the 4th star

Winnipeg Blue Bombers (3-7) vs Montreal Alouettes (8-2)
Sunday, noon
South of Quebec City, Quebec

1. Seriously Mike Kelly, why go back to a well that is bone dry?
You rip the players on offence — singling out the quarterback play repeatedly — following the St, James Slaughter and what do you do? You tell everyone this week that Damon Allen Michael Bishop is going to be your guy on Sunday. Nice quote from the head coach regarding Bishop in Friday’s Sun: “He’s gone above and beyond what I had anticipated to get himself into a position to be successful. No one should ever sell Michael Bishop short because he’s done an outstanding job here.” Do you even know what ‘outstanding’ means? Who believes anything this guy says? New five receiver sets or not, I’m sure the guys paid to catch the ball are thrilled with the lack of new direction.

2. What about that Bombers defence?
Overlooked in the Canad Inns Crushing (ed note — how many of these can I come up with?) was the putrid play of the defenders. Tough to point the finger at them when the team as a whole is so crappy, but they need to be better. It’s the only chance Winnipeg has. Period. The much-ballyhooed unit made zero plays as they had 55 points hung on them in the Rider Romp, and the test gets no easier this week. Montreal had its way with the Blue in a 39-12 blasting a month ago, so the stars seemed aligned for another bombing. If that happens Winnipeg fans, don’t worry. Doug Brown feels for you. He really does.

3. Can we get to the bottom of this?
If Winnipeg lays down again, then I think it’s safe to say we’d be near the bottom. The question is: How deep is it? That’s the scary part — no one really knows. Given the ridiculous statements about his pivot plans this past week (how Casey Bramlet will definitely get a look, clipping off any confidence Bishop might have regarding his standing with Kelly), the Bombers have basically waved the white flag before they even boarded the plane. Is another blow-out coming? I doubt it, but if it does come to pass, and fans back in Winnipeg fire up their Facebook pages once again, maybe Kelly can look up in the stands and admire the way football fans support a winner. Hard work and moral victories.

This past summer has been all about the money. There was the unrestricted free agent *frenzy.* That was around the same time the Phoenix Coyotes financial problems came into the spotlight, when BlackBerry billionaire Jim Balsillie threw his two cents into the fray and the league kept talking out of both sides of its mouth. You know, the place they seem reluctant to put their money in.

Screwed up contracts — both legitimate Chicago fuck-ups and the over-spending variety — became commonplace, and some players decided to gamble on the bigger payday in Russia. Terms like “escrow” and “cap numbers” came to be a part of the conversation, too. Then there was even more change — and even less sense — from Patrick Kane, who allegedly tag-teamed a Buffalo cab driver with his cousin over 20 cents.

It seems talk of climbing out of this recession has put money on the mind and our mind on the money, so in the spirit of cash, let’s take a look at all 21 teams 30 teams as training camps get set to fire up this month. Like most financial ventures, some teams will offer a greater return than others.

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

Atlantic Division
2008-09 record: 51-27-4, first in the division, third in the conference
Cap space: $6.242 million

Tip sheet:
Used to be the Kansas City Scouts/Colorado Rockies franchise, in case you forgot…Martin Brodeur was taken like 10 picks after Trever Kidd. In fact, the Flames traded up to get the Devils pick to take the checkered-padded one…David Putty remains the most famous Devils fan. El Diablo, El Diablo. That poor priest…Scott Stevens would have made a great inside linebacker or strong safety.

Fun fact:
Old New head coach Jacques Lemaire has vowed to be more offensive this season, swearing in French and in English.

You should really invest in this club because…
Brendan Shanahan. Call me old school, but I love this guy. Here’s a quote from Shanny, on the Devils wearing a New Jersey throwback with the green trim this season: “It won’t be as weird for me. They’ll feel more familiar. It’s probably a bad sign when you wore the throwback jersey.”

The bottom will fall out with…
Counting on Brian Rolston as your No. 1 centre. Not a favourable match-up when playing the Crosby/Malkin Penguins.

Key acquisition:
Can’t see any new hounds on their roster, so let’s say getting Brodeur back for a full season. I find it amazing that he only makes $5.2 million a season.

Bottom line:
In Lou we trust. With Lamoriello handling the general managing duties, this team is a lock for the post season. They’ve only missed out once in the last 18 seasons.