It was only a matter of time, but now the real work begins.
A year after they crashed and burned in what turned out to be a rough 2017 CFL season, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are going back to the playoffs.
Hamilton clinched a postseason berth after the Calgary Stampeders doubled the Montreal Alouettes 12-6 Monday afternoon and will host the Eastern Final or Semifinal, depending on whether the Ticats finish in first or second in the division.
To that end, even though Hamilton has secured a spot in the playoffs with four weeks left in the regular season, there is much at stake.
The Ticats visit Toronto this Friday night before embarking on a pivotal home-and-home series against the first place Ottawa Redblacks and close out the regular season at home in Johnny Manziel’s first game back at Tim Hortons Field since he was traded to Montreal.
Run the table, and the Cats win the East and earn a first round playoff bye. Sweep the Redblacks — who beat Hamilton 21-15 in July — and the Ticats will be in the driver’s seat for the division crown. Split the series, and Hamilton will almost certainly finish second and host the western crossover playoff team — which at this point is B.C.
Lose both games against the Redblacks, and the Ticats won’t just end up in second place, they’ll be big underdogs should they advance to the East Final at TD Place Stadium.
The most likely scenario that I envision is 7-7 Hamilton winning three of their final four games and splitting their two-game set versus Ottawa.
The Redblacks — who also travel to Edmonton this week and close out the season by hosting Toronto — should finish 10-8 and clinch that all important first round bye.
But hey, that’s why they play the games. It should be an exciting sprint to the finish.
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