the game. The league needs to get their heads out of the sand.

The rumour in Toronto that MLSE is looking for a way to retro fit BMO Field where their MLS soccer team, Toronto FC, plays. The idea would be to get a roof on the venue and somehow expand the facility to allow for a CFL football field. Again I’m not there but it won’t work. BMO Field is grass and the last thing the field could handle would be the strain of the Argonauts chewing up the field. Plus for those who refuse to travel to downtown Toronto right now for a football game at Rogers Centre aren’t going to come to the facility that is literally mere blocks away.

End story is something needs to be done with the team in the country’s biggest city as it is becoming a black-eye for the league.

One thing that did come to light and was of particular interest during the broadcast of the Toronto/Montreal game was the TSN panel’s thoughts on re-jigging the play-off format. The assertion was that instead of using the traditional divisional format the teams should simply be ranked 1-though-8 with the top two teams getting byes into the CFL semi-final. It actually makes sense to me for the integrity of the league and potential balancing of the schedule. The fly in the ointment would of course be a scenario where Montreal would play BC in a semi with the winner possibly facing Winnipeg. It’s a lot of travel but the intrigue may be well worth the experiment.

On a different field where it is time for the Toronto Blue Jays to part ways with slugger Jose Bautista. The slugger has been shut down for the season by the team with a bone bruise. To me this says that the veteran who has suffered through; wrist, back, neck and rib ailments the last few years has checked out on the season. The Jays held on to Alex Rios too long and couldn’t get anything for him when he wasn’t produced. There is a limited market for Bautista that may be worth exploring by Alex Anthopolis in the off season.

Speaking of off-season moves how about the move pulled by the Calgary Flames yesterday. The club signed Brian Burke as their new president of hockey operations. Many are speculating that this will be the end of Jay Feaster in Cowtown, while others say that a power that Burke will demand will implode the team’s management structure. I honestly don’t think that is the case and even think his leadership will be a huge plus for the Flames. In my opinion Burke gets a bum rap from fans and media for being passionate and perhaps a little flamboyant in doing his job. I had an opportunity to see the other side of Mr. Burke during the 2010 World Junior Hockey Championship. When I ran into Mr. Burke and asked for an interview he was more than gracious in accepting my request, however he cautioned that he was expecting someone and may need to stop to meet with them for a moment. Burke shared his thoughts and opinions openly and concisely. Following the interview he found who he was looking for, the parents of Luke Schenn. The then 21 year old was struggling with the Maple Leafs and coming under some heat from the media and the management. Burke took his time to seek out the Schenn’s and assure them that he was watching out for Luke and would do everything in his power. Something I’m sure meant the world to the Schenn’s and something that Burke doesn’t get enough credit for.

That’s it for this edition… Enjoy the weekend!

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