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Stuart is a writer and contributor to LWOS in the news and rumours department. Started in October of 2025. He is also a contributor to flameforthought.com as part of the FanSided network.
  • Canada Advances to 2025 Rugby World Cup Semi-Finals

    Canada Advances to 2025 Rugby World Cup Semi-Finals

    Canada over Australia

    Canada is off to the 2025 Rugby World Cup semi-finals against New Zealand. They achieved this after a dominant performance over Australia in the quarters with a score of 46-5. Sophie de Goode was named Player of the Match after scoring a try and converting four. Canada came out flying in the first minute. Asia Hogan-Rochester scored an opening try. Five minutes later, Australia’s Desiree Miller answered to tie it at 5.

    Canada steam rolled afterwards scoring 41 unanswered points, including tries from 5 different players, with Alysha Corrigan scoring 2.

    Canada’s semi-final opponent

    Canada’s next test is against a team they have only one win against, the New Zealand Black Ferns. In their own quarterfinal game, the Black Ferns faced South Africa. It was almost as revenge for the All-Blacks’ historic loss early this morning against the Springboks. The Black Ferns rolled to a 46-17 victory. The All-Blacks’ defeat by 33 points is the largest margin of defeat for them.

    Canada and New Zealand have met 19 times, with Canada winning one match, and drawing one. Take solace in the fact that the win and draw happened in the last two tests at the Pacific 4. There was a 22-19 victory in 2024 and a 27-27 draw in this year’s version. Canada’s last loss came at the hands of England on October 12, 2024. An unbeaten run of 15 test matches that’s about to face it’s toughest test in the RWC.

  • Canada’s Rising NFL Stars: A Look at 2025

    Canadian content has increased in the NFL with stars in Chuba Hubbard in Carolina, Chase Brown in Cincinnati , Sydney Brown in Philadelphia, and Jevon Holland with the New York Giants.

    In total over 20 Canadians, or ties to Canada were on active rosters to begin the season. Here’s the list and how they did.

    Name-Place of Birth-position and team

    Chuba Hubbard-Edmonton, AB- RB Carolina Panthers
    16 carries 57 yds, 3 catches 32 yards 1 TD 89 APY – loss to JAX

    Chase Brown-London, ON-RB Cincinnati Bengals
    21 carries 43 yds 1 TD, 2 catches 8 yds, 51 APY – win over CLE

    Sydney Brown-London, ON-S Philadelphia Eagles
    2 tackles – win over DAL

    Elic Ayomanor-Medicine Hat, AB-WR Tennessee Titans
    7 targets 2 catches 13 yds – loss to DEN

    Jevon Holland-Coquitlam, BC-S New York Giants
    8 tackles, 1 pass deflection – loss to WAS

    Theo Johnson-Winnipeg, MB-TE New York Giants
    3 targets 1 catch 5 yds – loss to WAS

    Nathan Shepherd-Ajax, ON-DT New Orleans Saints
    3 tackles – loss to ARI

    Neville Gallimore-Ottawa, ON-DL Indianapolis Colts
    1 pass deflection – win over MIA

    Alaric Jackson-Windsor, ON-T Los Angeles Rams
    OL Starter

    Josh Palmer-Toronto, ON-WR Buffalo Bills
    9 targets 5 catches 61 yds – win over BAL

    Tavius Robinson-Guelph, ON-OLB Baltimore Ravens
    5 tackles – loss to BUF

    Benjamin St-Juste-Montreal, QC-DB Washington Commanders
    2 tackles – win over KC

    Matthew Bergeron-Montreal, QC-OL Atlanta Falcons
    OL Starter

    Isaiah Adams-Ajax, ON-OL Arizona Cardinals
    OL Starter

    Theo Benedet-North Vancouver, BC-OL Chicago Bears
    Second string OL

    Michael Hoecht-Oakville, ON-DL Buffalo Bills
    Suspended PED

    Deane Leonard-Calgary, AB-DB Los Angeles Chargers
    IR

    Kurtis Rourke-Oakville, ON-QB San Francisco 49ers
    Non-football Injury List

    Born Outside of Canada but hold naturalized citizenship

    Giovanni Manu-Nuku’alofa, Tonga by way of Pitt Meadows, BC-OL Detroit Lions
    Second string OL

    John Metchie III-Taipei, Taiwan by way of Brampton, ON-WR Philadelphia Eagles
    Second string WR

    Amen Ogbongbemiga-Lagos, Nigeria by way of Calgary, AB-LB Chicago Bears
    IR

    Honorable Mentions – duel citizens through lineage

    Alex Singleton-Thousand Oaks, CA by way of Toronto, ON-LB Denver Broncos
    6 tackles 1 pass deflection – win over TEN

    Dalton Kincaid-Las Vegas, NV, by way of Sarnia, ON-TE Buffalo Bills
    4 targets 4 catches 48 yds 1 TD – win over BAL

    Taylor Rapp-Bellingham, WA by way of Canadian Father(can’t find details)-DB Buffalo Bills
    6 tackles – win over BAL

    Brett Rypien-Spokane, WA by way of Calgary, AB-QB Cincinnati Bengals
    PS

    Played University Football in Canada

    David Onyemata-Lagos, Nigeria by way of Winnipeg, MB-DL Atlanta Falcons
    DL Starter – loss to TB

    The Canadian flavour is indeed starting to grow in the NFL. Would like to have some of these guys in the CFL at some point but, we shall see what happens.

    All Stats from https://www.pro-football-reference.com/

  • Packers Make a Statement

    Green Bay Packers made a statement to the rest of the NFC North, if not the entire NFL despite the average performance throwing the ball by Jordan Love, going 16/22 and 188 yards passing adding on 2 touchdowns, and less than expected run game by Josh Jacobs (66yds on 19 carries). Packers defense was the story bar none, holding the Lions passing attack to 225 yards while only giving up 13 points, with the only touchdown given up when the game was already essentially decided. Picking up 4 sacks including the first sack for the new man Micah Parsons. The more impressive stats come by way of stopping the run, giving up just 2.1 yards per carry. With the Lions averaging 409 yards per game last season, the Packers limited them to 246 total yards. Defense wins championships, the issue for the Packers is the ability to continue holding the ball and extending drives after picking up 14 first downs and having a 40% success rate on third downs.

    Total plays were lopsided to the Lions 65-47, truly to only reason the Packers won this game was a combination of the defense playing well, and the Lions offense working out kinks with a new offensive coordinator. However the old cliche is valid for a reason, defense wins championships. It’s pretty obvious you’ll win more games if you don’t let them score.

    If the Packers are able to fix the offense, and become a dynamic team with dangerous passing attack and devastating run game, there’s a chance of a reemergence of Titletown in February.

  • Rugby Canada Update: Women Keep Flying, Men Luck Out

    First the matchup for the quarterfinal for Canada at the Rugby World Cup is set, second ranked Canada vs seventh ranked Australia is confirmed for September 13 at 9am MT after Canada defeated Scotland 40-19 and England defeat Australia 47-7. The Canadians did well to avoid England, and speaking far too soon (Australia is not an easy matchup) does set up a potential number one ranked vs number two ranked Finals, as England are on the other side of the bracket from Canada. Australia has been dominate through their first two matches in pool A that even with the 40 point loss, they remain +33 in point differential. In head to head matchups Canada holds a stranglehold over Australia winning all 7 matches so far, with the largest margin being 40 in 2017. Canada ranks first in tournament in offloads, runs, second in tries, points scored, conversions, and third in clean breaks. Australia ranks thirteenth in offloads, eighth in runs, fourth in tries, points scored, conversions, and seventh in clean breaks. If Canada can play the Canadian way, there should be no issues in moving on to the semi-finals and playing for a World Cup title.

    On the other side of the ledger, Canada’s win in the opener of the Pacific Nations Cup over the US proved to be enough. USA fell to Japan 47-21, meaning that Canada has qualified for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. A massive accomplishment with still more to improve upon to bring the Men’s side back to a respectable level. Canada now faces Pacific powerhouse Fiji in the PNC semi-final on September 14, with a 3:35pm kickoff MT.

    Congratulations to both squads for their achievements so far this season. Let’s Go Canada!

  • The Issues With the NCAA Football and How it Will Never be Fixed

    NCAA Football has been a favored pastime of many in the US and Canada for generations, with classic rivalry games, the New Years Six games, and the pageantry of winning a National Championship. For years the BCS ruled the rankings and decided the National Championship game, now it’s a 12 team playoff. Winning any bowl game truly mattered (some more than others), now it’s all about the “New Years Six”. Can we even call them that anymore? Players were developed into respectable young men with the dream of playing professionally, now they are considered professional with the NIL deals, something I understand but can’t get behind. Transfers were once rare, a starter being replaced by a freshman, a slighted redshirt player looking to show their ability to the NFL. Now is a torrential down pour of “how much will I get for playing for you?” questions, instead of “how will you develop me into being a true professional?”.

    It’s detrimental to the game of football, and it’s becoming evident with a potential second overall pick in terms of skill in Shedeur Sanders falling to 144th. I have no doubt the reason why he fell so far, attitude.

    It’s a growing epidemic that will cause a chain reaction that will make the NFL unwatchable after the current generation of player retire from the league, much like the NBA currently. Ego’s need to be punctured quickly before it gets too far. I fear it already has, the floodgates have been opened, and they will not be closed.

  • Tribute to a Legend

    One of the greatest goaltenders of all-time has passed away, #29 of the Montreal Canadiens.

    Ken Dryden.

    Words can not describe the feeling of loss around the hockey world. Ken Dryden was the epitome of class and hockey royalty. His impact on the game of hockey and the community of Montreal can’t be overstated. A six time Stanley Cup Champion, all with the Canadiens and starting goaltender for team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series against the USSR, arguably the greatest Canadian team ever assembled. 1971 Conn Smythe winner, 1972 Calder Trophy winner, and Vezina Trophy winner in 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979.

    The hockey world mourns the loss of a true legend of the sport.

    “Nothing is as good as it used to be, and it never was. The “golden age of sports,” the golden age of anything, is the age of everyone’s childhood.”
    ― Ken Dryden, The Game

  • Next Man Up: Calgary Stampeders’ Resilience Amid Injury Challenges

    The Calgary Stampeders injury list is one of the longest if not the longest in the CFL, the 6 game injury list is:
    Reggie Begelton 84 WR
    Bryce Bell 66 OL
    Nicky Farinaccio 41 LB
    Anthony Federico 94 DL
    Anton Haie 8 DB
    Malik Henry 11 WR
    George Idoko 47 DL
    Jason Janvier-Messier 71 DL
    Gary Johnson JR 56 LB
    Ben Labrosse 29 DB
    Marquel Lee 50 LB
    Kyle Saxelid

    On the one game list for the Saturday matchup with Edmonton in the Labour Day Rematch:
    Morice Blackwell JR 45 LB
    D’Antne Demery 60 OL
    Adrian Greene 0 DB
    Justin Herdman-Reed 59 LB
    William Langlais 23 RB
    Josh Love 16 QB (Not injured but not on practice roster)
    Tyler Richardson 35 DB

    Looking at this list and with star players Reggie Begelton, Malik Henry, Marquel Lee, Bryce Bell on the shelf for the majority of the season, in Henry’s case almost a full 3 years, is astouding that the Stampeders are where they are at all. So much talent on the IL, and yet they keep winning games. It’s something we haven’t seen in Calgary in a couple years when one player goes down another is ready to take over. I don’t believe in injuries costing a starting role, but it’s something that happens in football, a player get there chance to shine and they run with it and make it impossible to remove from the lineup. Chris Fortin is a fantastic example of the next man up mentality after Bryce Bell went down in week one, Fortin stepped into the Center role with ease. A true rookie stepping into the center position is something that is almost impossible to do without bad snaps, bad reads on the line and he has fit in to that role with ease. It’s something that Stampeder fans should be taking note of, as well as the CFL as a whole. The Stampeders lead the league in sacks allowed through 11 games, with 11. A sack against per game is something that is seriously impressive and doesn’t happen without communication from the center about who’s blocking who. The other aspect of a center is in the run game, the double team and reaching the second level, well the Stampeders lead the league in rushing yards and the only team above 1300 yards this season.

    On the other side of the ball, Jacob Roberts has broken out as a star for the Stampeders after Marquel Lee exited the game against Toronto, moving Micah Teitz to the middle and elevating Roberts to the weak side linebacker role. Now Jacob Roberts is in contention for Most Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year award, if not one of the front runners. Leading the Stampeders in tackles with 65, good for 4th in the league, and is everywhere on the field around the ball becoming one of the best players on the Stampeders.

    The next man up mantra has been within the Stampeders for decades starting with the reign of Wally Buono.

  • NHL Preseason Predictions: Who Will Lift the Stanley Cup in 2026?

    The day are growing shorter, the leaves are turning colour, the NFL is about to kick off, the march to October has started in the MLB, which means one thing. The NHL season is right around the corner. We are less than a month away from NHL preseason starting across the league and the belief for most teams is having one goal in mind, hoisting the Stanley Cup. For all but one team the season will end in bitter disappointment and the questions of what if will fill fans thoughts for years to come.

    Attempting to predict the NHL season is like trying to predict where aliens are in the universe, you know they’re somewhere but have no idea where or where to place them. But I’m giving it a shot, the way I’ll be doing it is determining where in each division each team will place, and working who’s in the wildcard after. So, like with everything I write, why not? Let me know in the comments how you feel about this list.

    *=Wildcard

    Western Conference

    Pacific
    1. Edmonton Oilers
    2. Vegas Golden Knights
    3. Vancouver Canucks
    4. Calgary Flames*
    5. Anaheim Ducks
    6. Los Angeles Kings
    7. San Jose Sharks
    8. Seattle Kraken

    Central
    1. Colorado Avalanche
    2. Winnipeg Jets
    3. Minnesota Wild
    4. Dallas Stars*
    5. Nashville Predators
    6. St. Louis Blues
    7. Utah Mammoth
    8. Chicago Blackhawks

    Eastern Conference

    Metropolitan
    1. New Jersey Devils
    2. Carolina Hurricanes
    3. New York Islanders
    4. Washington Capitals
    5. Columbus Blue Jackets
    6. New York Rangers
    7. Philadelphia Flyers
    8. Pittsburgh Penguins

    Atlantic
    1. Ottawa Senators
    2. Florida Panthers
    3. Montreal Canadiens
    4. Toronto Maple Leafs*
    5. Tampa Bay Lightning*
    6. Detroit Red Wings
    7. Buffalo Sabres
    8. Boston Bruins

    These standings would set up the following playoff matchups

    West
    P1. Edmonton Oilers
    WC2. Calgary Flames

    P2. Vegas Golden Knights
    P3. Vancouver Canucks

    C1. Colorado Avalanche
    WC1. Dallas Stars

    C2. Winnipeg Jets
    C3. Minnesota Wild

    East
    M1. New Jersey Devils
    WC2. Tampa Bay Lightning

    M2. Carolina Hurricanes
    M3. New York Islanders

    A1. Ottawa Senators
    WC1. Toronto Maple Leafs

    A2. Florida Panthers
    A3. Montreal Canadiens

    Western Conference Champions
    Winnipeg Jets

    Eastern Conference Champions
    New Jersey Devils

    2026 Stanley Cup Champions

    Winnipeg Jets

    In my opinion this could be the most wide open season in the NHL since the original six days of yesteryear.

  • Canadiens Roster Insights for Upcoming Season

    Le Club du Hockey Canadiens are one of the oldest and most successful hockey teams in the world and looking to get back to the promised land of winning a 25th Stanley Cup, and I believe their roster is getting close to getting there, missing a offensive superstar (could be Cole Caufield or Ivan Demidov) to pair with Lane Hutson, add on a solid number one goalie and they’re back into the fight with a vengeance. So setting up their lineup to open the season is an interest proposition. So I’m going to. However they have to shed around $6 million to be cap compliant, that’ll likely come from putting goaltender Carey Price onto Long Term Injury Reserve. It’s the last year of the contract for Carey Price before his official retirement from the NHL. A few years after that, into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

    Forwards (LW-C-RW)
    Cole Caufield-Nick Suzuki-Juraj Slafkovski
    Zach Bolduc-Kirby Dach-Ivan Demidov
    Brenden Gallagher-Jake Evans-Patrik Laine
    Joe Veleno-Alex Newhook-Josh Anderson

    Defense (LD-RD)
    Lane Hutson-Noah Dobson
    Caiden Guhle-Alex Carrier
    Arber Xhekaj-David Reinbacher

    Goalies
    Samuel Montembeault
    Kaapo Kahkonen

  • 2025 NFL Season Predictions: Playoff and Division Standings

    The NFL kicks off the season tomorrow night and my curiosity is aroused as to how the season will play out, using https://v2.playoffpredictors.com/home I’m attempting to predict the entire 2025 NFL season. Starting with division standings, then setting up playoffs and eventual Super Bowl winner. Let’s start with the AFC and the AFC East Division

    AFC East
    Buffalo Bills – 15-2
    Miami Dolphins – 7-10
    New England Patriots – 6-11
    New York Jets – 4-13

    AFC West
    Denver Broncos – 14-3
    Kansas City Chiefs – 11-6
    Las Vegas Raiders – 9-8
    Los Angeles Chargers – 5-12

    AFC North
    Baltimore Ravens – 13-4
    Cincinnati Bengals – 13-4
    Pittsburgh Steelers – 8-9
    Cleveland Browns – 3-14

    AFC South
    Houston Texans – 8-9
    Indianapolis Colts – 8-9
    Tennessee Titans – 4-13
    Jacksonville Jaguars – 4-13

    Playoff matchups in this scenario for the AFC would end up being:

    1 Buffalo Bills
    Bye

    2 Denver Broncos
    7 Las Vegas Raiders

    3 Baltimore Ravens
    6 Kansas City Chiefs

    4 Houston Texans
    5 Cincinnati Bengals

    NFC is up next with the NFC East.

    NFC East
    Washington Commanders – 15-2
    Philadelphia Eagles – 14-3
    Dallas Cowboys – 5-12
    New York Giants – 2-15

    NFC West
    Los Angeles Rams – 13-4
    San Francisco 49ers – 11-6
    Seattle Seahawks – 9-8
    Arizona Cardinals – 7-10

    NFC North
    Green Bay Packers – 16-1
    Detroit Lions – 12-5
    Minnesota Vikings – 10-7
    Chicago Bears – 4-13

    NFC South
    Atlanta Falcons – 11-6
    New Orleans Saints – 7-10
    Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 4-13
    Carolina Panthers – 1-16

    The NFC playoff structure looks like this:

    1 Green Bay Packers
    Bye

    2 Washington Commanders
    7 San Francisco 49ers

    3 Los Angeles Rams
    6 Detroit Lions

    4 Atlanta Falcons
    5 Philadelphia Eagles

    My Wildcard round predictions are

    AFC
    Broncos over Raiders
    Ravens over Chiefs
    Bengals over Texans

    NFC
    Commanders over 49ers
    Lions over Rams
    Eagles over Falcons

    The Divisional round picks are

    AFC
    Bills over Bengals
    Ravens over Broncos

    NFC
    Packers over Lions
    Eagles over Commanders

    Conference Champions

    AFC Champions
    Buffalo Bills

    NFC Champions
    Green Bay Packers

    Leading to a Super Bowl Championship for…

    SUPER BOWL LX CHAMPIONS

    BUFFALO BILLS