This and That

Welcome to Friday!  Here are the weekly collection of thoughts running through my muddled mind, and as always, they come in no particular order!

--On Monday afternoon, your Saskatchewan Roughriders announced they had acquired an offensive lineman from the Edmonton Eskimos. In exchange for this player, the Riders give up two players from their negotiation list.  In other words, unless someone cracks the code, we will never know who the green and white gave up to get Thaddeus Coleman.

This once again sparks the debate of the CFL negotiation list and why it is so hush-hush. Why is it that way? I don't think there are any national security secrets in those lists. When Eric Tillman was the general manager of the Riders, he released the list after being asked by fans on a website and when he did, fans and media were able to chime in on what players could make their way to Riderville. Is there harm in that?  The CFL apparently thinks the answer is yes.

The secrecy behind these lists is somewhat puzzling. The teams know who is on each others neg list, so why can't we as fans and media?

I think it would be great to sit down during the US College Football season to watch a player who is on the Riders neg list. I think the same could be said with all 9 fanbases in the CFL.

I realize this isn't problem number one with the CFL and at the end of the day, making neg lists public is probably far down the list. However, keeping the fans engaged with their respective teams is what the league wants and this would certainly be a way to do it.

Now who exactly did the Riders give up anyway? 

--It was a kick in the onions when Zach Collaros went down late last season in a year where he arguably could have been the CFL's MOP.  If what Ti-Cats head coach and vice-president of football operations Kent Austin said is true this week during a conference call Collaros won't be ready to go when the season starts. I don't know how long Collaros is out for, but Hamilton is a different team without him in the lineup. We know very painfully in Saskatchewan what it means when your number 1 guy isn't under center.  What's Plan B Kent? Is there a Plan C?

--Good on the CFL for adding a round to next week's draft. There is a lot of Canadian talent out there and it means nine more players will belong to a CFL team and it will be up to them to show why they belong. As someone asked me when the news was made public, why wait until there is a week to go to make this decision. I can't answer that. 

--With David Onyemata, Tevaun Smith, Elie Bouka and Arjen Colquhoun signing deals with NFL teams, it once again means CFL teams will take a gamble with these players hoping their career gets them north of the border. I have no idea what the Riders have planned, and as I have said earlier, I think you trade the pick.  The latest mock draft from CFL.ca has six of the first nine players being offensive lineman. With all apologies to the hoggies out there  (YAWWWNNNN).  That isn't meant as a slam towards the o-linemen, but they just aren't sexy picks to me.  Its no secret CFL teams want to stockpile as many Canadian o-linemen as they can, but there are running backs, receivers, linebackers and defensive backs who can contribute as well. 

--Congratulations to Ben Cahoon as the Alouettes will retire his number 86 when the Riders come to town. Is it just me or are a lot of promotions scheduled by teams when the green and white visit.  This just in---we know the Riders are going to be a big draw so schedule these things when teams that don't draw well come in.  Hey Montreal, why not retire Cahoon's jersey when BC is in town? 

--The old Atlantis Coffee shop on Hamilton and 12th in downtown Regina is turning into a Scotiabank. Downtown Regina needs many things, but a bank is not one of them. SIGHHHH!! A small grocery store would have been a big win, but that won't be happening. At least not at that location. 

--The sights coming out of Fort McMurray have been absolutely horrific and downright scary. Seeing the videos and complete neighbourhoods destroyed leave one speechless It will take a long time for the city to get back on its feet if it ever does. I can't imagine having to pack up my belongings and my family and leave my home wondering if it will be there when I return. I hope I never get the opportunity.  It was great to see so many people come through on 620 CKRM's "Day of Caring" on Thursday with a lot of money going to the Red Cross. Thanks to the many listeners across our fine province who donated. It is what Saskatchewan does in a time of need.

--It is also great to see this community come through for Peter Loubardias. As you have seen in Rod's Thursday column, a fundraiser for Peter is going to be held at the Four Seasons May 18. I don't even have to ask if it will be a huge success because I know this city and the Southern Saskatchewan hockey community will come through. I would even expect some from Saskatoon to make the drive up and down Highway 11. Lou needs our help as he battles the health problems that have taken him away from the one place he loves more than anything---the rink! 

--If the Tampa Bay Lightning continue to win in the Stanley Cup playoffs, what will it say for the future of Steve Stamkos? The Lightning may be showing they don't need Stamkos to win and that their future lies with guys like Nikita Kucherov. Dave Andreychuk told a Toronto radio station this week that he thinks Stamkos will stick with the Lightning, I'm not so sure. 

--I have nothing against Sidney Crosby, but I don't want to see the Stanley Cup end up in Pittsburgh. The names Phil Kessel and Justin Schultz do not belong on Lord Stanley's fabled mug.

--When the WHL's Top 50 was announced, it was not surprising to see Joe Sakic atop the list. It also wasn't a surprise to see Bobby Clarke in the top 5 as he ended up at number 2. I think Carey Price was a little high at 3, but fans voted on it. For what its worth, my top 10 would be 1. Sakic 2. Wendel Clark, 3. Jarome Iginla 4. Scott Niedermayer, 5. Bobby Clarke, 6. Theoren Fleury, 7. Bryan Trottier, 8. Trevor Linden, 9. Mike Modano, 10, Grant Fuhr.  That list leaves out so many good players.  As I have said earlier, those are lists where great debates can be created and at the end of the day, all arguments are solid and no one is wrong,

--NBA games are good to watch, but when playoff games are a 5 point or less game in the final minute, that final minute can be rather tedious as we see time-out after time-out after time-out. Game 2 of the Raptors series was a good game, but I was so oh so close to turning away because the final minute took wayyyyyyyy too long. This isn't new, but the NBA needs to limit the amount of timeouts or something---especially in overtime.

--If you are a redhead working in a bakery, can we consider you to be a "GingerBread Man"?

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