Perry Lefko

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on Sportsnet.ca.

Geroy Simon of the B.C. Lions.

It is now down to two games,

The winners go to the Grey Cup, the losers go home.

The joints will be rocking in Montreal and Regina.

But will it be the Als or the visiting B.C. Lions advancing from the East – yeah, it still is odd that a West team could be representing the East – or Saskatchewan or Calgary from the West?

For Perry’s Peerless Predictions, it has been an interesting season full of prognostications that have been met with mixed reaction. Winning wasn’t necessarily enough; beating the spread had to be accomplished, too. And it has been a challenge, as last week would attest.

We had a record of 1-1 on straight picks, but went 0-2 against the spread.

So, we move forward.

B.C. at MONTREAL:

The Lions are a completely different team with quarterback Casey Printers.

He showed in the East semi-final his ability to escape pressure and throw the ball away to avoid big losses. But the Lions made numerous mistakes on offence, much of it because of the crowd noise.

It figures to be even more prominent in Montreal, where the sound reverberates off the roof. B.C. has been working with deafening noise in practice, including music by Metallica. We can only assume Enter Sandman will have them revved up. Against Hamilton, the Lions silenced the crowd for a long part of the game, and obviously that will be the intent again.

The Lions may try to exploit the Als’ defence going long early, but the key to this game from an offensive point of view is serious positive yardage on first down.

The real key, however, is defence.

The Lions have to stop the run. It has been their major weakness all season long. They are a team that is collectively beat up, and it showed last week against the Ticats. The fact they have to travel across the country again is bound to take its toll. Als are well rested and they have maintained a strong focus. They lost to B.C. out west during the regular season and beat them by only four points the following week. This could prove to be a major challenge, especially with Printers, who can move outside the pocket.

The key is getting going on offence quickly. The best defence for the Als is the offence, chewing up the clock and yards. The Als are not expected to blitz, so that means the onus will be on the team’s end to maintain their lanes. The Als have been too strong all season long and there is no reason to doubt them now. Randall the Handle has the Als favoured by 10.

Pick: Als to win (but not to cover the spread).

Calgary at Saskatchewan:

The Stamps are one game away from a chance to defend their Grey Cup from a year ago, but they are not nearly as dominant. The only chance they have to be reasonably competitive is to find a way to somehow get going in their passing game. Unless Jeremaine Copeland and Nik Lewis get more involved and find a way into the end zone, this will end up being more of a run-offence for Calgary.

Henry Burris will have to battle the crowd noise, but he’s dealt with it before. Both he and running back Joffrey Reynolds can help the passing game by moving the chains on the ground. You know Burris will be paying attention to the zone read all game. The defence has to get to Riders’ quarterback Darian Durant early to test his mental fortitude in the biggest game of his career.

And the Stamps need to be disciplined, too. It has proven to be their undoing on several defensive stops.

The Riders have it all going for them.

They’re playing at home and have the crowd support. It may be as long as in Montreal. The Riders have been beat up in recent weeks, but the time off should have helped. Riders absolutely smoked the Stamps in the final regular-season game, overcoming a horrific effort in Hamilton, which may have been flu-related.

Ends Stevie Baggs and John Chick will have to be careful of Burris pulling it down. Veteran defensive back Eddie Davis is expected to be added to the lineup. A big key in this game could be the Riders’ return game. Jason Armstead has solidified one of the weaker aspects of the team earlier in the season.

Randall has the Riders’ by three.

Pick is: Saskatchewan to cover.