October 29, 2014

CFL Pick 'Em, Week 19: Two weeks to go! Everybody in the West has clinched, nobody in the East has followed suit, and absolutely nothing has been settled in our little pick 'em. argoal's looking strong with a two-point lead, but in the CFL (Pick 'Em), no lead is safe. Call a timeout and make your picks inside.

posted by DrJohnEvans to fantasy at 09:21 AM - 13 comments

Ottawa makes some noise on an emotional night, but Montreal hangs on for the win. Kerry Joseph and Bo Levi Mitchell suit up for an old-fashioned shootout in which Calgary prevails. Toronto gives up an early lead, but comes back in the end to send Hamilton's fans home in tears. Winnipeg hangs tough, but a strong fourth quarter from the Lions catapaults B.C. into the playoffs.

MTL @ OTTSSK @ CGYHAM @ TORBC @ WPG
ResultMontreal by 6Calgary by 13Toronto by 2B.C. by 5
Margin of Error4 to 89 to 171 to 34 to 7

JPR has a strong week but misses on the Toronto win, which could be costly: argoal hits the Toronto margin to pull ahead by two points.

SpoFiteMTL @ OTTSSSK @ CGYSHAM @ TORSBC @ WPGSPointsTotal Points
argoalMontreal Calgary9Toronto3B.C. 669
JPRMontreal7Calgary B.C.4567
cixelsydMontreal Calgary B.C.7464
Howard_TMontreal7Calgary Toronto B.C. 563
rcadeMontreal Calgary13 Toronto B.C. 663
ReeverMontreal8 B.C.7462
owlhouseMontreal Toronto B.C. 358
tommytrumpMontreal Calgary16Toronto B.C. 556
goddamMontreal Toronto B.C. 355
ic23bMontreal Calgary B.C. 355
DrJohnEvansMontreal Calgary B.C. 353
benderMontreal B.C. 246

WEEK 19

Here's a count of teams that have clinched a playoff berth, by division. West: four, East: zero. Should be an interesting couple of weeks.

Hamilton @ Ottawa (Friday, October 31)
After a tough loss in Toronto, Hamilton needs to win both of their last two games in order to secure a playoff berth. Fortunately for them, playing Ottawa is a good way to start a winning streak.

Winnipeg @ Calgary (Saturday, November 1)
Winnipeg's lost eight in a row and is looking for answers for 2015. Calgary's cruising with the division wrapped up and a four-game win streak to boot. Maybe TiVo this one and fast-forward through it later.

B.C. @ Edmonton (Saturday, November 1)
This is interesting: if my math is right, B.C. is still in the mix for a home playoff game. But they need to win this game by at least seven points to keep that dream alive. It's young upstart Mike Reilly against wiley veteran Kevin Glenn. Should be fun!

Toronto @ Montreal (Sunday, November 2)
More jostling for position: a Toronto win would move them into a tie with Montreal for first place. But the vivid memories of an uninspired Argos loss at the hands of the Alouettes two weeks ago haven't faded, and a Montreal win this week would seal the division race in their favour.

Good luck!

posted by DrJohnEvans at 09:21 AM on October 29, 2014

Well, barring a miracle run down the stretch, it appears that my goose egg for the first 3 weeks has dug me too big of a hole to seal my fate for the Costanza. If only I'd known that Heads=Home from the beginning, I'd be solidly middle of the pack!

Hamilton by 10
Winnipeg by 14
B.C. by 11
Montreal by 15

posted by bender at 09:53 AM on October 29, 2014

Ham by 7

Wpg by 3

Edmonton by 7

Montreal by 7

posted by cixelsyd at 10:44 AM on October 29, 2014

Ottawa by 7

Calgary by 2

British Columbia by 8

Toronto by 6

posted by tommybiden at 11:53 AM on October 29, 2014

Hamilton by 17

Winnipeg by 5

BC by 14

Montreal by 2

posted by goddam at 12:17 PM on October 29, 2014

cats by 11

cal by 12

edy by 6

Argos by 2

posted by argoal at 03:43 PM on October 29, 2014

Hamilton by 18

Calgary by 20

B.C. by 10

Montreal by 4

posted by ic23b at 05:43 PM on October 29, 2014

Australian Sports Heroes, if they played CFL.

Hailing from the capital city (or close enough), that would be Ottawa by 9. Cowboy legends. Calgary by 7. Home of the One? The Wayne Gretzky of Rugby League. Edmonton by 12. Francophones? We've got 'em. Montreal by 15.

posted by owlhouse at 12:08 AM on October 30, 2014

Hamilton by 10
Calgary by 10
Edmonton by 5
Montreal... by .... 8

posted by DrJohnEvans at 08:46 AM on October 30, 2014

Travel is a way of life for professional sports teams, so let's travel around Canada for a bit.

Hamilton at Ottawa: Depending on your route, it's something around 550 Km between the cities. One must cross the Trent, Moira, Salmon, Cataraqui, Rideau, and Napanee Rivers, among others, before finally crossing the Ottawa and reaching the Capitol City. Tiger Cats are known for establishing a territory for hunting and defending it, and a little water will not deter them. Looks like a group of REDBLACKS will be the next to fall prey. Hamilton by 8.

Winnipeg at Calgary: 1400 KM thereabouts for this trek. Forget about a nice bus ride across the prairies, this one needs an airplane ride. Perhaps that's what a Blue Bomber is all about, but one has business to attend to after the landing. Making a long trip and handling a bunch of Stampeders is a little too much to ask. Calgary by 16.

BC at Edmonton: Nearly 1200 Km of rough and rugged territory to traverse here. The Coastal Ranges are just the beginning, and the Rockies come next. While lions can climb trees, they don't do well in the mountains. The cats will need to fly. When they arrive, they will be faced with the denizens of the ice floes who would like nothing better than to turn the Lions into stuffed cats. Perhaps the kitties will surprise and put the Eskimos on ice. It could happen. BC by 6.

Toronto at Montreal: Here in the confines of the more densely populated East, the travel is not as long, but still not without its travails. This is another trip of about 500 Km along Lake Ontario and down the St. Lawrence. There is an old song about a man who lost his girlfriend on one of the Thousand Islands. He spent his days "Calling for Florence, up the Saint Lawrence". The Argonauts hope they don't lose anything on the way, and they will be in for a tough fight when they get to Montreal. The Larks will be happy to stay in their bird cage and use Toronto in place of the usual lining of newspapers. Montreal by 9.

posted by Howard_T at 09:47 PM on October 30, 2014

Ham by 5

Cal by 4

EDM by 3

Mon by 4

posted by JPR at 04:30 PM on October 31, 2014

Hamilton by 4

Calgary by 7

Edmonton by 8

Montreal by 5

posted by Reever at 04:35 PM on October 31, 2014

Calgary by 13

Edmonton by 10

Montreal by 7

posted by rcade at 08:10 PM on October 31, 2014

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