CFL.ca Staff

TORONTO -- As Week 17 came to a close, it's clear that the post-season picture is beginning to sort itself out.

This week, another team joined the party, as the Roughriders punched their ticket to the proverbial dance, while two others, the Alouettes and Lions secured their spots in the Eastern and Western Division Finals respectively.

On Friday night, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers kept their slim playoff hopes alive, as they outlasted Ricky Ray and the Toronto Argonauts 44-32 at Rogers Centre. Later that same night, Mike Reilly and the Lions downed the Edmonton Eskimos 39-19 at BC Place Stadium.

Saturday featured some more double-header action, as the Alouettes came out on top of a back-and-forth outing over the Roughriders 34-28 at Mosaic Stadium, while the Stampeders and Tiger-Cats battled each other and elements, in a thriller that saw the Stamps come out on top of a 34-32 decision.

Winnipeg 44, Toronto 32
Buck Pierce returned to action against the team that knocked him out of the lineup and lead the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to a huge 44-32 win over the Toronto Argonauts to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Pierce's stats were not overwhelming - passing for 200 yards on 13 of 22 - but did engineer four touchdown drives in the win.  He also got help from his running backs who accounted for 278 all-purpose yards.  Chad Simpson generated 136 of those on the ground and also added a touchdown.

With the win, the Bombers pull into a tie with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats with 10 points but sit ahead of them in the standings by owning the season series.  With Toronto's loss, the Montreal Alouettes clinched the Eastern Division title and will host the East Final on November 18.

» Video: Winnipeg at Toronto Recap
» Images: WPG at TOR
» View Game Stats
» Bombers ground attack dominates
» Video: Vega Makes Unlikely TD Catch
» Video: Ray Finds Durie For 37-Yard TD
» Video: Barnes Hauls in First of Three
» Video: Simpson Dives into the endzone

BC 39, Edmonton 19
If Travis Lulay needs some extra time to heal his injured shoulder, the BC Lions would be in excellent hands with his backup Mike Reilly.

Reilly, making his first career CFL start, completed 19 of his 28 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Lions to a 39-19 win over the Edmonton Eskimos on Friday night.

With the win, the Lions clinched first place in the West Division, and will host the Western Final at BC Place Stadium on Nov. 18.

The Lions also received an excellent performance from kicker Paul McCallum, who connected on all six of his field goal attempts, the longest of which arrived from 48 yards out.

» Video: Edmonton at BC Recap
» Images: EDM at BC
» View Game Stats
» Video: Koch Miraculous TD Catch
» Video: Taylor Hauls in 11-Yard TD
» Video: Moore's 10-Yard TD Grab
» Harris runs into record books

Montreal 34, Saskatchewan 28
Bo Bowling caught his first career touchdown and Anthony Calvillo rushed for a pair of majors for the first time in his career as the Montreal Alouettes defeated the Saskatchewan Roughriders 34-28 at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.

Calvillo finished 16 of 28 for 262 yards passing and 1 touchdown to go alongside the two rushing scores.  Jamel Richardson lead the way for all receivers with 8 catches for 161 yards - his second 100-plus yard game in a row.

» Video: Montreal at Saskatchewan Recap
» Images: MTL at SSK
» View Game Stats
» Video: Bowling Lays Out For First TD
» Video: Dressler's 66-Yard Punt Ret TD
» Video: Calvillo Runs For Second TD
» Man on the Run: Calvillo does legwork in Als win

Calgary 34, Hamilton 32
The Calgary Stampeders held off a determined Hamilton Tiger-Cats squad, whose comeback fell just short, in a wild 34-32 win over the Ticats on a snowy Saturday night at McMahon Stadium in Calgary.

A see-saw battle saw the Ticats storm back with a touchdown and an onside kick recovery, with a chance to win the game on a Luca Congi field goal but the slippery pigskin got away from holder Andy Fantuz with no time on the clock and Stamps squeaked out the win with Congi unable to get the kick off.

Keon Raymond's 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter turned momentum early for Calgary, which fought back from an early 10-0 deficit to wrap up second place in the West Division and home advantage in the first round of the CFL playoffs.

Jon Cornish added two touchdowns, while Maurice Price scored his first career major on a 55-yard catch for the Stamps.

» Images: HAM at CGY
» View Game Stats
» Stamps weather the storm in win
» Video: Raymond's 100-Yard Pick Six
» Video: Bakari Grant Opens the Scoring
» Video: Price notches First Career TD
» Video: Williams Finds Space For Major
» Video: Cornish Runs and Dives For 7