Courtesy Stan Peters of CFL Digest:

MISSING IN ACTION

I hope Digest readers will forgive me for being M.I.A. for a couple of weeks, but that’s what happens when Stampede rolls around.

Employers, wives and girlfriends can attest to this, and so can Stampeder fans, who’s beloved team high-tails it out of dodge every year at this time, partly due to competition for the entertainment dollar, and, presumably, in part, because the temptation to party is irresistible when the big show is here.

So this year’s road show saw the Red & White make stops in Edmonton and Montreal on consecutive Thursdays, and they came home with a split….could’ve been perfect if it weren’t for Jason Tucker’s catch that will make every highlight reel this year and probably next.

Most important for the Stamps, that “gut-it-out” win in the La Belle province marked the club’s first “W” outside of Alberta since 2006. Even with the new regime and on field personnel, THAT’S a big monkey to shake.

There were a couple of significant personnel changes at McMahon this week too. The most notable being the release of Ben Sankey (Where will he end up? I still say Saskatchewan.)

And the tougher loss, which has flown under the radar of most message boards, is the release of RB Ken Simonton. This is the guy that basically beat Wes Cates out of a job in Calgary, and rolled up well over 100 yards rushing in his one start last season. He is a good one - even a great one - and it hurts to see him go. Hufnagel says it was his salary that forced the move, and rookie Demetris Summers has shown he can be an adequate backup at a fraction of the cost.

The other eyebrow raiser of course was the return of DL Anthony Gargiulo, who most thought was finished with football after the controversial “block” by BC’s Jason Jiminez. It remains to be seen whether he can return to form and help fill some of the injury holes on the D line.

Speaking of the “D” - who’d have thunk after three games the Calgary defence would be number one in the league against the run? With so many rookies, and 4 injured linemen? It would have been nice to see them put to the test by Jesse Lumsden tomorrow night, but alas, this is one Jesse’s no-goes.

A whuppin of the Lumsden-less Cats for one of just two home games this summer…. just what the doctor ordered for that Stampede hangover.